“These rules of music are in a plain method, as it shows in the first six chapters of this book, the which being perfectly understood, viz., the notes of the scale or gamut, which directs the places of all notes, flat and sharp, by which are pricked all lessons and tunes on the five lines, thus distinguishing of the several parts by their cliffs, as the treble, tenor, and basse. Lastly, the names of the notes, their quantities, proportions, and rests, according to the rule of keeping time, etc. There then remains two things to be instructed in, how the violin is strung and tuned, and secondly, to give you directions for the stopping the several notes, both flat and sharp, in their right places. Then, first observe that this cannot be expressed in words unless on the neck or finger-board of the violin there be set five or six frets, as is on the viol. This, though it be not usual, yet it is the best and easiest way for a beginner, for by it he has a certain rule to direct him to stop all his notes in exact tune, which those that do learn without seldom attain so good an ear to stop all notes in perfect tune. Therefore, for the better understanding of these following examples, I shall assign to those six frets on the finger-board of your violin six letters of the alphabet in their order” (here follow examples), after which he says:
“These few rules (and the help of an able master to instruct thee in the true fingering, and the several graces and flourishes that are necessary to be learnt by such as desire to be exquisite hereon), will in a short time make thee an able proficient.”
These quaint instructions would hardly suffice to meet the requirements of modern violin playing, but it is interesting to observe the rules and precepts laid down for the student’s guidance over two hundred years ago. Observe also the recommendation of frets for accuracy in stopping the notes.
The viol, however, was not destined to die a sudden death, at any rate, in this country. The soft wailing tone of the viol still found many admirers, principally amongst amateurs, who regarded the violin in the nature of an interloper. Their cause too was vindicated by one Thomas Mace, who, curious to relate, was born in the same year as John Playford (1613). This worthy lived in Cambridge, and in 1676 published a work entitled “Musick’s Monument, or a Remembrancer of the best practical music both Divine and Civil that has ever been known to be in the world,” certainly a most ambitious title and one that does not in the least suffer on its comparison with the precepts contained in the book. He was one of the clerks of Trinity College, Cambridge, and seemed to have acquired considerable knowledge of matters musical. Under whom he was educated, or by what means he became possessed of so much skill as to be able to furnish matter for the above work, he has nowhere informed us. We may collect from it that he was enthusiastically fond of music, and of a devout and serious disposition, though cheerful and good humoured.
His knowledge of music seems to have been confined to the practice of the lute (his favourite instrument) and the viol. The third part of this work is devoted chiefly to the viol, and in this he censures the abuse of music in the number of bass and treble instruments in the concerts of his time, in which he says, it was not unusual to have but one small weak-sounding bass viol to two or three “scoulding violins.” This disproportion he seeks to remedy by the observance of the following instructions. He says:
“Your best provision (and most compleat) will be a good chest of viols six in number, viz., 2 basses, 2 tenors, and 2 trebles. All truly and proportionably suited. Of such, there are no better in the world than those of Aldred, Jay, Smith (yet the highest in esteem are), Bolles and Ross (one bass of Bolles I have known valued at £100).
“These were old, but we have now very excellent good workmen who (no doubt) can work as well as those if they be so well paid for their work as they were, yet we chiefly value old instruments before new, for by experience they are found to be far the best. The reason for which I can no further dive into than to say, I apprehend that by extream age the wood (and those other adjuncts) glew, parchment, paper, lynings of cloath (as some use), but above all the vernish. These are all so very much (by time) dryed. Linefied, made gentle, rarified, or (to say better even) agefied, so that that stiffness, stubbornness, or clunginess, which is natural to such bodies are so debilitated and made plyable, that the pores of the wood have a more and free liberty to move, stir, or secretly vibrate, by which means the air (which is the life of all things both animate and inanimate), has a more free and easy recourse to pass and repass, and whether I have hit upon the right cause I know not, but sure I am that age adds goodness to instruments, therefore they have the advantage of all our late workmen.
“Now suppose you cannot procure an entire chest of viols suitable, etc. Then thus. Endeavour to pick up (here or there) so many excellent good odd ones as near suiting as you can (every way), viz., both for shape, wood, colour, etc., but especially for size. And to be exact in that take this certain rule, viz., let your bass be larger, then your trebles must be just as short again in the string, viz., from bridge to nut, as are your basses, because they should stand 8 notes higher than the basses. Therefore, as short again (for the middle of every string is an 8th) the tenors (in the string) just so long as from the bridge to F fret because they stand a 4th higher.
“Let this suffice to put you into a complete order for viols.”
We have given the above quotation in extenso without breaking in with any comment, in order that the student may better understand the peculiar phraseology used by this ancient authority. The student will observe that old instruments were equally valued in those days as in these, and this too was at a period anterior to the fame of the great Stradivarius, whose grand period commenced with the opening of the eighteenth century.[1]