huÌ„gersterued stifled in his poor kingdoÌ„ of Epirê° had laid a platform in his head of vsurping the whole world The LacedemoniaÌ„s to speak w tout exceptioÌ„ of sex age or coÌ„dition as hard harted as if they had beene borne of AdamaÌ„t or nursed vp with Lions milke I bely them not their stoicall Apothegs and resolute exploites deliuered vnto vs by faithfull authoritie are plentifull witnesses hereof But to ende this point the dignity of Musicke is great if we do not partially and vnequally burtheÌ„ her with those faults wherof shee is guiltlesse the artificer may offend mens affections are corrupt times vnseasonable places inconuenient the art it selfe notwithstanding in her owne proper lawfull vse innocent and harmelesse THE SVAVITIE OF MVSICKE CHAP. III. ALthough both the Authors of this most diuine science and antiquitie therof and estimation which it hath had in times past may sufficieÌ„tly credit the same yet I doe not desire any maÌ„ hardly affectioned in this point to be moued by this treatise vnlesse both the sweetenesse and necessity and operation of it be declared to be such as neither ought carelesly or caÌ„ worthily be neglected For as in those things which are both pleasant and profitable that which is profitable ought most earnestly to be followed so the pleasure which is ioyned with the commodity is not to be contemned Wherefore seeing that poetrie which is but a part of Musicke as Plutarch doth testifie hath this commendation of Horace Aut prodesse volunt aut delectare Poetae Aut simul iucunda idonea dicere vitae Poets of pleasure or of profit great Or else of both most decently intreate we may safely pronounce of the whole that it hath both delectation to allure and profit to perswade men to those thinges wherewith mans life is beautified and adorned I will first therefore speake of the sweetenes and delectation of Musick and afterwards of the vse and necessity thereof Concerning the pleasure and delight I will first shew it by that affinity and congruity which Musicke hath with the nature of liuing creatures Secondly by the effectes and operation which it worketh in the hearers Touching the first as the testimony of Musaeus in Aristotle Res suauisima cantus est mortalibus singing is a most pleasant thing to men daily experience doeth proue vnto vs that not only men but all other liuing creatures are delighted with the sweet harmony concent of Musicke so if there were no other thing els yet that proper fiction of the GraÌ„marians might fully satisfie any maÌ„ in this point Sonus say they the king of Harmony had two sonnes The one of them was called Concentus the other Accentus of Grammatica he begat Accentus but Concentus was borne vnto him of the nymphe Musica Whom when their father perceiued to be both equal in the gifts of the minde and that neither was inferior to other in any kind of knowledge and himself now well striken in yeares to waxe euery day neerer and neerer to his death hee fell into a serious cogitation with himself whether of them two hee should leaue his successour in his kingdome and therefore hee began more narrowly to marke the maners and behauiours of them both nowe Accentus was the elder of the two and hee was graue and eloquent but austere and therefore lesse beloued of the people But Concentus was verie merrie pleasaunt amiable louelie curteous acceptable vnto all menne and cleane contrarie to the disposition of his brother thinking it more glorious to bee beloued than feared Whereby hee did not only get the loue and liking of all his Subiectes but also putte his Father into a greater doubt which of them hee shoulde institute inheritour of his Scepter Therefore appointing a solemne meeting hee asked the Counsell of the Nobles and Princes of his Lande as Musitians Poettes Oratours Philosophers and Diuines and in conclusion their consultation had this issue that neyther shoulde be preferred before other but both should equally inherite their Fathers Scepter and Dominions Whereof I gather omitting all other circumstaunces that as Accentus which is Grammar ought not to be disinherited because of the necessitie therof in speech so Concentus which is Musicke coulde not but bee esteemed as woorthie of preheminence for his pleasure and delectation And for as much as that was the iudgemeÌ„t and determinatioÌ„ both of Musicians Poets Orators Philosophers both Moral Natural and Diuines so much the more is to be ascribed to the sweetnesse of Musicke as these Professours are of better iudgement than other men But I will not ground the commendation of that on fictions and conceipts which neither in it self needeth the colour shadowes of imaginations being aboue all conceiptes nor in the pleasure thereof any externall ornament being sweeter than canne be counterfeited by fictions or expressed by fantasies Wherefore leauing these I will as neerely as I can declare the reason of that delight which Musicke yeeldeth And this first is euident that Musicke whether it be in the voyce only as Socrates thought or both in the voyce and motion of the body as Aristoxenus supposed or as Theophrastus was of opinion not only in the voyce and motion of the body but also in the agitation of the minde hath a certaine diuine influence into the soules of men whereby our cogitations and thoughts say Epicurus what he will are brought into a celestiall acknowledging of their natures For as the Platonicks PythagoriaÌ„s think al 〈◊〉 of meÌ„ are at the recordatioÌ„ of that celestial Musicke whereof they were partakers in heauen before they entred into their bodies so woÌ„derfuly delighted that no maÌ„ caÌ„ be found so harde harted which is not exceedingly alured with the sweetnes therof And therfore some of the antieÌ„t Philosophers attribute this to an hiddeÌ„ diuine vertue which they suppose naturally to be ingenerated in our minds for this cause some other of theÌ„ as Herophilus Aristoxenus which was also a Musician thought that the soule was nothing else but a Musical motioÌ„ caused of the nature figure of the whole body gathering thereof 〈◊〉 necessary conclusion that wheras things that are of like natures haue mutual easy action passioÌ„ betweene theÌ„selues it must needs be that Musical coÌ„cent being like that Harmonical motion which he calleth the soule doth most wonderfullie allure as it were rauish our senses cogitatioÌ„s But this which I haue said may seem peraduenture to be too profoundly handled I will therefore confirme it by naturall experience examples And first generally as I said before there is neither man nor any other liuing creature exempt from the participation of the pleasure of Musicke As for man let vs begin with him euen from his cradell and so take a view of his whole life and we shall see that euen euerie particular actioÌ„ of his is seasoned with this delight first in his infancy whiles he is yet
great admiration and shouting of the people for victorie ouer the harpers Alexāder the great made a great iewel of Achilles his harp Choraebus the Lydian prince was as soueraign in musick as in authoritie Cimon of Athens and Epaminondas of Thebes no worse musicians than Captaines Gregorie the great Bishoppe of Rome ended his life and musicke togither and the quier at this day is a witnesse of his pains Yea Socrates himselfe as great a king in wisdome as they in iurisdiction whose stay and moderatiō of life let Xantippe his wife and scourge witnes and let enuie it selfe iudge of his other qualities being farre stricken in yeares and hauing in a manner one foote in the graue yet of an old master became a young scholer vnto Conus for the attaining of this science And being charged therew t as a wantō toy vnfitting to his gray hayres made this apology It is more shameful in the wain decrease of our life to be ignorant of any good cōmendable property Thus he put on musick as the list vppermost garment wherwith his wisdom grauity and age might bee adorned euen the whole race of his life perfited a garment no dout that is wel worn of seemly personages better worth the wearing thā the softest raimēt in kings housē You may cloath an Ape in golde and an Infant in Hercules armour doth an infant therfore chaunge his age or an Ape forgoe his nature or is there lesse price in the gold or viler estimation of the armour This is to misuse the right vse of things neither fitting the persons and farre vnfitting the garments The deepest dye may be stained and the best gift abused The tuning of the voice and strings may turne to the iarre and discord of manners as well as Rhetoricke may plead vntruethes and Logicke proue impossibilities So that I maruel the lesse if Diogenes the cynick Philosopher amongest other his dogtrickes put vp a formal bil of inditement against the musicians in open and ordinarie court for shewing greater skill in concordes and vnisons of their notes thā vnitie and consent of manners whose sute or action being in all cases and with all persons a resolute and peremptorie man and litle caring where or how he fastned his teeth so he fastned them may seeme approueable in respect of those vniust and euer repining plaintiffes which attemper euery thing to their distemperate humor and in their proceedings make not reason their aduocate but either the weaknes strāgenes or vndiscreetnes of their owne nature Now if a bleareeied man should giue sentence of the sunne beames no doubt he would iudge thē to be shut vp into euerlasting cloudes least at any time they might be offensiue to his sore eies If a feuersicke palate should be iudge of tasts and relishes what vnmerciful doome would it award to the holesomest restoratiues Aske the Satire what shall becom of the fire for swealing his beard being ouersawcie in embracing it I warrant you he wil curse Prometheus for euer troubling the earth w t it A melancholick man and one that is fitter to liue in Trophonius his den than in ciuill societie will trowne vpon musicke if for no other cause yet at the least to shewe him selfe seruiceable to his melancholie Thus we shall haue the brightest eye of the world euen the sunne pluckt out of heauen the best meate out of our mouthes and the necessariest element out of the nature of things yea all vertues and sciences vtterly raced out as the occasiōs somtimes though neuer the causes of some inconueniences if euery brainsicke hareblind and froward man may iudge and determine in those cases Now then as oft as we shall heare Archidamus or any the like sectarie of his make better accompt of a Cater thā a Singer mihi bonus cantor bonus cupediarius what shall we say of him but that animus erat in patinis His belly was his idol the belly hauing no ears is vnfit to meddle with soundes If Anteas the Scythiā at the singing of Ismenias the Thebā for want of better gods sware by the wind his fauchin he had rather hear the neieng of an horse thā y e singing of Ismen let his words as they are indeed so go but for winde if his sworde be the best argumēt that he hath to auouch it let vs wound him againe but with this onely blow Quis tumidum guttur miretur in alpibus Who can looke for a white skine in Aethiopia or an vpright iudgement in Scythia Albeit besides the vnciuilitie and brutishnes of his countrie he was no doubt fitter to handle a curriecombe than iudge of singing who in the midst of his royaltie made boastes that he vsed to rubbe horses heeles But if Antisthenes shal go a note aboue Anteas giue this or the like vncharitable censure of Ismenias as indeed he is reported to haue done he is a naughtie mā if he were honest he would neuer be a musiciā we may say with some indifferent reuerence of his philosophers beard gowne y t as he was generally reputed to be Auitus magis quà m eruditus his wit being too headstrōg for his wisdom so particularly in this matter he had not sufficiētly learned how to define honestie For although many good musicians bee as many bad men yet so farre is it off that musick should be blamed as the cause of such an effect that rather if they bee otherwise bad men shee weanes and withdrawes them from their corruption For warrant hereof the necessitie of the art to be sette downe in a latter treatise maie yeeld sufficiēt argument meane while thus much I say that a precious stone may be set in ledde and a good qualitie placed in an euill subiect In which cases wee haue more cause to pittie their vnfortunate houserome than accuse their vnseemely demeanour But to lose the bitte a litle farther and to giue thē euen their own asking musicke as many other good blessings hath beene made the instrument of many disorders What need I recite them other are eagle eied and quick sighted enough to espie thē I confesse this to be true but in such sort as glorie becomes the fuell occasion vnto enuy peace to security beautie to pride learning to insolencie good lawes to enormitie meates and drinkes to surfeting and finally the fairest gifts an edge intisement to the foulest faults Wher notwithstāding the wel natured things themselues are not chargeable w t those crimes but the euil disposed persons If thou canst not moderate schoole thy self in beholding plucke out thy eies as Democritus did if not in hearing stoppe thy eares with waxe as Vlisses his companiōs did if not in eating lay thy teeth aside as those Graeae of Scythia did if not in speaking bite off thy tong as Zeno Eleates did For by as good reason maist thou do the one as the other seeing the disliking of these and
wholy destitute of the vse of reason wee see that the child is stilled and allured to sleepe with the sweete songes and lullabyes of his Nurse although the griefe of his tender limmes be such as is able to breede impatience in a stronger body And for this cause is it that children are so delighted and allured with rattels and bels and such like toies as make a sound Now as strength iudgement increase in man so Musicke pleaseth and delighteth him more and more so that whether he be noble or ignoble yet the same delight of minde groweth to perfection togither with the body And therfore Aristotle in his Politiques coūselleth that childrē be instructed in musick especially if they be of noble parētage not so much for the profit cōmodity therof as because it is agreable to nature being in it selfe both liberal honest for in al matters to propose profit as the only end is neither y e part of a liberal nature nor of a gētlemālike dispositiō Again in base in ignoble persons the very senses spirits are wōderfully inflamed w t the rural songs of Phillis Amaryllis insomuch that euen the ploughmā cartar are by the instinct of their harmonicall soules cōpelled to frame their breath into a whistle thereby not only pleasing thēselues but also diminishing the tediousnes of their labors And therefore most naturall is that which Virgil vseth in describing of a good housewife longum cantu solata laborem Arguto coniux percurrit pectine telas The huswifes spinning makes her labour long Seeme light with singing of some merrie song as also that other spokē of y e pruner of trees Alta subrupe canit frondator ad auras The lopper singing from the craggy rocke The bowes leaues beats down with many a knocke and that of the sheepeheards Cur non Mopse boni quoniā conuenimus ambo Tu calamos inflare leues ego dicere versus Hic corilis inter mixtas consedimus vlmos Mopsus my friend seeing our skill is great Thine for the tune mine for the pleasant rime In th'hasell bower why take we not our seate In mirth and singing there to spend the time And hence it is that wayfaring men solace thēselues with songs ease the wearisomnes of their iourney cōsidering that Musick as a pleasant cōpanion is vnto thē in steed of a wagō on the way And hence it is that manual labourers and Mechanicall artificers of all sorts keepe such a chaunting and singing in their shoppes the Tailor on his bulk the Shomaker at his last the Mason at his wal the shipboy at his oare the Tinker at his pan the Tylor on the house top And therefore wel saith Quintilian that euery troublesom laborious occupation vseth Musick for a solace recreatiō wherof that perhaps may be the cause which Gyraldus noteth The symphony concent of Musicke saith he agreeth with the interior parts affections of the soule For as there are three partes or faculties of mans soule the first and worthiest the part reasonable which is euer chiefe neuer in subiectiō to the other the second irascible which as it is ruled of the former so ruleth the latter and the last cōcupiscible which euer obeieth neuer ruleth so if we cōpare the symphony of Musicke with these powers of the soule we shal find great conueniencie and affinity between them For looke what proportion is betweene the parts reasonable irascible such is there in Musicke between that string which is called hypate that which is termed Mese causing the melody called diatessaron and looke what proportion is between the parts of irascible cōcupiscible such is there between Mese Nete making that sound which is named Diapente so that as those three partes of the soule consenting in one make an absolute and perfect action so of these three in Musicke is caused a pleasant and delectable Diapason And therfore no maruell if according to the mixture of these sounds diuerse men be diuersely affected with seuerall Musicke insomuch that almost euery peculiar nation and people be in their wars delighted with proper instrumentes as in former times the Cretenses with the harpe the Lacones with Cornets the Amazones with Flutes the Cibarites with Shalmes the Lydians with Whistles Pipes the Latines with trompettes the Getes with the Cytheron and Flute so in these later daies and more nice times of the world al nations with compound and mixt Musick and with sundrie kinds of instrumentes as Cornets Wayts Shagboyts Trūpets Drūb fife Neither do I here so attribute this delectation vnto man as denying it to other creatures for I am verily persuaded that the plowmā cartar of whō I spake before do not so much please thēselues w t their whistling as they are delightsom to their oxē horses Again the warhorse is so inflamed w t the soūd of the trūpet that he cannot keepe his stāding but maketh an open way to his rider through the midst of his thickest enimies And here may it please the reader for his recreatiō to call to mind one speciall history of the Sibarits whose horses were not only delighted with Musick but also taught to dāce to the instrumēt insomuch that one of their musitiōs at a certaine time hauing some discurtesy iniury offred him took occasiō to forsake his coūtry fled to the Crotoniats which were enimies to the Sibarits forasmuch as not long before that time the Sibarits had giuē thē the ouerthrow in battle This tibicē or plaier on the shalm comming amōg the crotoniats made his speech vnto thē to this purpose effect that if they could afford him credit he wold work such a deuice as they shold easily obtain the conquest of the Sibarits horsmē Credit was giuē vnto his tale he ordained captain of the war instructed all the fluters shalmers of the Crotoniates what note they shold play and how they should addresse themselues against their enimies Now the Sibarites on the other side being insolent hauing taken hart a grace courage vnto them by reason of their former victory prepare thēselues to meete their enimies in the field Wherefore the Shalmers of whome I spake before hauing receiued a watchworde of the Captaine on a suddaine sounded their Flutes and Shalmes The horses of the Sibarites hearing their country Musicke wherunto they had beene accustomed reared themselues on their hinder feete cast their riders and as they were wont to daunce at home so now they did it in the skirmish and by this policy the Crotoniats wan the victory of the Sibarits Wherby may be gathered not onely how pernicious clandestine treason is to a cōmonwealth but also what strange incredible delight musick impresseth euen in these dumbe and vnreasonable creatures So mules are wōderfully alured with the sound of bels sheepe follow their sheepeheards whistle And it is recorded also
that the Hart and other wilde beastes are by sweete and pleasant notes drawen into the toiles and gins of the huntesman AElianus in his varia historia testifieth that Pythocaris a musition playing vpon his Cornet mitigated the fierce and rauenous nature of wolues and that the mares of Libia and Oliphantes of India woulde followe the sound of Organes and diuers other instruments Now as these terrestriall beasts haue their peculiar and proper delightes so aquaticall creatures also liuing in another element offer themselues voluntarily to the sound of Musicke so as Martianus recordeth certaine fishes in the poole of Alexandria are with the noice of instruments inticed to the bankes side offering themselues to mens handes so long as the melody endureth Wonderfull are those thinges which in good authors are related of the dolphin but for our purpose none so fit as that of Arion whose excellent skill in Musicke giueth testimony aswell against the sauage and barbarous cruelty of those vnnaturall shipmen which sought to take away his life as to the gentle and kinde nature of the dolphin which is both a louer of men and an earnest follower of musicke Arion seeing no way to escape the furie of his cruel enemies tooke his Citterne in his hand and to his instrument sang his last song where-with not only the dolphines flocked in multitudes about the ship readie to receiue him on their backes but euen the sea that rude and barbarous element being before roughe and tempestuous seemed to allay his choler waxing calme on a sodaine as if it had beene to giue Arion quiet passage through the waues There is also a third kinde of liuing creatures which by the Philosophers are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 because they liue both on the land in the waters Of these I wil only name the Swanne which bird is therefore saide to bee vnder the patronage of Apollo not only for that shee is allured with the sweet notes and mellodious concent of musicke following them which plaie vppon instruments on the water but more especially because she seemeth to haue som diuination from him whereby she foreseing what good is in death by a naturall instinct finisheth her life with singing and with ioy Sic vbi fata vocant vdis abiectis in herbis Ad vada Maeandri concinit albus olor When death the swanne assaies Laid prostrate on the ground Her song doth make Maeanders bankes her dolors to resounde As for those other creatures which liue in the aire I do not think that the fouler could euer haue made such spoil hauock of them beeing so far out of his reach iurisdiction had not nature told him that they aboue all creatures vnder the heauēs are as most delited so soonest intangled allured with his songs Wherfore when thou seest each foul in his kind the Linet the Nightingale the Lark to mount aloft sing their notes vnto the skies shewe thy selfe docill in these two thinges first in acknowledging the delight which both thou takest in thē they in musick secondly learn by their exāple what thy duty is ought to be in grateful singing of psalms and songs to him that made thee Lastly y t I may not omit those which the heathnish poets wise mē counted inferior indeed to the gods but better thā men how worthily I will not heere stand to debate euen they testifie also of thē y t they take infinite pleasure in musik As whē Silenus sang his song of the beginning of the world vnto Chronis Mnasilus Aegle y t faire nimphe Tū vero in numerū Faunos Satyrosque videres Ludere tū regidas motare cacumina quercus Then mightst thou see the Faunes and satyres daunces lead The Cypresse trees to shake and sturdie okes their head So when Pan Apollo stroue whether of them was the better Musitian Deseruere sui nimphae vineta Timoli Deseruere suas nimphae pactolides vndas When Pan for lawrell branche in song with faire Apollo stroue Pactolus nimphes forsook their stream and Tmolus nimphes their groue Homer is not afraid to ascēd a litle higher shewing that euē the gods Iupiter himself are content to giue a patiēt eare to musical concent therupon in that banquet of y e gods where Vulcan plaid the skinker hee maketh Apollo the Muses singing a song 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Thus they in banquetting consumde the day Nor faire nor mirth was wanting to their will While faire Apollo on his harpe did play The Muses answering with aequal skil Pithagoras and his sectatours thought that the world did not consist without musical proportion and concent And therefore both he the best philosophers ascribe vnto euery Celestiall sphere one Goddesse or Muse which is the gouernes ruler therof because there are eight of those spheres the seuen planets and the eight which is called the firmament therefore they made 8. peculiar Muses attributing to Luna the muse Clio to Mercurius Euterpe to Venus Thalia to Sol Melpomene to Mars Terpsichore to Iupiter Erato to Saturne Polymnia to the firmamēt or coelum stellatum Vrania and because of eight particular soundes or voices keeping due proportion and time must needes arise an harmony or concent which is made by them all therefore that sound which al these make is called Calliope And hence is that pleasant harmony of the celestial globes caused which Pythagoras so much speaketh of If then both Gods and men and vnreasonable creatures of what kind soeuer be allured and mitigated with musicke we may safely conclude that this proceedeth from that hidden vertue which is between our soules and musicke and be bold with Pindarus to affirme that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. Al those things that Iupiter doth not loue do only contemne the songs of the Muses THE EFFECTS AND OPERATION OF MVSICKE Chap. 4. IN the former chapter was gathered a proofe and demonstration of the sweetnesse of Musick proceeding frō the causes to the effects Now I meane by the contrarie demonstration to proue the delectation thereof from the effects to the causes For it cannot be but that as the conueniēce and agreement which musicke hath with our nature is the cause of the delectation thereof So the pleasure and delectation is also the cause of those effectes which it worketh as well in the minds as bodies of them that heare it Musick being in it selfe wholly most effectuall importeth much of his force and efficacie euen to the peculiar partes and portions thereof And therevpon auncient writers make the distinction of songs and notes in musicke according to the operations which they worke in their hearers calling som of them chast and temperate some amarous and light othersome warlike others peaceable some melancholicke and dolefull other pleasant and delightfull And yet this diuision is not so auncient as that