T O S 



TOT 



however, will be longer remembered by the merit »f his foil, 

 than by his mufical produftions, which have been long 

 loft and forgotten. See the next article. 



Tosi, Pier Fra'scesco, yleeademico Filafmonko diBolognoy 

 and not only an eminent opera finger, in foprano, during 

 his youth, but a compofer of cantatas, in which the recita- 

 tives were particularly impaflidned, energetic, and impref- 

 five, and author of an excellent treatife on finging, well 

 known in England, by the late Mr. GaUiard's admirable 

 tranflation. 



The author of this treatife feems to have had no partia- 

 lity for rapid execution. His ovvn favourite ftyle of finging 

 was the pathetic, which he defcribes and recommends by ex- 

 cellent precepts. Though this elementary traft has been 

 written more than fourfcore years, no work of the fame 

 kind has been produced in Europe fince its pubhcation, but 

 upon Tofi's model, and in confirmation of his precepts. 

 The excellent compofer of the old fchool, Galliard, a pro- 

 found and experienced judge of every fpecies of mufical 

 merit, not only recommended its perufal to the firft mufical 

 profeflbrs, inilrumental as well as vocd, by an admirable 

 tranflation and notes in 1740, but by his encomiums in- 

 ftantly exalted it into a claflical work. 



In 1757, Agricola, opera compofer to Frederic II., king 

 of Pruffia, and the beft fiiiging-mafter in Berlin, pubhfhed 

 a tranflation of it with ufeful and inftruftive notes, which 

 made tlie work well-known in Germany ; a knowledge 

 which Hiller of Leipfic much increafed by frequent ex- 

 trafts from it, in his mufical journals. 



And in 1774, Mancini, finging-mafter to the arch- 

 duchefTes at Vienna, publidied a treatife on finging of great 

 mefit, founded on the work, and confirming the principles 

 of Tofi, of whom he fpeaks with the higbeft refpeft in his 

 chapter on " Intonation." " Giovera non poco fi ogni 

 fcolare leggera' nel libro tanto ftimato di Pier Francefco 

 Tofi. A carte 12, la fpiegazione, che elFo fa fopra il 

 femituono maggiore, e minore, appunto per fapore la quan- 

 tita degl' intervalli, o fia delle comme, cheli compone." — " It 

 will be of no fmall fervice to ftudents in finging, if they 

 read in the work of P. F. Tofi, (p. 12. of the original,) 

 the explanation which he gives of major and minor femi- 

 tones, that they may know precifely the quantity of the 

 fev^ral intervals, or rather commas, of which they are com- 

 pofed." See Mancini, for the original title and further 

 account of his book. 



Of Tofi's life but little is known, except from GaUiard's 

 prefatory difcourfe to his tranflation ; who tells us that he 

 was a finger of great efteem and reputation. He fung on 

 the Hage at Venice in 1707, in the opera of " Olibrio," 

 written by Apoftolo Zeno, and fet by Gafparini, where he 

 is ftyled Virtuofo di S. A. Elettorole Palatina. He fpent 

 the ciiief part of his time, according to Galliard, in travel- 

 ling, and by that means heard the moft eminent fingers in 

 Europe ; whence, by the help of his refined tafte, he made 

 the obfervations which are contained in his book. Among 

 many excurfions, his curiofity was excited to vifit England, 

 where he refided forfometime in thereignsof king James II., 

 king William, George I., and beginning of George II. 

 He was very m»ch elleemed by perfons of rank wherever 

 he went : among whom, in England, was the late earl of 

 Peterborough, whom he had often met in his travels on the 

 continent, to whom he had dedicated his book, though it 

 was printed at Bologna in 1723, fome time after he had 

 quitted England. The emperor Jofeph I. gave him an 

 honourable employment in fome part of Italy, and the 

 arciiduchefs, a church retirement in Flanders, where he 

 died. 



The original title of his book, which is now becomp 

 fcarce, is, " Opinione de' Cantori Antichi e Moderni t> 

 Sieno Oflervazioni fopra il Canto figurato:" 8vo. 



The earl of Peterborough, to whom he dedicates his book, 

 was one of the bell informed judges of dramatic mufic and 

 performance in his time. He married the amiable and ac- 

 compliflied Mrs. Anaftafia Robinfon, after a very long 

 courtfiiip. ( See her article. ) Tofi ufed to meet Bonon- 

 cini, and all the firil opera fingers of the time, at tlie earl's 

 villa, at Parfon's Green ; and we remember hearing Monti-, 

 celli, RegineUi, and Manzoli, fpeaking with great refpeft ot 

 the " Trattato di Tofi." 



TOSI A, in Geography, a neat town of Afiatic Turkey, 

 in Natolia, built on the fide of a hill, at the foot of which 

 is a fine fertile country ; 70 miles S.S.W. of Sinob. 



TOSICCIA, a town of Naples, in Abruzzo Ultra; 

 7 miles S. of Teramo. 



TOSINO, a river which crofles the marquifate of An- 

 cona, and runs into the Adriatic, N. lat. 42° 57'. E. 

 long. 13° 55'. 



TOSMUANASSA, in Ancient Geography, a town of J 

 Afia, in Baftriana. Ptolemy. 1 



TO SNA, in Geography, a river of Ruffia, which runs 

 into the Neva, near Pella, in the government of Peterfbnrg. 



TOSNITZPACH, a river of Auilria, which runs 

 into the river Erlebach, 2 miles below Scheibs. 



TOSOLIC, a town of Thibet ; 35 miles S. of Tourfan. 



TOSON-HOTOC, a town of Chinefe Tartary ; 88 

 miles S.S.W. of Haratoube. 



TOSPITES, in Ancient Geography, a country of Afia, 

 in Greater Armenia, S. of the fources of the Euphrates 

 and Tigris. Ptolemy. 



TOSQUIATOSSY Creek, in Geography, one of the 

 branches of the Allegany river. 



TOSS, a river of Switzerland, which runs into the 

 Rhine, 2 miles S.E. of Eghflau, in the canton of Zurich. 



TOSSAQUA, a town of Peru, in the audience of 

 Quito ; no miles W. of Quito. 



TOSSE, a town of France, in tlie department of the 

 Landes ; 12 miles W. of Dax. 



TOSSIAT, a town of France, in the departm.ent of the 

 Ain ; 7 miles S.E. of Bourg-en-Brefie. 



TOSSIGNANO, a town of Italy, in the department 

 of the Amona ; 13 miles W. of Ferrara. 



TOSSO, a town of Sweden, in Weft Gothland ; 42 

 miles N.N.E. of Uddevalla. 



TOST, or TosciiEK, a town of Silefia, in the princi- 

 pahty of Oppeln ; 26 miles S.E. of Oppelii. 



TOSTA, a river of Mexico, which runs into the Pacific 

 ocean, N. lat. 12° 30'. 



TOSTAR, or SusTER. See Shus, Shuster, and 



SUSA. 



TOSTERYD, a town of Sweden, in Smaland ; 22 

 miles S. of Jonkioping. 



TOSTES, a town of France, in the department of tlie 

 Lower Seine ; 12 miles S.W. of Arques. 



TOSTO, Cape, a cape on the N. coaft of Spain, N. 

 lat. 43° 13'. W. long. 9° 10'. 



TdSU'N HoTUN, a town of Thibet ; 508 miles W.S.W. 

 of Tourfan. N. lat. 4L-° 55'. E. long. 99° 10'. 



TOT V.\radin, a town of Flungary ; 24 miles S.E. 

 of Boros Jeno. 



TOTA Island, or IJland of Planlaitis, an ifland of the 

 Atlantic, near the coaft of Africa, at the mouth of the 

 Scherbro. 



TOTANA, a town of Spain, in the province of Murcia ; 

 II miles N.E. of Lorca. 



TOTANO, 



