A HISTORY OF VOCAL MUSIC. 575 



I feel sure that, did an ancient minstrel appear amongst 

 us this evening, and did he attempt to sing witli the same 

 amount of pride and pleasure as in his own days one of those 

 old English melodies which delighted the pride of King Alfred 

 the Great, the most accomplished musician of his time, we 

 should consider him a dreadfully conceited and execrable 

 musician. But our tone of criticism would change somewhat 

 if it were possible to hear one of the musicians who lived in 

 England, say, four hundred years ago. We should be pleased 

 not only with the perfection of his singing, but also with the 

 beauty of the music in use in his day, which is still the delight 

 •of musicians of the nineteenth century. 



In the sixteenth century all civilised Europe was musical, 

 and it is very gratifying that England was then in the very 

 front rank of musical nations, her musicians and their com- 

 positions second to none. The sixteenth century saw the 

 culmina,tion of her musical powers. Then followed a decline : 

 music and the sister arts were neglected, a natural result of 

 revolutions, civil wars, and political strife. 



In this nineteenth century England is perhaps making for 

 the head of the list again. At any rate, if money and ma- 

 chinery — by which I mean the enormous system of musical 

 training, and the numbers of music schools and colleges, in 

 existence at the present moment — have anything to do with 

 position and progress, England should soon be at the head of 

 all musical nations. Of course, ojiinious differ as to the pro- 

 bability of such a result, but perhaps something might be said 

 on both sides. 



New Zealand, I am afraid, is behind the Old Country in its 

 cultivation of music, and unless a change is made it is likely 

 to be more so. To a musician who has lived the greater part 

 of his life in England it does seem extraordinary that one 

 should find in New Zealand such a splendid system of training 

 in existence for every other secular subject but that of music, 

 for neither in our State schools nor in our universities, if we 

 except Auckland, does it receive more than a passing notice.""^' 



Yet, though a thorough and proper cultivation of nmsic is 

 not spreading amongst us as it should, the love of vocal music 

 is gaining ground through other forces. We especially, in this 

 cathedral city, must endeavour to emulate the cathedral cities 

 of old, for it is an undoubted fact that the cathedral cities of 

 mediasval Europe were the cradles of art, and especially of the 

 vocal art. 



Music is both an art and a science, and hence her claim to 



* Since this lecture was delivered a Lectureship in Music has been 

 established in the University College of Christchurch, Canterbury, and 

 Mr. G. F. Tendall has been appointed Lecturer. 



