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ELIZABETHAN MUSIC AND MUSICAL CRFTICISM fens (+ Qifi'u tScr^trix α^φ.-smxJJ 01 f$mfxrr'/ JH Oirmertr . ~ 4 rutiet fS< sjcrrd (vnnjrff tTsc e^en 'As Sarin t'jrf/r,>u sfrtAS fsarnr t.ifrjust!. bntPrjvr, and art to be so U at hu ß m h ' vnSr cbeapsidt at the crvsse kfics - - E L I Z A B E T H AN MUSIC and ^Musical Criticism By MORRISON COMEGYS BOYD SECOND EDITION ® Philadelphia University of Pennsylvania Press (£) 1940, 1962, by The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 62-10744 Second Edition, Revised, 1962 Second Printing, with corrections, 1967 First Pennsylvania Paperback edition 1974 ISBN: 0-8122-1071-9 Printed in the United States of America To Miss Amy Comegys 'Treface I T is the purpose of this book to assemble the comments concerning English music, its practices and composition, during the period rep- resented by the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James (1558-1625); to summarize the works on musical theory published in England be- tween those dates; and to illustrate the Elizabethan attitude and opin- ion as to music in theory and practice. It is a commonplace of history that tht artistic and literary impulses of these two reigns were one and con- tinuous. This is equally true of music. But with the conclusion of the regn of James, this artistic impetus failed and taste was changing. The ncble madrigal especially was dying, and the music of the reign of Ckarles I was so comparatively unimportant and spiritually remote from that of Elizabeth's time that it has seemed best to conclude our miin inquiry with the death of James. But there were writers on the tfeory of music who though writing in Charles's time, like Bevin and Butler, express the views of the past. Those have been therefore in- cluded, with Anthony Wood as well, who, writing at Oxford during the latter half of the seventeenth century concerning the music of an earlier day, is far too important to ignore. Wood's information was much of it doubtless derived by word of mouth, for it is well known that he was acustomed to quote his older contemporaries in the conduct of his an- tiquarian researches. Although it was my original intention to present only criticism writ- tei by Elizabethans, I soon realized that I should have to describe briefly the object or music criticized and add a modern appraisal of it, other- wise no reader not blessed with omniscience could picture or grasp what the Elizabethan commentator was discussing, let alone agree or disagree with him. Consequently this book has become, somewhat un- e>pectedly, a short account of Elizabethan music. It is in essence a com- [vii] ELIZABETHAN MUSIC pilation, and I shall be glad to hear of any interesting material that has escaped my notice. Elizabethan spelling has been preserved in the quotations of this study, except that the vowel ν and the combination ij have been re- placed by our modern u and ii, and the consonants u and i by ν and /. The original punctuation, too, has been retained except in a few in- stances where such marks would be misleading. The word Elizabethan refers here to the reigns of both Elizabeth and James I. The date of any year covers a period from the first day of January to the last day of the December following, in accordance with our present system. I wish to express my gratitude to Professor Felix E. Schelling of the Department of English of the University of Pennsylvania for his un- failing kindness and numerous constructive suggestions. In this second edition certain minor changes have been made in the text, and the bibliographies have been enlarged and brought up to date. M.C.B. [ viii ] Contents Chapter page I. Music in High Places ι II. Music Attacked and Defended 13 III. Music Sung in Church 37 IV. Madrigals 92 V. Songs 127 VI. Instruments and Instrumental Music 153 VII. Music on the Stage 189 VIII. Musical Relations with the Continent 205 IX. Musical Theory 222 X. The Musician Himself 272 XI. Finale 279 APPENDICES A. Thomas Whythorne's Preface to His Set of Madrigals, 1571 281 B. Cantiones . . . Sacrae by Tallis and Byrd, 1575: the Latin Dedication by Tallis and Byrd, and Latin poems by Mulcaster and Ferdinando Richardson in Honor of the Music 284 C. The Praise of Mustere, by John Case, 1586: Excerpts 292 D. When You See Me You Know Me, a Play by Samuel Rowley, 1605: a Quotation Mentioning Tye 301 [ix]