barons of Aberdeenshire. This music school in Aberdeen existed so lately as 1758, when the house was sold.a

By comparing what has been above stated with the subjoined notices from Dr Burney's Tour, published in 1773, our readers cannot fail to be struck with the perfect parallel which exists between the system here described, and that which prevailed in Germany at the period of his visit to that country, and which is there continued on the same footing to the present day. We may add, that while it has completely gone out of use with us, it has in the meantime extended itself to many other countries, especially to France and the United States.

"At Koningstein and Pirna there are schools for music

At Pirna there is one for the children of officers, and one for those of the poorer sort, where they learn, as elsewhere, music, with reading and writing.b

"I crossed the whole kingdom of Bohemia from south to north; and being very assiduous in my inquiries how the common people learned music, I found out at length that not only in every large town, but in all villages where there is a reading and writing school, children of both sexes are taught music. At Teuchenbrod, Janich, Czaslau, Bömischbrod, and other places, I visited these schools; and at Czaslau, in particular, within a post of Colin, I caught them in the fact." (One would think, from this expression of the learned Doctor, that he had found them any thing but well employed.) "The organist and cantor, M. Johann Dulsick, and the first violin of the parish church, M. Martin Kruch, who are likewise the two schoolmasters, gave me all the satisfaction I re

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Kennedy's Annals, vol. ii. p. 135. The following extract from an Aberdeen newspaper, the Journal, (August 23, 1748,) shews that music still continued at that time to be taught at the public schools throughout Scotland. In justice to the merits of the teachers of the writing and music schools of this city, we have the pleasure to inform the publick, that last Thursday the Honourable Magistrates and Council paid them a visit, when the scholars in both performed their parts to the entire satisfaction of the visitors. But particularly the scholars in the musick school performed several parts of vocal and instrumental musick in presence of a polite and numerous auditory, and some persons of distinction, who were pleased to say, they were the best performers of any they ever heard in a publick school in Scotland.”

b Burney's Tour, vol. ii. p. 23.

quired. I went into the school, which was full of little children of both sexes, from six to ten or eleven years old, who were reading, writing, playing on violins, hautbois, bassoons, and other instruments. The organist had in a small room of his house four clavichords, with little boys practising on them all; his son, of nine years old, was a very good performer."a

Originally the clergy would naturally have been selected to officiate as masters of the music school, from their being the only persons qualified to give instructions in that science; afterwards the office fell into the hands of the schoolmaster; and latterly, before its final extinction, it seems to have been united with the less literate functions of reader, precentor, and session-clerk.c

Forbes' Collection, therefore, is shaped precisely according to what might be expected from the source from which it emanated, and the prevailing taste of the day. If we find its contents somewhat heavy and monotonous, we must recollect that it is the production of a period when even the little dramatic music which was beginning to spring up in Italy and France, and which, however it might have startled the ears of our Presbyterian ancestors, would sound dull enough in these "most brisk and giddy paced times," was wholly unknown, and when our an

Burney's Tour, vol. ii. p. 4. For farther information on this point, see Mr Edward Taylor's "Airs on the Rhine," and Mr Planche's "Descent of the Danube."

b From the following extract from Lamont's Diary, (p. 20,) it would seem that this functionary was sometimes called upon for an exhibition of his vocal powers :-"1650, June 23.-The King's Maiestie (Charles the Second) came from Hollande to this kingdome. The 6 of July, leauing St Androis, he came to Cowper, where he gatt some desert to his foure-houres; the place where he satte doune to eate was the Tolboothe. The towne had apointed Mr Andro Andersone, scholemeaster ther for the tyme, to giue hin a musicke songe or two while he was at tabell."

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From the tale of the Prioress in Chaucer, it would appear, that in England, many hundred years ago, "to singen" was as much an established branch of the education of "small children" as" to rede;" and Hawkins, (vol. ii. p. 260,) speaking of the religious houses, says, that besides being schools of learning and education, all the neighbours that desired it might have their children instructed in grammar and church music without any expense to them,"-a custom which was probably introduced soon after the establishment of the Gregorian chant, in the sixth century, when John the Arch-chantor and Abbot of St Martin's was sent from Rome to teach the monks of Weremouth the Service. Bedæ Ecclesiæ Historia, lib. iv. c. 18.

cient Scotish melodies, with their wild, varied, and original modulation, were but little relished. From beginning to end there is scarcely any composition which has the least pretension to life or gaiety, if we except Morley's still favourite glee, "Now is the month of Maying." The melodies, if melodies they can be called, are uniformly of a grave and sombre cast, and nothing can be less expressive, or, generally speaking, more at variance with the sentiment which they are intended to convey. Even where there is an attempt at sprightliness in the words, they are almost invariably set in the minor key, which, of course, hangs like a dead weight upon them, and makes most " tragical mirth." The verses are for the most part from the pens of our Scotish lyrical poets of the preceding century, especially Scott and Montgomery; and the music to which they are adapted consists in general of the productions of English composers. As the stock of melody was at that time extremely limited, it is not surprising to find several different sonnets adapted to the same tune. The air, "If floods of tears," which we have in the Skene MS., is here associated with two different sets of words; but the most interesting coincidence we observe is a sonnet of Montgomery, Away, vain world, bewitcher of my heart," the air of which is that of Farewell, dear heart, since thou must needs be gone :

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My eyes do show my life is almost done,"

with which all our readers are familiar, being the sonnet which Shakspeare puts into the mouths of Sir Toby Belch and the Clown, in the scene where their midnight orgies are interrupted by the unwelcome presence of Malvolio. In Montgomery's Poems, the song, Away, vain world," is mentioned as having been composed to the "toon" of "Sal I let her go," part of the burden of "Farewell, dear heart ;" and if any doubt might at first have existed as to their identity, the fact is now satisfactorily established, the Editor having recently discovered the sonnet itself in a MS. of the year 1639, belonging to the Advocates' Library, set to the very tune which appears in Forbes' Cantus. Dr Percy has given the words of this song; but it has not Published in 1821, under the joint editorship of Dr Irving and David Laing, Esquire.

hitherto been known that the air to which it was sung was lurking unobserved in this curious volume. We have the farther satisfaction of introducing a still older version of this air than that contained in Forbes or the above mentioned MS. in the Skene Collection, under a different name from any of the preceding-"O sillie soul alace."

Another feature of the Cantus must not be omitted. It contains a good many of the Godly and Spiritual Songs of the period. This was a style of composition introduced soon after the Reformation by certain of the clergy, in order, if possible, to unite religious edification with their musical recreations. Passages of scripture were paraphrased and set to music, but, as may be supposed, not in a way much calculated to uphold the dignity of the original, or to heighten the sublimity of the truths which they enforced. Of these some were adapted to the more fashionable compositions of the day, others to characteristic national melodies. A large collection of these appeared in the year 1590, and were reprinted by Andro Hart in 1621, under the title of "Ane compendious Booke of Godly and Spirituall Songs, collectit out of sundrie parts of the Scripture, with sundrie of other Ballates changed out of prophaine songes, for avoyding of sinne and harlotrie, with augmentation of sundrie gude and godly ballates not contained in the first edition."b

Some of the contents of this singular performance consist of songs of a sacred character, perfectly fit for church service; but the ballads changed out of profane songs, are either religious parodies of popular songs, or satirical invectives against the Catholic clergy, couched under that form. Wherever the great mass of a community require to be operated upon, ballads are a species of missives which have not unfrequently proved serviceable; and in the great contest between the

Our National Anthem is said to make its appearance in Forbes' Cantus. This is not the case. "Remember, O thou man," (which will also be found in Ravenscroft's Melismata, among what he calls his country pastimes, under the name of " A Christmas Caroll,") bears a strong resemblance to it; but the coincidence is not such (especially as the former is in the major, and the other in the minor series) as to establish their identity, or even to warrant a charge of plagiarism against any of its reputed authors.

b Specimens of this work were published by Lord Hailes in 1764, and an entire reprint edited by Sir John Graham Dalyell in 1801.

Papal Clergy and the founders of the Reformed religion, they seem to have been made use of with considerable effect. It should be remembered that a feud had subsisted between the ballad-mongers and the Catholic clergy, even from very remote times. Mr Tytlera observes, "The clergy were the bitter enemies of the minstrels, whom they considered as satirical rivals or intruders, who carried off from the church the money which might have been devoted to more pious and worthy uses. They talk of them as profligate, low bred buffoons, who blow up their cheeks, and contort their persons, and play on horns, harps, trumpets, pipes, and moorish flutes, for the pleasure of their lords, and who, moreover, flatter them by songs and tales, and adulatory ballads, for which their masters are not ashamed to repay these ministers of the prince of darkness with large sums of gold and silver, and with rich embroidered robes." Neither did the party here assailed spare their ecclesiastical antagonists; and few as are the fragments which remain of their fleeting productions, (which is the less to be wondered at, as their enemies, the churchmen, were the only persons by whom any thing was committed to writing,) we see enough to convince us, that they rarely omitted an opportunity of exposing their hypocritical demeanour, their luxurious habits, and the corruption and profligacy of their lives. Our readers may take as an example, "The friar had on a coul of red," a distich of which is given in the medley at the end of Forbes' Cantus, (Edition 1666,) but which we shall not here repeat. We may, however, transfer to our pages, from the Compendium, the following satirical effusion, from which some idea may be formed of the general style of these compositions :—

b

According to Puttenham, one Gray acquired the favour of Henry VIII., and afterwards that of the Duke of Somerset, for making "certain merry ballads," whereof one chiefly was "The hunte is up, the hunte is up." This, therefore, was an English song, though one of the many which were at that time popular in both countries. The tune is preserved in Lady Nevill's music book.-Burney, vol. iii. p. 115.