LADY NEVILL'S MUSIC-BOOK: MODE OF READING THE ANCIENT VIRGINAL MUSIC.
(Vol. vii., p. 59.)
The index to Lady Nevill's Music-book, printed by your correspondent L. B. L., was made known to the public in 1789, in the third volume of Dr. Burney's History of Music. In addition to the information given in "N. & Q.," the doctor adds:
"Besides the great number of Bird's compositions for keyed instruments, which are preserved in the Virginal book of Queen Elizabeth (now in the Fitzwilliam Museum), another manuscript collection of his pieces still subsists, under the title of Lady Nevil's Music-book. It is a thick quarto, very splendidly bound and gilt, with the family arms beautifully emblazoned and illuminated on the first page, and the initials H. N. at the lowest left-hand corner."—P. 91.
The MS. in question was the property of Dr. Burney, at whose sale, in 1814, it was purchased for 10l. 10s. by Mr. Thomas Jones, of Nottingham Place. At the sale of the latter, about ten years afterwards, it was bought by Triphook, the bookseller, and by him sold to Lord Abergavenny. I remember seeing the book when in Triphook's possession, since which time I had lost sight of it, until the notice by L. B. L. in your pages.
Mr. Thomas Jones was a well-known musical antiquary, and possessed many rare treasures in this department. One of the most important was the original MS. of Lady Nevill's Music-book, in the handwriting of William Byrd the composer. This valuable relic is now in my library.
John Baldwine, the person who made the splendid copy for the use of Lady Nevill, was a singular character. I have some materials for his biography which may one day see the light. He was a poet in his own time, and wrote a metrical
account of famous musicians. The latter part, which I extract from the MS. now before me, relates to the composer of Lady Nevill's Music-book:
"An Englishe man, by name William Birde, for his skill,
Which I shoulde have sett first, for so it was my will,
Whose greate skill and knowledge dothe excell all at this tyme,
And far to strange countries abroade his skill doth shyne.
Famous men be abroade, and skilful in the arte,
I do confesse the same, and will not from it starte,
But in Europp is none like to our English man,
Which doth so farre exceede, as trulie I it scan,
As ye cannot finde out his equale in all thinges,
Threwghe out the worlde so wide, and so his fame now ringes.
With fingers and with penne he hathe not now his peere;
For in this worlde so wide is none can him come neere:
The rarest man he is in Musick's worthy arte
That now on earthe doth live, I speak it from my harte,
Or heere to fore hath been, or after him shall come,
None such I feare shall rise that may be calde his sonne.
O famous man! of skill and judgemente great profounde,
Let heaven and earthe ringe out thy worthye praise to sounde;
Nay, lett thy skill it selfe thy worthye fame recorde
To all posteritie thy due desert afforde;
And let them all which heere of thy greate skill then saie,
Fare well, fare well, thou prince of musicke, now and aye;
Fare well, I say, fare well, fare well, and here I ende,
Fare well, melodious birde; fare well, sweet musick's frende.
All these things do I speak not for rewarde or bribe,
Nor yet to flatter him, or sett him upp in pride;
Not for affection, or ought might move there too,
But even the truth reporte, and that make known to you.
So heere I end: fare well, committinge all to God,
Who kepe us in his grace, and shilde us from his rodd."
As regards the ancient notation of Lady Nevill's Music-book, I will now say a few words.
In the most ancient music for keyed instruments, such as the organ, virginals, harpsichord, spinet, &c., a staff consisting of eleven lines was used, that is, five lines for the treble, and five lines for the bass, and a centre line, being the note C. This was improved upon by dividing the staff into two sixes, and repeating the C line twice over, viz. in the lower part of the treble staff, and in upper part of the bass staff. As music progressed, and performers required more scope for the movement of the hands, the staff of twelve lines was rent asunder, and the middle C line excluded altogether. It then became the custom to print the five upper lines and the five lower lines much more widely apart, as is now done in modern music. But it ought not to be forgotten that there is only one line really between them; that is to say, there are only three notes between the two sets of five lines, viz. the note below the upper five, the note above the lower five, and the note on that middle line, and that note is middle C, or, more properly, tenor C. A knowledge of this important fact would much facilitate the student in learning to read in the tenor cleff.
In decyphering the old virginal music, all we have to do is to leave out the lower line of the upper staff, and the higher one of the lower staff. It then reads like our modern music.
Edward F. Rimbault.