MUSIC. 
rapid change takes place, whereby the 
whole compass of the voice is sunk an oc- 
tave, or eight notes. Tims a hoy who, at 
the age of ten or twelve, should be able to 
sing a piece of music in alt, that is, in high 
notes, when arrived at the age of sixteen oi 
seventeen, in singing the same passages, 
would in reality be singing exactly an oc- 
tave lower. The change is not regular as 
to any particular year; it varies greatly; 
some lose their voices even at twelve years 
old ; these arc, for the most part, of that 
class which never were above a counter- 
tenor, and sink into a basitono, or to a full 
bass. The few who are able to preserve 
their high pitch until seventeen, or perhaps 
eighteen years, rarely fall lower than the 
counter tenor, and ordinarily become sopra- 
nos. These, however, are rare. In esti- 
mating voices we are not to judge fiom the 
high notes occasionally produced, and which 
are the effect of much study and practice. 
This stile is called the falsetto, and is an 
artificial voice, the junction of which to the 
natural intonation, so as to be perfectly 
smooth, is extremely diflicult, and very 
rarely is found perfect, in even our best 
singers. Castration is supposed to produce 
’ this fictitious voice; but it is supposed that, 
not one victim in a thousand of that descrip- 
tion is rewarded by its attainment. Na- 
ture, indeed, seems to be very whimsical 
in this particular ; for some castrati receive 
not the smallest benefit ; they having, after 
all, deep-toned voices. This, it is true, 
does not often occur: the generality ac- 
quire, or rather perpetuate, a kind of mezzo, 
or middle intonation, more offensive than 
gratifying to the hearer. 
The degrees of strength, the loudness, or 
the softness of voices, have no eft’ect what- 
ever on the pitch or relative tone ; for we 
may whisper in bass, and bawl in soprano. 
Therefore when w’c say high or low, we 
either put the intonation to some audible 
test, as by reference to th(' sounds of in- 
struments, &o. whose exact pitch is previ- 
ously ascertaiue ; or, in our minds, we 
form an estimation by aid of the memory, 
which refers to the graveness or acuteness, 
as it may happen, of some instiumeut with 
whose notes thj voice in question seems to 
correspond. Tims hiah and low are posi- 
tive definitions which force, or the accit 
mulation of strength, as in chorusses, will 
not render shriller or more acute, nor soft 
ness and whispering, render more, deep or 
graver. The terms are, however, only to 
be considered as arbitrary ; for they have 
no real foundation in regard to the nature 
of sounds, and seem to depend entirely on 
the manner in which music is written, the 
shriller tones being placed the highest on 
the stave of fine lines, and the deepest 
tones being represented by the lowest 
notes ; thus fonning a gradual decrease of 
acuteness from the highest to the lowest, 
which declension being, by this means, re- 
presented to the eye, enables us to judge, 
without hesitation, as to the pitch of the 
several intonations thus represented. By 
tl'.is means we are able to compare the 
pitch of two voices, or of any number ot 
instruments whereby they might be accom- 
panied ; for by inspecting the music as 
written on the stave, and observing the 
relative ascendance of the notes, as allotted 
to, or as they could be executed by each 
singer, we at once decide that the person 
performing those notes which reach the 
highest on the stave, sings higher than the 
other ; therefore if they should sing in 
parts, we should say the highest singer of 
the tw'O took the first, and the lowest singer 
the second part of the music. The ancient 
Greeks used the terras high and low, in 
an opposite sense to what is above de- 
scribed. The lyres in use among them 
were so varied, that their gravest sounds 
were produced from the uppermost strings, 
and vice versa ; hence they called the deep- 
est notes high, and the acuter notes low. 
It is not to be supposed that all the sounds 
which can, by any means be produced, 
should be represented on the five lines, 
called the stave, although we never see more 
lines ruled for that purpose, the whole 
length of the stave. There are many notes 
carried far above, an3 far below : tlieir 
relative sounds are distinguished by what 
are called ledger (properly legere, or light) 
lines, the number of which serve to shew 
the degrees of altitude or of depression 
respectively. But it must be obvious how 
ineffectual even this substantial aid would 
be to specify all the intonations contained 
in the six species already noticed. It is 
true the upper, or soprano, species, admits 
of much explanation by the addition of 
perhaps four or five ledger lines above the 
st.ive ; but the great number of sounds be- 
low the stave would require such a number 
of ledger- lines under it, as would inevitably 
create eonfudon, and render it impossible 
for the most qiiick-sialned, and most prac- 
tised pc former to follow the melody with 
precision. To remedy tus inconvenience, 
and to do away many other practices which 
