William Hayman Cummings

“ A music book intituled Harmonia Sacra will shortly be printed for Mr. Playford. I need not say anything more to recommend it to you, than that you will find in it many of Mr. Henry Purcell's admirable composures. As they charm all men, they are universally extolled, and even those who know him no otherwise than by his Notes are fond of expressing their sense of his merit. ”

“ Be pleased to remember that I did not recommend Miss Weller as an accomplished singer; but as a young girl, with a good person, who would be useful in musical pieces; but whose talents [Pg 81] in speaking and acting, might, with your friendly encouragement, in a little time bring so pretty a figure to be a shining object. Had you seen her play Mrs. Cadwallader in Foote’s farce at Covent Garden, your candour would induce you to think with that company, who all declared that no young actress ever did better. When I offered you this girl, you wanted an accomplished singer. ”

“ In a house on the West side of Dean's Yard, Westminster, in a darkened chamber, the dying musician is lying on his couch in full possession of all his faculties, as he himself had just said in his will, but with a thorough knowledge that he was about to pass into the land of shadows. ”

“ I appeal to all that were present, as well such as understood music, as those that did not, whether they ever heard anything so rapturously fine, and solemn, and so heavenly in the operation, which drew tears from all; and yet a plain natural composition, which shows the power of music, when 'tis rightly fitted and adapted to devotional purposes." The second anthem, "Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts," Dr. Tudway says, "was accompanied by flat, mournful trumpets." This majestic movement is a splendid monument to the memory of Purcell. ”

“ To this letter Garrick replied: “Drury Lane Theatre, Aug. 24, 1775. Dear Sir,—I am very sorry that Mrs. Greville (to whom I gave free leave to assist you) should behave so ill to you, and more so, that your loss will be so great by her ill-behaviour. The managers of Drury-lane have no intention to employ a constant composer, but to engage with different gentlemen, as business may arise in the theatre. How can you imagine that I have an irresistible apathy to you? I suppose you mean antipathy, my dear Doctor, by the general turn of your letter. ”

“ Thomas Purcell lived till 1682, so that he had the satisfaction of witnessing the extraordinary development of his nephew's genius, and could also rejoice to see the general recognition of his merits, and of the honourable rewards he was so rapidly acquiring. When, at last, full of years and honours, Thomas departed this life, he was buried near his brother in the cloisters of Westminster Abbey. We seek in vain for the musical compositions of either Henry (the elder) or of Thomas: with the exception of a few chants in common use in our cathedrals, nothing of their work remains to us. ”

“ Garrick, though I wish him immortal, to the grief of the discerning world, is not so—sickness, pain, mortality may intervene. Let it not be said, that so great a master of his art is deaf or blind to rising merit. I tell you bona fide, that the young woman and young girl [Miss Weller’s sister] whom I recommended, are real objects of your notice, as handsome women, complete figures, and promising actresses, abstracted from their utility as singers. ”

“ PURCELL.
Music and poetry attained to a high state of cultivation in the reign of Elizabeth; the Queen herself was an admirable performer on the virginals, and by her example and authority did all that was possible to elevate the art of music, and to encourage learned musicians throughout her dominions. This happy condition of things was continued by her successors, James I. and Charles I., but with the establishment of the Commonwealth all music, both of church and theatre, was rigidly suppressed. ”

“ The first published score of “Rule, Britannia” enables us to note that both words and music have undergone considerable changes, some of them undoubtedly improvements and others the reverse. The elimination of the short ritornelles, or symphonies, which Arne wrote between the several lines of the verses, brings the subject-matter closer together and makes it more adaptable for a national song. On the other hand, the alteration of the melody in the last bar of the solo cannot be commended, neither can the change of melody and harmony at the end of the first bar of the chorus. ”

“ The opera is short, yet we cannot but recognise the fact that had there been a public [Pg 33] demand for absolute music-drama, or even a proper appreciation of a work cast in such a mould, the composer had arisen who possessed the necessary genius, inspiration, and feeling for building up a school of opera which would have proved a model for his own and succeeding generations, but the time was not ripe for such a development. ”

“ Arne, the composer of “Rule, Britannia,” offers to the reader and to the music student an interesting and instructive story, showing that natural ability, even when combined with genius, is not sufficient to ensure a triumphant and successful career. Morality and conscientious rectitude in the affairs of life are essential, and had Arne exercised these, his exceptional gifts might have enabled him to surpass his great contemporary, Handel. ”

“ When Henry Purcell, the younger, became a chorister in the Chapel Royal at six years of age, the master of the boys was Captain Henry Cooke, an old musician, who had belonged to the chapel of Charles I., but who, on the breaking out of civil war, had laid aside the peaceful art of music to engage in the rough dissonances of battle and strife, and changed his service from that of a Royal musician to become a Royalist soldier. ”

“ Arne’s connection with the theatre provided him with a splendid opening for his talent as composer. Dr. John Dalton, a Prebendary of Worcester Cathedral and Rector of St. Mary-at-hill, London, prepared a stage version of Milton’s “Comus.” He interpolated verses taken from other works of the poet, and added some songs of his own, all requiring music; and, as the sequel proved, no composer could have carried out the task more efficiently than Arne, who entered upon his [Pg 13] welcome labours with real enthusiasm, and easily earned the reputation of being the best English composer of the day. ”

“ It must not be forgotten that many of Purcell's anthems now in use in our cathedrals were the product of his youthful pen and genius whilst he was still a pupil of Cooke. Captain Cooke, the soldier musician, died, as previously stated, in 1672, and was succeeded in his appointment as "Master of the Children of the Chapel" by one whose nature, genius, and scientific knowledge of music must have stimulated and excited in a special manner the dawning powers of the youthful musical company committed to his charge, and the force of whose example must have proved of the greatest service to Purcell. ”

“ On Saturday we dined at Mr. Bayly’s; Miss Bayly had gone on a party of pleasure. I was surprised there at meeting Mrs. Arne (Miss Young that was) ; they have her in the house to teach Miss Bayly to sing; she was recommended to Mr. Bayly by Mrs. Berkeley as an object of compassion. She looks, indeed, much humbled, and I hope is as deserving as they think her to be; great allowances are to be made for the temptations those poor people fall under. She has been severely used by a bad [Pg 48] husband, and suffered to starve, if she had not met with charitable people. ”

“ She behaves herself very well, and though her voice has lost its bloom as well as her face, she sings well, and was well taught by Geminiani and Handel, and had she not been idle would have been a charming singer. Mr. Bayly plays on the violin, his curate on the German flute; Mrs. Arne and Miss Bayly sing, and a girl of nine years old [15] accompanies them on the harpsichord most surprisingly; she is a niece of Mrs. Arne’s; the race of the Youngs are born songsters and musicians. It is very agreeable to have such an entertainment in our power to go to whenever we please.” Poor Mrs. Arne! ”

“ The music consists of an introductory symphony, choruses, and soli, with accompaniments for strings, and has a very novel termination to the words "Iô Cecilia." The words are poor, and were written by Christopher Fishbourne, [30] who seems to have been both a poet and a musician, but of no great pretension in either art. Purcell's enthusiasm and industry are well exemplified by the amount of music which he wrote for the first public observance of St. Cecilia's Day in this country. In addition to the ode already mentioned as published, he composed two other odes, one in English and one in Latin ”

“ When Mallet produced his version of “Alfred” for Garrick in 1751, he endeavoured to make folk believe that he wrote the words of the Ode, “Rule, Britannia.” They had been printed in Edinburgh in a popular song-book, “The Charmer,” with Thomson’s initials, J. T., and by the friends of the poet were generally known to be his. Mallet’s literary honesty or dishonesty is now generally appreciated, but it must not be forgotten that for years he posed as the author of the ballad “William and Margaret,” and unflinchingly accepted all the encomiums passed upon him in connection with it. ”

“ In May, 1688, Purcell had a daughter born; she was baptized in Westminster Abbey, receiving the name of Frances. This child attained to years of maturity, surviving both her father and her mother.
This year was a troublous one; the political horizon was black, and the national fortunes were in great jeopardy, people had small time or inclination for public amusements, but Purcell contributed music for at least one play, The Fool's Preferment, or the Three Dukes of Dunstable, a comedy by D'Urfey. ”

“ Arne’s libretto was published by Tonson in 1763, with a preface written by the composer. A short extract follows: “Metastasio, in his Dialect, seems to affect Simplicity; and from his great Experience in writing for music, has given the following Plan for the Poetry of an Opera, viz., That the Fable, or Recitative, to which fixed Musical Sounds are adapted, should be simple Dialect; hard and dissonant Epithets (though ever so forcible in other Respects) being destructive to Music, and, when sung, for the chief Part, unintelligible. ”

“ If tradition may be relied on, the Protector, Cromwell, was himself a lover of music, and not unwilling, when opportunity served, to assist and befriend musicians.
Cromwell's secretary, the poet Milton, was no mean performer on the organ, and being the son of an eminent composer, [1] would doubtless, with his passionate [Pg 4] love for music, be at all times ready to use his sympathetic voice and counsel on behalf of any distressed and poor musician who might petition the Protector for help or redress. ”

“ Arne’s pupil Burney made the arrangement of “God save the King” for Covent Garden Theatre; the enthusiasm excited at that theatre fully equalled that of Drury Lane. Benjamin Victor, in a letter he wrote to Garrick on the 10th of October, 1745, said [Pg 37] “the stage, at both houses, is the most pious, as well as the most loyal place in the three kingdoms. Twenty men appear at the end of every play; and one, stepping forward from the rest, with uplifted hands and eyes, begins singing, to an old anthem tune, the following words—God save the King.” ”

“ Purcell, the organ-blower, to pay to Mr. Needham such money as was received by him for places in the organ-loft, and in default thereof his place to be declared null and void, and that his stipend or salary to be detained in the treasurer's hands until further orders.' Upon which it may be observed that the penning of it is an evidence of great ignorance or malice, in that it describes him by the appellation of organ-blower who was the organist of their own church, and in truth the most excellent musician of his time. ”

“ The libretto is printed in double columns, the left giving Dryden’s text, the right the College Wag’s parody. It may suffice to say that there are seventeen pages of vulgarity and sometimes indecency. The music, which extends to two hundred and fifty pages in the manuscript score, is superior to the poetry. There is no Overture; the various songs and choruses are palpably meant to be in imitation of Handel, but like the words they fail to detract from the value of the originals they vainly burlesque. There is evidence that Arne intended to have a public performance of “Whittington’s Feast” ”

“ Anecdotes, Biographical Sketches, by Letitia Matilda Hawkins.
[53] "The English affect more the Italian than the French music, and their own compositions are between the gravity of the first and the levity of the other. They have had several great masters of their own. Henry Purcell's works in that kind are esteemed beyond Lully's everywhere, and they have now a good many very eminent masters; but the taste of the town being at this day all Italian, it is a great discouragement to them."—Mackay's Journey Through England, 1722-3. ”

“ The morning after Arne’s decease he told the company assembled in the music-room at the theatre that he “was talking on the subject of music with the Doctor, who suffered much from exhaustion, when, in attempting to illustrate what he had advanced, he in a very feeble and tremulous voice sung part of an air, during which he became [Pg 97] progressively more faint, until he breathed his last, making as our immortal Shakespeare expresses it, a swan-like end fading in music.” ”

“ Of Purcell's music, Dr. Tudway, one of the choir on this occasion, says: "The anthem, 'Blessed is the man,' was composed after the old way, and was sung at the interment of Queen Mary in Westminster Abbey; a great Queen and extremely lamented, being there to be interred, everybody present was disposed and serious at so solemn a service, as indeed they ought to be at all parts of Divine worship. ”

“ There is a preface to the book explaining what is a Catch and what a Glee. Arne wrote, “these kinds of entertainment (in the time of Mr. Henry Purcell) were so much in fashion, that in most polite families, after dinner and supper, it was a custom to lay the choicest collections of Catches and Glees on the table, and thought a deficiency of education in those, who could not readily perform a part.” The concert commenced with a New Grand Overture by Dr. Arne, and was succeeded by a Catch of his composition, “The family quarrel,” which “gained a golden prize-medal in the year 1764.” ”