MME. PERSIANI, Signori Rubini, Negri, and Puzzi left London yesterday on a professional tour. They are engaged to sing at concerts at Brighton, Tonbridge Wells, Exeter, Clifton, Bath, Plymouth, and several cities in the north of England. Persiani and Rubini will leave England on the 23rd of Sept. in order to be present at the opening of the Italian Opera in Paris on the 1st of October. NE R. COCKS and Co.'s Encyclopædia of Melody, 550 beautiful airs, arranged by W. Forde for the flute, cornopean, violin, clarinet, bugle,.or oboe, 24 numbers, each 6d.. or in one volume, cloth boards, 12s.; 100 new Quadrilles, by Musard and others, 4s.; 200 Songs, &c. for the cornopean, by Handley, 5s.; 100 Airs for the flute, by Forde, 4s.; for the violin, by Muller, 100 Waltzes, 4s.; 100 Quadrilles, 4s.; 100 Airs for the violin, 4s. ; 100 Sacred ditto, 4s.; 102 Waltzes, by Strauss and Lanner, 200 Irish Airs for the flute, by Clinton, 5s. NEW VALSES & QUADRILLES. Messrs. Cocks and Co. have been chosen by Messrs. Strauss, Santos, Lanner, Labitzky, Musard and Santos, sole publishers of all their new works for orchestra, military band, piano solo or duets, flute and piano, ditto violin and piano, violon solos, ditto flute solos. 4s.; Extensive Reduction in Cash Prices. R. WORNUM, Inventor and Ma nufacturer of PATENT DOUBLE-AC TION PIANOFORTES, at the Music Hall, Store- THE PICCOLO. Elegant, with Trusses.. Elegant, from .... .............. 30 guineas. 34 38 42 42 46 to 50 125 COTTAGE AND CABINET. From 42 guineas to..... POCKET GRAND HORIZONTAL. IMPERIAL GRAND HORIZONTAL. To be had of all Musicsellers and Booksellers, namely-eleventh edition of Hamil-nufactured and prepared for extreme climates. The above Instruments are all equally well maton's Dictionary of 2,000 Musical Terms, Is.; seventh ditto of his Catechism of Harmony and Pocket Grand is only 5 feet 4 inches long. The Piccolo stands 3 feet 8 inches high, and the Thorough Bass, 2s.; key to ditto, Is. 6d. ; his Catechism on Singing, 3d edition, 3s.; ditto for vioA liberal allowance to Exporters and Dealers. lin and violoncello, each 1s.; third edition of his This extensive reduction has been drawn from celebrated Tutor for the Piano, with 31 airs and the Advertiser as a measure of protection to his preludes fingered and arranged by Czerny, 4s. New Piccolo Pianoforte; the success of which has London, printed only by Messrs. Cocks, music-induced certain Manufacturers to announce and sellers in ordinary to her most Gracious Majesty sell Instruments of a different character under the Queen Victoria, 20, Princes street, Hanover- same name, by which the Public are deceived and square. the Inventor injured. HENRY HOOPER, 13, Pall Mall, East, where all communications for the Editor, Works for Review, and Adver tisements are received.-R. GROOMBRIDGE, Panyer Alley, Paternoster Row.-G. BERGER, Holywell Street, Strand, and the following Agents: CHAPPELL, Bond Street. D'ALMAINE, and Co., Soho Square. MANN, Cornhill. BETTS, Threadneedle Street. WEBB, Liverpool; SIMMS and DINHAM, Manchester; WRIGHTSON and WEBB, Birmingham. London: Printed by JOHN LEIGHTON, at his Printing-office, 11, Johnson's Court, Fleet Street, Aug. 20th, 1840. IN our foregoing articles on Protestant church music we endeavoured-and, we hope, successfully—to show that, according to original intention, and to every conclusion of sound reasoning on the point, the utility and office of music during public worship is situated far more deeply than is usually supposed or than, by the extreme of religious professionists, would be readily admitted. We have sought to prove that the purpose of music is not to effect a "break" in the routine of the service, as clerical jealousy almost universally asserts—not to afford relief in the midst of what, on this supposition, must be deemed a painful and wearying exercise-but to perform an important and necessary part of its own, not independent of, but superadded to, prayer and thanksgiving;—in other words, by its peculiar and irresistible influence, to abstract the senses from ordinary and worldly speculations, and thus unchain the spiritual and reflective part of the mind, leaving it free, if properly directed, to that contemplation of sublimity which cannot be attained without some such decomposition of intellect, and without which the outward and visible signs of devotion are but shallow pretence-kneeling, but an awkward bodily restraint-prayer, but wanton verbiage—and hearkening to a preacher, but the idleness of an hour. Descending from generals to particulars, we asserted that the functions of a church-organist commensurately exceed in importance the limits usually assigned to them; that they are not confined-as the sexagenarian inability of many of the psalmspoilers of the present day too commonly suggests-to the mere accompaniment of what is politely termed "congregational singing," but that, when properly discharged, they require great mechanical skill, profound knowledge of art, intense musical feeling, a large amount of inventive faculty, and, in fact, every quality which should be found in the musician on whom devolves the duty of VOL. XIV.-NEW SERIES, VOL. VII. [Printed by John Leighton, 11, Johnson's-court, Fleet-street.] K promoting the noblest and loftiest uses to which his art can be applied. From his hands, and from the tone conferred by his directing mind on whatever assistance may be rendered him, must the congregation derive that de-sensualised condition of intellect which we have throughout assumed as, incontrovertibly, the necessary preparative for acts of true devotion. Having placed before our readers this summary of our previous articles, we proceed to inquire as to the course of improvement necessary to elevate churchmusic to its intended and necessary state of importance. And, firstly, we would ask, how happens it that out of the immense number of professed organists in this country there is but one—whom we shall hereafter mention—capable of competing with the great players of the continent, as, for instance, Schneider of Dresden? To assign as a reason, natural inability, would be to libel the aptitude for acquirement which our countrymen are universally admitted to possess, and we must therefore seek an explanation somewhat deeper from the surface. In selecting one as a model of excellence, and backing our line of argument by reference to his practice, we are not unaware that the charge of making “invidious distinctions " may be laid at our door. Be this as it may, we shall not shrink from it;—we are unconscious of any other motive than the welfare of art. The one whom we shall mention must be admired by all his liberal brethren of the profession; and to those who, from the jealousy of little minds or the prejudice of decayed ones, are insensible to his exalted merits, we do not care to address a line of argument, seeing that either for us or against us they would be equally uninfluential on the cause which we have in hand. The qualities which, in our opinion, constitute the superiority of the artist to whom we allude,* are, 1st, a musical instinct, so finely organised that if it be not positive genius, it is the nearest possible approach to it; 2nd, an early devotion to the organ, as a distinct and peculiar instrument; 3rd, a lengthened study of, and deep reverence for, the music of the two greatest schools-those of S. Bach and Beethoven; 4th (resulting from the two last), immense capabilities, both mechanical and mental, by which he not only masters that old-fashioned test of dullards, "playing a score at sight," but is enabled to estimate its orchestral effect and faithfully to imitate it by means of the resources of his instrument-by which he not only vanquishes with ease the most intricate compositions of Bach, but is enabled to emulate their beauties in his own extempore performances;—and lastly, a proper self-respect and uncompromising love of that only which is excellent in art, which will not permit him to degrade the importance of his high calling by truckling to the caprices of his clerical paymasters, nor to sacrifice his musical feeling at the shrine of congregational ignorance. From the example of this profound and intellectual musician who, though in early youth placed in a situation in which, more than any other, sensitive minds are tortured by the conceit and intolerance of their employers, never yielded up one tittle of the artist's dignity, we deduce the following four conditions necessary to the complete excellence of an organist such as should be found in every Protestant church, either cathedral or parochial, and must be so found before any solid improvement in * S. S. Wesley; now organist of Exeter Cathedral. the ecclesiastical music of this country can be effected. First, he must be master of the mechanical difficulties, the peculiar effects, and the combinations, possessed by his instrument; otherwise, his assuming the office of “organist” is a practical deceit; 2nd, so long as such things only are published in this country as the ordinary arrangements of "Handel's choruses," or from the "Masses of Haydn and Mozart," which are indeed " contrary to the genius of the instrument," his knowledge of the positional and combinational effect of a score must be sufficient to enable him to imitate its orchestral tone as nearly as the qualities of his instrument will permit; otherwise no great choral work can be attempted without annihilating its composer's intention; 3rd, his taste, science, and inventive faculty must be highly cultivated; otherwise-as generally happens in our parochial churches—the music selected will be worthless or vulgar, and its accompaniment a bald and ludicrous mockery of the grandeurs and beauties of art; and 4th, since a perfect knowledge of musical excellence is tedious and difficult of acquirement-since, manifestly, it is more likely to be possessed by those who have devoted themselves to its acquirement than those who have not -and since both clergymen and congregations are almost necessarily included in the latter category-the man on whom rests the success or failure of a process which, in a previous article, we have shown to be no less than the preparation of mens' minds for the worship of their Creator, must possess love of his art, firmness of purpose, and mental dignity, to resist all intermeddlings with his duties from whatever source they may proceed, to assert his sole right of decision on all points connected with his office, and, by perseverance in employing only the highest styles of art—whether in selection, mode of execution, or his necessarily extemporaneous efforts to root out the barbarous and ascetic prejudices against, and to create a taste for, that sublime and affecting music which alone can be useful in the service of the Almighty. If an organist cannot do all this, he is only unworthy of his calling;—but if he can, and, from idleness or poverty of spirit, plays the traitor to his own convictions, he is deeply and inexcusably culpable. On him—whether remotely or immediately-whether he be assisted by the stipendiary singing of a cathedral establishment, or impeded by the ruthless bawling of the Sunday schools-must depend the state of church-music, and therefore, on the principle we have before laid down, his responsibilities are far heavier than those of literally fulfilling his contract with his employers. We have been thus solicitous to place the importance of this office in a clear light from a conviction that, until its character be elevated in general estimation— until it be freed from the galling and offensive restrictions imposed by clerical bigotry and conceit on the one hand, and the ludicrous ordeal of would-be criticism on the part of every church-going master or miss who thumps the piano, or blows the flute, on the other-musicians of science and feeling-true artists, in short, who alone are fitted for its important duties-will either avoid it altogether, or, at best, will treat it as a pecuniary convenience, will go to church as a matter of business, and will execute the task assigned to them without producing an atom of interest in their hearers, or one solitary reflection in them. selves, except that they are adding somewhat to their professional income. It is often asserted that there is no occasion to employ men of science for the little music used in the Protestant service-that if an organist can but "get through" a psalm tune, and make sufficient noise decently to cover the final retreat of the congregation, it is enough;—it may be enough for the priest who would degrade every decent accessory to the church's service in order to enhance his own personal attraction-it may be enough for the purse-proud Jack-in-office who is accustomed to regard "the organist" as some kind of animal about the church to whom he is compelled to pay a miserable yearly stipend-it may be enough for those pitiable fanatics who virtually accuse their Maker of setting up the most innocent delights as finger-posts to the gates of perdition—it may be enough for all these, but it is not enough for the necessities of that church to which they profess their attachment. We again assert, without fear of contradiction, that without some separation of the grosser from the more subtle faculties-without some previous fascination of the senses (no matter by what agency)—the mind cannot be spiritualized; and that without this spiritualization there can be no really religious impression. Building churches is not religion-going even thrice a day to public worship is not religion—the prayer of the lips is not religion— gazing intently on eloquent preachers is not religion: experience has shown that all these may result from an influence more potent in the movements of society than even religion-to wit, fashion. But this fashion, powerful though it be, is to the full as inconstant ; a style of doctrine that was all the rage yesterday may be utterly deserted to-morrow, on the appearance of some newer and more startling form of opinion. Calvinism, Arminianism, Evangelicism, and every shade of sentiment found betwixt the high and low extremes of the church, feel the tide of fashion as it approaches and recedes from their respective boundaries; and this fluctuation of popularity-this constant springing up of new doctrines from the wrecks of past favourites-is no less undeniable as to the fact of its existence, than it is distinctly traceable to an obvious cause ;-the church, in disdaining the power over the sympathies and feelings of her people offered her by means of a gratification of the senses, such as we advocate, which is innocent in itself and in its operation, and invariably good in its effect, has enfeebled the interest, the solemnity, and the respectability of her public services, and thus herself loosened the bonds of her unity. In our next article on this subject we shall discuss the style of vocal music employed in the service of the Protestant church. MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY.—No. V. HENRY PURCELL. HENRY PURCELL was born in the year 1658. His father, Henry Purcell, was a musician of some note, and one of the gentlemen of the Chapel Royal, as established by Charles the Second at the Restoration. Purcell was only six years 'old when he lost his father. It is not ascertained who was his first instructor in music, but most probably it was Cook, who was master of the children of the chapel at the time of his father's death. He afterwards received lessons from |