The galliard is a lively air in triple time: Brossard intimates that it is the same with the Romanesca, a favourite dance with the Italians. It is graphically described in Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy:
"Let them take their pleasures, young men and maides flourishing in their age, fair and lovely to behold, well attired, and of comely carriage, dauncing a Greek galliarde, and, as their dance required, kept their time, now turning, now tracing, now apart, now altogether, now a curtesie, then a caper, &c., that it was a pleasant sight."
Christopher Sympson, in his Compendium of Practical Musick (ed. 1678, p. 116.), says:
"A pavan doth commonly consist of three strains, each strain to be play'd twice over.... Next in course after a pavan follows a galliard, consisting sometimes of two, and sometimes of three strains."
Specimens of the passamezzo pavan and galliard may be found in Queen Elizabeth's Virginal Book, in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. One is dated 1592. Others may be found in the Public Library, Cambridge (MS. marked "D. d. 3, 18.") Also in two rare printed books,—Robinson's School of Musick, fol. 1603; and Neder-landtsche Gedenck-clanck, Haerlem, 1626. The latter work contains the "Passamezzo d'Anvers."
Edward F. Rimbault.
PHOTOGRAPHIC NOTES AND QUERIES.
The Albumen Process.—In answer to Mr. Lawrence's Queries regarding the albumen process (in Vol. vii., p. 116.), I think I can supply him with the information he requires.
The albumen should be placed in a cup, or some wide-mouthed vessel, and, after carefully removing from its surface every trace of air-bubbles, it is to be poured carefully on the plate, and after being flooded over the surface of it, the plate being tilted on one side, the greater portion of the albumen may be run off into the cup again. The plate must not be held sideways, however, for more than an instant; and it must be brought as soon as possible into the horizontal position, face downwards, between the points of the wire support, as used by Messrs. Ross and Thompson; and being held by the cord attached to the wire support, it must be given a slow rotary motion. The rate at which to cause it to rotate must be a matter of experience, but must be such as to keep the surface of albumen even, and neither to let it settle in the centre, nor to leave that and pass completely to the edges; neither must too much of it be allowed to flow off, as then the coating will not be thick enough. The best plan is to fix on the wire support at the corner of the plate, and then pour on the albumen, and then no time need be lost between pouring off and giving the rotary motion. The albumen will keep some time in a bottle; but as soon as it begins to get curdy and opalescent, it begins to lose in sensitiveness. The plate, if well prepared, will remain sensitive and in good order for two days at least, and being kept in a dry and cool place is a great assistance to its preservation. The addition of about five drops of saturated solution of bromide of potassium to every ounce of previously-iodized albumen causes great depth and brilliancy in the negative. The same sensitive bath answers over and over again, as with collodion. The time of exposure cannot be specified, as that varies almost indefinitely from ten minutes to an hour and a half.