In concluding this article we must not forget to remark, that, in the present tranflation, the numerous quotations of Plutarch from the poets are rendered into verfe, with great propriety and elegance. We muft, at the fame time, exprefs our regret, that the Tranflators have not thought it proper to fupply the four parallels of their Author, which are fuppofed to be loft: they had thereby a fine opportunity of enriching their verfion, and of offering a very acceptable prefent to the lovers of lite rature. ART. IV. En Essay towards a rational Syftem of Mufic. By John Holden. 4to. 7 s. 6d. half bound. Glasgow, printed by Urie. 1770. HIS treatise, which is intended to explain in a rational and familiar way, and to difpofe in a fyftematic order, the feveral principles of the doctrine of mufic, is divided into two parts. The first part contains the rudiments of practical mufic, and confift of, 1. The natural fcale. 2. The application of the scale. 3. The modern fyftem of mufic. 4. Of time. 5. Miscellaneous explanations. 6. Of harmonical confonances. diffonances. 8. Of fundamental progreffions. 9. Of the flat feries. 10. Of chromatic. II. Of plain defcant. 12. Of-figurative melody. The fecond part contains the theory of mufic; and confifts, 1. Of single musical founds. 2. Of musical founds in fucceffion. 3. Of harmonical arithmetic. 4. Of combined founds. Our mufical Readers will find a great deal of scientific care and labour employed in this Effay, and many new remarks on the art, which are not unworthy of their attention. The following observations, in the article oF TIME, discover the Author to be a man of tafte, as well as a man of science. The divifion of mufic into equal timed measures, answers exactly to the divifion of poetry into feet: and when music is adapted to poetry, thefe divifions, moft naturally, coincide with each other; fo that he who can scan the verses, may immediately discover the measure of the fong. It must be acknowledged, that this order is pretty often interrupted, especially in the works of the more eminent compofers; and more, or lefs, than one foot of the poetry, allotted to one measure of the mufic: but then, fuch paffages are, in fome degree, ftrained and unnatural; and are introduced for variety, or for heightening the expreffion of fome paffion, etc. and ought to be ufed with great caution and skill. The most natural and eafy paffages are expreffive of a calm unruffled temper of mind; but when any violent emotion is supposed supposed to take place, the ftrict rules both of tune and time, in mufic, may, and ought to be partly fet afide. Our attention is ftill more liable to be diverted from obferving the strict rules of time, by the fenfe of the words, in poetry; but fo far as we may be fuppofed at liberty to regard the time, of poetry, we fhall find that the very fame rules take place here, as in mufic; viz. the fucceffive feet of a verse, moft naturally, require each an equal time of pronunciation; the first fyllable of every foot is accented; and every foot is, in imagination, divided either into three, or into four, equal parts. The two first of thefe particulars will plainly appear to all, who are, in the leaft degree, accuftomed to the reading of poetry; and the last particular, though not quite fo obvious, will be found equally true, on a more careful examination. Befides the diftribution of mufic into equal measures, it is alfo neceffary to go yet further, and to imagine fome numbers of fuch measures, as conftituting certain phrafes, or firains; of a tune. Thefe phrafes may, very aptly, be compared with verses, in poetry: for, as there can be no poetry, without a proper intermixture of cadences, at the ends of the lines, fo there can be no mufic, without fome kind of partition into phrases. These phrafes contain more, or fewer meafures, as verfes confift of more or fewer feet; but both muft always end with an accented part of the measure. When the fucceffive phrafes in mufic are of unequal lengths, it resembles that kind of free, unconfined poetry, which is commonly called Pindaric: and, as this fort of compofition is the moft capable of variety of expreffion; fo, the greatest mafters, both in poetry and mufic, often make use of it. A lively expreflion of the feveral fentiments and paffions, is undoubtedly the pertection of mufic, as well as of poetry and painting. There are numberless different modifications of founds, which a fkilful compofer may avail himfelf of, for this purpose; fuch as the different qualities of loud and foft, of hoarfe or rough, and clear or fmooth founds: the various degrees of gravity and acuteness, in the pitch of the whole piece;" the different effects of certain degrees of the fcale, and of certain fucceffions in the melody of fingle parts, as well as of confonances, in the harmony of compounded parts; befides several other circumftances in the manner of performance, fuch as the diftinct, or fepping, and the indiftinct, or fliding manner; the keeping one uniform equality of loudnefs, and the occafional fwelling or foftening of the founds, etc. and, among the reft, the different moods of time, have no fmall fhare in contributing to the expreffion of mufic. Thefe come in courfe to be fpoke of, before we conclude this chapter. 'The The particular manners, and modulations of the voice, which, naturally, or by the cuftom of a particular country, babitually accompany fuch emotions of the mind, in common fpeech, are the fureft guides to expreffion in mufic. From hence we conclude, in general, that flow or quick movements of mufic ought to be introduced, according as the sentiment, intended to be expreffed, would require a flow or quick delivery, in the way of speaking: and of this it is very easy to judge. For inftance, forrow, humility, and reverence, require a flow movement, with gentle, eafy inflexions of the voice; but joy, thanksgiving, and triumph, ought to be diftinguished by a quicker movement, with bolder inflexions, and more diftant leaps, from one found to another. A moderate movement, with frequent fwells, and foftenings, is expreffive of tenderness and compaffion; a quicker, more uniform, and strongly accented movement, expreffes refolution and fortitude. Anger is generally quick, loud, and unconnected; hope and expectation, more moderate, foft, and eafy, and fo of others. The different forts of time have, in fome degree, each their peculiar character. Common time is naturally more grave and folemn triple time, more cheerful and airy. And for this reafon, it is generally agreed, that every mood of triple time ought to be performed fomething quicker, than the correfpondent mood of common time; for inftance, the measure in the flow triple of minims, ought to be made fhorter than the measure in the flow common time, marked with a plain C; and the meafure, in the triple of crotchets, fhould be fhorter than the measure, in the mood of the barred C; and so on. After all, it must be acknowledged, that the absolute time which ought to be allowed to different pieces, is the most undetermined matter, that we meet with, in the whole fcience of mufic. There is one infuperable difficulty, which fruftrates all attempts towards regulating this particular, viz. the different humours and taffes of different perfons; which are fo various, that one perfon fhall think a tune much too quick, for the intended expreffion, while another thinks it not quick enough. If we proceed upon thefe principles, which seem most reasonable, that thofe who have a brifker flow of spirits, a more ready conception, and a quicker fucceffion of ideas, require quicker mufic, for the fame expreffion, and vice verfa; we may conclude, in regard to church mufic, that the fame pfalm ought to be fung quicker, when the congregation confifts mostly of young people; and flower, when the greater part are old: quicker, in general, in a town, than in a country church; quicker, in places where mufic is more generally practifed; and flower, where it is lefs in ufe: quicker, when only one fingle fingle part is fung, and flower, as the parts are more numerous; because the ideas of fingle founds are much more readily conceived, than thofe of feveral founds, joined together in harmony: quicker, when the voices are few and weak, and flower, when the choir is numerous and ftrong; because nothing can be quite agreeable to the hearers, which feems laborious to the performers. Many other fuch like diftinctions, according to the various circumftances, both of performers and hearers, will occur to the confiderate reader, from the fame principles. These observations may, with equal propriety, be extended to opera mufic. The Italians, whofe compofitions are juftly efteemed the ftandards of true tafte in mufic, do not reftrict themselves altogether to the diftinctions of flow and quick, by the several moods, as above defcribed; but rather make ufe of certain words, placed at the beginning of the piece, and elsewhere, as occafion requires; which ferve to direct the performer, not only in regard to the time, but also the particular expreffion, and manner of performance. We hall conclude this chapter with obferving, that the writers on church mufic feem to be pretty well agreed, that the time of a second may ferve, at a medium, for the length of a crotchet, in pfalm tunes, in the triple of crotchets, and in the mood of the barred C; and that the minim, in the triple of minims, ought to be made nearly equal to the crotchet, in the mood of the plain C; and that either of thefe two ought to be longer than the second of a clock.' The chapter on chromatic mufic (that is, the fucceffion which afcends or defcends by femitones) in particular, is very ingenious. ART. V. A Letter to the Jurors of Great Britain. Occafioned by an Opinion of the Court of King's Bench, read by Lord Chief Justice Mansfield, in the Cafe of the King and Woodfall, and Jaid to have been left by his Lordship with the Clerk of Parlia ment. 8vo. I s. 6d. Pearch. 1771. T HE eftablishment of a jury has juftly been regarded as the great bulwark of English liberty. In every other government the administration of criminal jurifdiction has been vested in particular men; and thefe, confcious of their authority, and expofed to corruption, have been feldom able to support their integrity. But the judicature of crimes, in this country, being lodged in the great body of the nation, no oppreffion can take place. Tried by his equals, or his peers, the criminal has nothing to fear from the tyranny, the injuftice, or the paffions of judges. The inftitution, accordingly, of a jury has been mentioned with the highest eulogiums; and, perhaps, the wif. dom dom of man cannot fuggeft a more effectual prefervative against the venality of magiftrates, and the encroachments of power. When an attack, therefore, has been made on this important privilege, it must neceffarily excite a very general alarm. In a country where every individual confiders himself, in fome measure, as a part of the legiflature, and where equal and known laws protect alike the artifan and the noble, even the loweft claffes of men pay an attention to public affairs; and the people, in general, are enlightened with refpect to the nature and the ends of government. They are not blind to the faults of their rulers like the fubjects of a defpot; they are entitled to think and to speak; they have rights to defend, and will not tamely behold their infringement. The doctrine contained in the opinion, which has given occafion to the prefent publication, is conceived by our Author to be contrary to law and the fpirit of our conftitution. He afferts, in oppofition to it, the full powers of an English jury; and proves, with much force of argument, that, from the forms of proceeding, from the defign of the inftitution, and from the conftant practice of our ancestors, jurors ought of right and duty to determine the whole complicated charge in the profecution of a libel. The guilt or innocence of human actions, as he expreffes himself, is, doubtlefs, in this country, to be determined by juries; and we cannot but agree with him in opinion, that nothing lefs than the total abolition of the trial by our peers can wreft from them this falutary and exclufive right. In the courfe of his performance the intelligent reader will perceive, that the writer poffeffes a masterly knowledge of our conftitution, and is well acquainted with the general principles of criminal jurifprudence. In the following extract, in particular, there is much acutenefs and ftrength of reasoning. • When the verdict of the jury in the King and Woodfall was first known, I found no difficulty in pronouncing it an acquittal. The exprefs negation of all evil intention appeared to my understanding, fo repugnant to the idea of a crime, that I paid little attention to the cavils of fome loquacious Templars, who feemed to be puzzled with technical difficulties, the nature of which they themselves did not comprehend. These difficulties became important, when adopted by higher authority. It was charged in the information that Mr. Woodfall did, wickedly and maliciously, with intent to ftir up fedition, &c. print and publish a certain fcandalous libel, figned Junius, which followed verbatim, with proper innuendoes. The jury found him Guilty of printing and publishing only. No words can be lefs liable to mifreprefentation. Only excludes every thing which is not exprefly found; that is, every thing but printing and pub-, I lishing |