Shakespeare and Music Part 7

_Hor._ Madam, _'tis now in tune_.

_Luc._ All but the _base_.

_Hor._ _The base is right_; 'tis the _base knave that jars_.

Hortensio now takes his place, and addresses the cla.s.sical Lucentio--

L. 58.

_Hor._ You may go walk, and give me leave awhile: My _lessons_ make no music in _three parts_.

L. 63.

_Hor._ Madam, before you _touch_ the instrument, To learn the _order of my fingering_, I must begin with _rudiments_ of art; To teach you _gamut_ in a briefer sort.

_Bianca._ Why, I am _past my gamut_ long ago.

_Hor._ Yet read the gamut of Hortensio.

The first of these three pa.s.sages will be quite clear to the reader in the light of the remarks on the lute already made. The second should be read in connection with the name of the doleful dance above mentioned, the Dump. [See Appendix.]

The third quotation contains interesting allusions to the peculiarities of the lute. Lines 22-25 are very naturally accounted for. The lute, having at least eleven strings, took a long time to get into tune. Even our modern violins, with only four strings, want constant attention in this respect; and the lute, therefore, especially in the hands of an amateur, might well get a name for being a troublesome instrument. The reference to the 'treble' and 'ba.s.s'

strings (_i.e._, the 1st and 6th) has been explained before. 'Spit in the hole, man,' Lucentio's very rude advice to Hortensio, will direct our attention to the variously shaped 'holes' which were made in the belly of all stringed instruments to let out the sound. On the lute, this hole was commonly a circular opening, not clearly cut out, but fretted in a circle of small holes with a star in the middle. But this was not the only way. A lute in South Kensington Museum has _three_ round holes, placed in an oblique line, nearly at the bottom of the instrument.[14] The holes on the viol were generally in the form of crescents, and were put one on each side of the bridge. On the modern violins, as everybody has seen, they are in the shape of [Ill.u.s.tration], and are known as '_f_' holes.

[Footnote 14: See Frontispiece.]

Line 59, about 'lessons in three parts,' is of interest. Primarily, it is another form of 'Two's company, three is none'--but its musical meaning is very plainly present. In the 16th and 17th centuries it was very common to call the pieces of music in any volume for an instrument by the name 'Lessons.' The first meaning, of course, was that they were examples for the pupil in music, but the word was used quite freely with the purely general signification of 'Pieces' or 'Movements.'

One more word deserves remark--viz., 'to touch,' in line 63. This is used technically, and means strictly 'to play' on the instrument. The word comes both in meaning and form from Ital., _toccare_.

_Toccata_ was a common word for a Prelude (often extempore), intended as a kind of introduction to two or three more formal movements. The Italian for a peal of bells is _tocco di campana_, and we have the word in English under the form _tocsin_, an alarm bell. The trumpet-call known as 'Tucket,' which occurs seven times in the stage directions of six Shakespeare plays, and is also found once in the text (_Henry V._ IV, ii, 35), also is derived from _toccare_.

Similarly with the German 'Tusch,' a flourish of trumpets and other bra.s.s instruments, which may be heard under that name to the present day.

The next pa.s.sage confirms Morley's account of the high estimation in which music was held as a part of a liberal education. Baptista evidently considers 'good bringing up' to include 'music, instruments, and poetry.' Moreover, the visiting master was to be well paid,--'to cunning men I will be very kind.'

_Shrew_ I, i, 81.

_Bianca._ Sir to your pleasure humbly I subscribe: My books, and _instruments_, shall be my company, On them to look, and _practise by myself_.

_Baptista_ (To Hortensio and Gremio).

Go in, Bianca. [_Exit_ Bianca].

And for I know, she taketh most delight In _music_, _instruments_, and _poetry_, Schoolmasters will I keep within my house, Fit to instruct her youth.--If you, Hortensio, Or Signior Gremio, you, know any such, Refer them hither; for _to cunning men I will be very kind_, and liberal To mine own children in _good bringing up_.

We find further on, in the same play, that to bring one's lady-love a music master was thought a handsome compliment.

_Shrew_ I, ii, 170.

_Hortensio._ 'Tis well: and I have met a gentleman, Hath promis'd me to help me to another, _A fine musician to instruct our mistress_.

Moreover, in _Pericles_ IV, vi, 185, we find that Marina, daughter of Prince Pericles, can '_sing_, weave, sew, and _dance_.' Also see V, i, 78, where Marina actually does sing, to rouse her father from his melancholy.

III

SONGS AND SINGING

It is impossible here to give even an outline of the history of Songs and Singing in England. The general statement must suffice that vocal music, accompanied by viols and harps, with songs and catches, were common in the year 1230 in France; and any reader of Chaucer and Gower may see for himself that vocal music was flouris.h.i.+ng in the 14th century in England. The English Round or Catch, mentioned above, 'Sumer is ic.u.men in,' is most probably of the 13th century, and that alone would be sufficient to characterise the popular vocal music of that day. This composition is advanced in every way, being very melodious, and at the same time showing that vocal harmony (_i.e._, singing in parts) was greatly appreciated.

To proceed to a time nearer the age with which we are concerned--in Henry VII.'s reign, there were many songs written, some for voices only, and some with instrumental accompaniment. Amongst the former are two songs in three parts, the music by William Cornyshe, Junior, which are given in Hawkins.

Skelton wrote the words of the first, 'Ah, beshrew you by my fay,'

which is very coa.r.s.e in tone, as was frequently the case with him; and the second one, 'Hoyday, jolly ruttekin,' is a satire on the drunken habits of the Flemings who came over with Anne of Cleves. Mrs Page (_Wiv._ II, i, 23) refers to these Dutchmen, where, after receiving Falstaff's love-letter, she exclaims, 'what an unweighed behaviour hath this _Flemish Drunkard_ picked (with the devil's name!) out of my conversation, that he dares in this manner a.s.say me?'

The following is a curious picture by 'Skelton, Laureate,' of an ignorant singer, who appears to have been throwing mud at the poet.

Skelton gives us a sad account both of his morals and his music.

The 3rd verse begins--

With hey troly loly, lo whip here Jak, Alumbek, sodyldym syllorym ben, Curiously he can both _counter_ and knak, Of Martin Swart, and all his merry men; Lord, how Perkyn is proud of his Pohen, But ask wher he findeth among his _monachords_ An holy-water-clark a ruler of lordes.

He cannot fynd it in _rule_ nor in _s.p.a.ce_, He _solfyth_ too haute, hys _trybyll_ is too high, He braggyth of his byrth that borne was full base, Hys musyk _withoute mesure, too sharp_, is _his 'my'_, He trymmeth in his _tenor_ to _counter_ pardy, His _descant_ is besy,[15] it is without a _mene_, Too fat is his fantsy, his wyt is too lene.

He tumbryth on a _lewde lewte_, Rotybulle Joyse, Rumbill downe, tumbill downe, hey go, now now, He _fumblyth in his fyngering_ an ugly rude noise, It seemyth the sobbyng of an old sow: He wolde be made moch of, and he wyst how; Well sped in spindels and tuning of travellys A bungler, a brawler, a picker of quarrels.

Comely he clappyth a _payre of clavicordys_ He _whystelyth_ so swetely he maketh me to swet, His _discant_ is dashed full of _discordes_, A red angry man, but easy to intrete; etc.

[Footnote 15: 'Besy,' that is, 'busy,' meaning 'fussy,' a bad fault in descant, as it is to this day in counterpoint.]

Further on we read--

For lordes and ladyes lerne at his scole, He techyth them so wysely to _solf_ and to _fayne_, That neither they sing wel _prike-song_ nor _plain_.

Skelton's main objection to this person is that he, being in reality of very humble origin, presumed on his very doubtful musical abilities to gain a footing amongst his betters. As he says, 'For Jak wold be a Jentilman that late was a grome.'

Evidently 'Jak' had managed to make good his position as a fas.h.i.+onable teacher of singing, in spite of the defects plainly mentioned in the above verses. In the first verse, 'counter' is a musical term, here used with the meaning of 'to embroider' the tale. 'Knack' is still used in Yorks.h.i.+re for 'affected talk.' 'Monachord' is the ancient one-stringed fiddle called Tromba Marina, and is here used as a joke on 'monachi' or 'holy water clarks.' In verse 2, '_rule_ and s.p.a.ce' is simply 'line and s.p.a.ce,' _i.e._, on the musical staff. 'Solfyth too haute' is 'Solfa's too high.' The 'my' which was 'too sharp' is the Mi, the seventh note of the scale, mentioned above as the critical point in Solfa. In verse 3, 'lewde lewte' means merely 'vulgar lute'; and 'Rotybulle Joyse' is the t.i.tle of an old song. The 'payre of clavicordys' is the clavichord, which in 1536 was a keyed instrument of much the same kind as the virginals,[16] with about three and a half octaves. It was used by nuns, and therefore had its strings m.u.f.fled with bits of cloth to deaden the sound.

[Footnote 16: It was the _German_ clavichord that had 'tangents' of bra.s.s at the ends of the key levers. These tangents cut off the proper length of the string, and made it sound at the same time. The Italians called an instrument with a 'jack' action like the virginal by the name clavichord.]