by all these qualities; by the easy grace of his lighter strains, and the appropriate expression of those which are of a higher character. It seemed as if, in the case of musical composers, as in that of the poets, "The force of nature could no further go; To make a third, she joined the other two." The musical variety of nature is, however, inexhaustible; and, since the time of Mozart, other genius has been exerted, not in vain, in her wide-extended dominion. Beethoven has shown us a wonderful scientific skill, and a dark imagination, lightened occasionally by a soft halo which shines the brighter by contrast; and Weber has exhibited his wayward and beautiful fancy; and Rossini yet lives to extend, if he pleases, his already vast empire over men's tastes. Rossini is the great enchanter of the present day; and, if his genius be judged by the effect it has produced, it will scarcely be deemed inferior to that of either of the authors we have named. The enthu siasm of the public, in all Europe and America, which his operas first excited, has now continued undiminished for thirty years; and so long as the most refined elegance, the most cheerful temperament, the most fertile invention shall continue. to please, so long will Rossini continue to captivate. His music produces on the ear the same effect that is caused on the eye by the graceful air, the ease of manner, the animated expression of a beautiful woman; and we cannot be surprised if we find in both a similar careless confidence in the power to please, the same frequent repetition of a successful manœuvre, the same heedlessness of established rules. We have mentioned only a few of those whose talents have aided the progress of music, as it would be impossible to enumerate all within the limits of a volume; and we have spoken of none who were natives of France or England, because, though multitudes have, in both countries, done honor to the science, yet none have reached the preeminence of those "bright particular stars" which have shone with such brilliant lustre. As for our own country, music cannot be said to have any history, and scarcely an existence here. Without a single native composer of instrumental music, and with only here and there one who ventures upon a song or an anthem, it becomes us to use a tone of modesty, which is unhappily too rare, with regard to our musical attainments, taste, and skill. There is every thing to hope for a vigorous young country, where the luxuries of art are rapidly growing, under the protection of a still more rapidly accumulating wealth; but, as yet, all is the subject of hope, not of complacent recollection. It is probably within the memory of the youngest of our readers, that a change has taken place in the style of performing the music in our churches, indicative of the neglect into which it had previously fallen, rather than of the excellence it has yet attained. The formation of the Boston Handel and Haydn Society was the dawn of a spirit of improvement; but how long did it languish under the want of resources, and the neglect of the public. It is only within a very few years, that its success has been encouraging, and has corresponded with the effect which a good school should have upon the public. The recent establishment of the Academy is another proof of the increasing number of those, who so love the "concord of sweet sounds," as to be willing to devote their leisure to the acquisition of the art of producing them; its present state should, however, be regarded rather as the foundation of better things to come, than as a theme of self-satisfaction. They have begun a good thing in a good manner; but it would show a very limited conception of the value of music, to rest satisfied with the ability to give an occasional concert in a respectable style. This is but a humble branch of the art; and the attainment of the degree of skill necessary, ought, and we trust will be ere long, so common as to be no ground of boastful complacency. It must be recollected, that we are greatly behind the other civilized countries of the world in common musical proficiency; and, if we would compete with them at all, we must fix on something higher, as an object of pursuit, than has heretofore been attempted among us. We must look forward to the production of music of every kind; to training up a school, not merely of vocal, but instrumental performers, who shall be thoroughly taught in all that can be taught of music, and whose native talent shall be fostered and encouraged, till some among them shall be able to repay the care bestowed, by the display of new musical creations, acquiring for themselves, and their country, a name like that we are already claiming in the sister arts. The time when this shall be accomplished may not be near; and yet, if the public will afford the due support, it may not be so far distant as some might imagine. It may, perhaps, have been observed, that five out of the six brilliant names we have mentioned, of the last and present century, are German. How does it happen, that a nation of kindred origin with our own parent stock, and with a language almost as unmusical as ours, should have produced such an uncommon proportion of musical genius of the highest order, while that of England has been certainly less brilliantly displayed? Is it not manifest that the national practice of giving the rudiments of a musical education at school must have contributed largely to the developement of the whole national talent for the art? This then should be pursued as the most important means of eliciting the now dormant taste and talent of our country. It will be found easy, pleasant, and profitable; and upon institutions like the Academy devolves the responsibility of urging the importance of the acquisition in terms commensurate with its value. Let it be presented to all who have charge of the education of youth, till they shall be satisfied that the elements of music are not the least important of those which may be taught in schools; and, if the system should not extend beyond our own city, its advantages would soon be so evident as to add another to the favorable distinctions of our already favored home. ART. IV. — 1. Narodne Serpske pjesme, izdao WUK STEF. Servian Popular Songs, published by VUK STEF. 2. Piesnie Ludu palskiego i ruskiego w Galicyi, zebrane parzez WACLAWA Z. ÖLESKA. Songs of the Polish and Russian People of Galicia, collected by WENCESLAUS OLESKY. Lemberg. 1833. THIS is the age of utilitarianism. The Genius of poetry still lives indeed, for he is immortal; but the period of his living power is gone. His present dwelling is the study; the sphere of his operations the parlour; the scene, where his exhibitions are displayed in a dress of morocco and gold, is the centre-table of the rich and the genteel. Popular poetry, we do not mean that divine gift, the dowry of a few blessed individuals; we mean that general productiveness, which pervades the mass of men as it pervades Nature, popular poetry is, among all the nations of Europe, only a dying plant. Here and there a lonely relic is discovered among the rocks, preserved by the invigorating powers of the mountain air; or a few sickly plants, half withered in their birth, grow up in some solitary valley, hidden from the intrusive genius of modern improvement and civilization, who makes his appearance with a brush in his hand, sweeping mercilessly away even the loveliest flowers which may be considered as impediments in his path. Twenty years hence, and a trace will not be left, except the dried specimens which the amateur lays between two sheets of paper, and the copies preserved in cabinets. Among the nations of the Slavic race alone is the living flower still to be found, growing in its native luxuriance; but even here, only among the Servians and Dalmatians in its full blossom and beauty. For centuries these treasures have been buried from the literary world. Addison, when he endeavoured to vindicate his admiration of the ballad of "ChevyChace," by the similarity of some of its passages with the epics of Virgil and Homer, had not the remotest idea, that the immortal blind bard had found his true and most worthy successors among the likewise blind poets of his next Hyperborean neighbours. The merit of having lifted at last the curtain from these scenes, belongs to Germany, chiefly to Herder. But only the few last years have allowed a more full and satisfactory view of them. In laying before our readers a view of Slavic popular poetry, we must renounce at once any attempt at chronological order. Slavic popular poetry has yet no history. Not that a considerable portion of it is not very ancient. Many mysterious sounds, even from the grey ages of paganism, reach us, like the chimes of distant bells, unconnected and half lost in the air; while, of many other songs and legends, the coloring reminds us strongly of their Asiatic home. But the wonderful tales they convey, have mostly been only confided to tradition; especially there, where the fountain of poetry streamed, and streams still, in the richest profusion, namely, in Servia. Handed down from generation to generation, each has impressed its mark upon them. Tradition, that wonderful offspring of reality and imagination, affords no safer basis to the history of poetry, than to the history of nations themselves. To dig out of dust and rubbish a few fragments of manuscripts, which enable us to cast one glance into the night of the past, has been reserved only for recent times. Future years will furnish richer materials; and to the inquirer, who shall resume this subject fifty years after us, it may be permitted to reduce them to historical order, while we must be contented to appreciate those, which are before our eyes, in a moral and poetical respect. The Slavi, even when first mentioned in history, appear as a singing race. Procopius, relating the surprise of a Slavic camp by the Greeks, states that the former were not aware of the danger, having lulled themselves to sleep by singing.* Karamsin, in his history of the Russian Empire, narrates, on the authority of Byzantine writers, that the Greeks being at war with the Avars, about A. D. 590, took prisoners three Slavi, who were sent from the Baltic as ambassadors to the Chan of the Avars. These envoys carried, instead of weapons, a kind of guitar. They stated, that, having no iron in their country, they did not know how to manage swords and spears; and described singing and playing on the guitar as one of the principal occupations of their peaceful life. The general prevalence of a musical ear and taste among all Slavic natives is indeed striking. "Where a Slavic woman is," says Schaffarik, "there is also song. House and yard, mountain and valley, meadow and forest, garden and vineyard, she fills them all with the sounds of her voice. Often, after a wearisome day spent in heat and sweat, hunger and thirst, she animates, on her way home, the silence of the evening twilight with her melodious songs. What spirit these popular songs breathe, the reader may learn from the collections already published. Without encountering contradiction, we may say, that among no other nation of Europe is natural poetry extant to such an extent, and in such purity, heartiness, and warmth of feeling, as among the Slavi." Although we recognise in the last sentence the voice of a Slavic enthusiast, we copy the whole of his remarks as perfectly true; and would only add, that we do not consider "heartiness and warmth of feeling" more a characteristic feature of Slavic than of Teutonic popular poetry. As for the * De Bello Gothico. Lib. I. c. 14. |