English Musicians Research Articles

The Songs of Dowland

My purpose this afternoon is not to attempt to say much that is new or original about this great English composer, but rather to introduce him to you as a song-writer and to let you hear some of his songs. For, strange as it may seem, Dowland is still in the position of requiring an introduction even to English musicians. His name is certainly rather more widely known than it was ten or twenty years ago, yet his songs are far too rarely to be found in concert programmes, and few singers seem to know more than about half a dozen of them. And apart from singers, a large section of the English musical world still remains in complete ignorance as to the value of his work. If anyone should dispute this statement let him turn to a certain important work of reference recently published where he will find Dowland briefly described as “an old English composer of considerable note in his time.” And it was my own experience only last month to be told by one of our leading English musicians that he “had a grudge against Dowland” for the reason that he started the fashion of writing part-songs for four voices and thus lowered the taste of singers and composers, alienating them from the cult of the madrigal. I granted at once that if Dowland had contributed nothing to music besides part-songs for four voices, beautiful though some of these are (and he probably was acquainted with nothing beyond “Now, O now” and “Awake, sweet love”), that contribution would not perhaps have immortalized his name; but I then elicited that my friend was absolutely and entirely ignorant of the bare fact that Dowland was a composer of solo songs!

The Eton Manuscript

In a paper which I had the honour of reading before the Musical Association in 1924 I referred to the long and mysterious gap in English Musical History between 1240 and 1415, and attempted to begin (or to further) the task of filling it in. It would seem arguable that our attention might now be turned to the task of working steadily backwards from 1440, or whatever date we like to put down for the climax of Dunstable's career: for much of Dunstable's work is now accessible for criticism in the publications of the Trent Codices edited by Drs. Adler and Köller (vide Proceedings of the Musical Association for March, 1921) and further details of his bibliography are now coming to light. But before we can do this there is, as the late Mr. Barclay Squire said in one of the last letters he wrote to me, a preliminary period to be dealt with: for after Dunstable's English career closed (if indeed he ever had an English career, which is open to doubt) it seems to be admitted by scholars that there was a fifty years' period of stagnation, or even of decline: certainly a cessation of the proud rôle of teacher to the Netherland School. This may be so: but we are fortunate in being led by scholars of the type of M. van den Borren, who qualify their statements and do not dogmatise on admittedly scanty evidence: and they will be the first to admit that it may not have been so, that the pre-eminence of Dunstable and other English musicians may have continued through the latter part of the century, but that the evidence has been destroyed: and as an incurable optimist I insist on my right to hope that we shall be able to work at filling in this second gap from 1440 to 1490 without being forced to admit the theory of a fifty years' decline. Mr. H. B. Collins, well known to the Musical Association, will begin on the 28th of April, at a lecture before the Plainsong and Mediaeval Music Society, to fill in this gap with a paper on the anonymous “Missa O Quam Suavis” from Cambridge University Library, now in process of publication. And if we fail to reconstruct the progress of this fifty years we can then fall back, with perfect logical and historiographical propriety, upon the Decline theory, and shall be ready to admit it as the only working hypothesis.

Giovanni Pierluigi, Da Palestrina

For nearly three centuries the name of Palestrina has been much more familiar than his works, especially in England. Comparatively few English musicians—we may even say absolutely few—professional or amateur, can claim a practical acquaintance with the writings of this composer, whose name is so well-known to them. On the Continent things are a little better; but only, I believe, in Germany can the works of Palestrina be often heard. Of course difference of religion has some influence in causing the ignorance in England; the recent performance of “Missa Papæ Marcelli,”in St. Paul's Cathedral, was epoch-making indeed, and not the least important of the general events which have so marked the year 1898 as an era in the religious history of England. Since so little is publicly heard of Palestrina's works here, and no trustworthy account of his life has been published in English, as far as I am aware, a paper upon both life and works will hardly require an apology.

On Musical Nomenclature

On Musical Nomenclature

Old english actors and musicians in germany.

Old english actors and musicians in germany.