14 SEBASTIAN BACH AND HIS WORKS. 



heard by augmentation. The accompaniment^ which is such in tlie 

 strictest sense of the term, and not a mere replicate of the voices, 

 completes the harmony by traits of melody and imitation totally dis- 

 tinct from, yet perfectly in character with, the vocal parts. The 

 boldest forms of progression — forms which our author alone ever 

 attempted — are here employed with startling yet sublime effect. 

 Nothing vulgar, nothing commonplace, nothing even beautiful, is 

 admitted to profane this holy of holies ; here all is grand, dignified, 

 and majestic. Such was the idea entertained by this great man of 

 the duties of the sacred composer — thus nobly has he fulfilled them. 

 2. Herr deine?i Augen sehen iiach den GlaiibcJi. — This piece con- 

 sists of a chorus for four voices, with orchestral accompaniments dis- 

 tinct from the vocal parts ; two airs, the one for a bass, the other 

 for a tenor voice ; an accompanied recitative, and two chorals.* 

 The bass song is perfect of its kind ; and being highly characteristic 

 of Bach's manner of writing for single voices, we will now take the 

 opportunity of explaining in what that manner consists, and in 

 what it surpasses that of other composers. It is the common prac- 

 tice to make the voice the principal, nay, the sole interesting part, 

 and to give the accompaniment only such secondary importance as 

 may suffice to bring out the solo into the greatest possible relief. If 

 nothing more than the good pleasure of the singer be desired, this 

 is certainly the best way of obtaining it. If, again, the uninstruct- 

 ed in musical science are alone to be taken into account, the princi- 

 ple usually acted upon is still, undoubtedly, to be lauded. If, on 

 the other hand, we regard music not merely as a means of gratify- 

 ing individual vanity or uncultivated taste, but as an art capable of 

 indefinite improvement, and in proportion to that improvement mi- 

 nistering to the development, and to the satisfaction when develop- 

 ed, of many of our highest faculties,t shall we not be compelled to 



" Generally answering to our ideas of a psalm-tune, but sometimes (as 

 in the choral O Mensch betvein' deiii' Sunde, in the Passionsmusikj extended to 

 whatever contains within itself a choral melody as a foundation on which to 

 build a more varied siperstructure. The piece we have instanced appears 

 to us one of the finest specimens of this kind of composition with which we 

 are acquainted. 



t The new Science of Mind affords the most satisfactory explanation of 

 the mental phenomena ; and by no means the least useful part of this science 

 is the degree of certainty with wliich we are enabled to discover the compa- 

 rative utility of the various branches of study to which our attention may 

 be directed. That science or that art (exclusively of material benefits to be 

 derived from it) is more or less useful — that is, conducive to happiness — in 

 ])roportion to the greater or less number or iinportunce of the faculties it ad- 



