MUSIC. 
327 
perfeft cadence from the fifth of the fcale to the key-note; 
as thus, G—C. But a melody or modulation in the higher 
part of the oftave was called plagal, or “ fubftituted 
becaufe it depended on the fifth of the real key-note, on 
which it admitted of a clofe with the mere imperfeft or 
plagal cadence from the fourth to the fubftituted key¬ 
note; as thus, C—G. And, though fubjefts and modula¬ 
tions are at prefent allowed a greater compafs than that 
of half an oftave, the authentic and plagal divilion of the 
oftave is ftill attended to in the anfwer of fugues; for, 
when a fubjeft is in the authentic mode, or mode of the 
key-note itfelf,- and makes a cadence or csefura on the 
fifth of the fcale, the anfwer mu ft make that cadence on 
the fourth of its fubftituted fcale, being on the principal 
key-note, or its oftave ; and the contrary. 
Hence follows the difference between the fame diatonic 
octave when ufed as authentic or as plagal. For that of C, 
when ufed as authentic, is divided on the fifth thus ; 
C, D, E, F, G ; G, A, B, C; and when ufed as plagal it 
is divided on the fourth, thus : C, D, E, F ; F, G, A, B,C. 
And the fame with all the other fcales and modes. 
It will appear, from the imperfection of the fcales in 
raoft of thefe modes, that they are only capable of melody ; 
and in the common fervice of Roman-catholic churches, 
when the priefts perform the duty without the afiiltance 
of profefled muficians, no harmony is attempted to be 
given to mere canto fermo. In cathedrals, the motets 
and parts of the mafs are fung by choirmen and children, 
as the anthems and fervices are in our cathedrals. 
Notwithftanding the imperfe&ion of the fcales, and 
little variety of keys in the ecclefiaftical chants, fecular 
mufic feems for many ages to have had no other rules, 
but to have been ftriftly confined to a few keys in the 
diatonic genus, without the liberty of tranfpofitions. 
Hence came the timorous pedantry of excluding all other 
keys and fcales but thofe ufed in the church; which kept 
•every kind of melody meagre and infipid, and in fubjec- 
tion to the rules of ecclefiaftical chanting. For it appears, 
that the only major keys ufed in canto fermo are C, F, 
and G ; and the only minor keys A, E, and D. And in 
four of thefe keys the fcale is deficient, as there is no 
feventh, or note-J'enfible, to G, A, E, or D. This accounts 
for fo fmall a number of the twenty-four keys which the 
general fyftem and fcale of modern mufic furnifhes, hav¬ 
ing been ufed by the old compcfers; as well as for the 
temperament of the organs by w'hich thefe modes were 
afterwards accompanied. And as all mufic in parts feems, 
for many ages after the firft attempts at counterpoint, to 
have been compoled for the fervice of religion upon canto 
fermo and its principles; it likewife accounts for the long 
infancy and childhood of the art, till it broke loofe from 
the trammels of the church, by which it was bound in 
Gothic times: and by the cultivation of the mufical drama 
facred and fecular, the ideas of compofers were enlarged, 
and the talents of performers improved by new exertions, 
w'hich brought the art nearer perfection during the two 
laft centuries than it had attained in feven hundred years 
from the time of Guido. 
In implicit and religious obedience to the laws of canto 
fermo, no accidental flat or fharp was ever to appear; all 
the eight tones being rigidly in the diatonic genus in the 
keys of C and A natural, with no other femitones than 
from E to'F, and B to C. When the fcales of thefe tones 
are drawn out at full length, they feem nothing more 
than different fpecies of o(Slave. As to making thefe 
fcales perfect by adding a flat or fharp at the clef; this 
was a licence which no one thought of, or at leal! had 
the courage to praftife, till counterpoint began to gain 
ground. And even then, the muj'icafitta, or “ falfe mufic,” 
as that in tranfpofed keys was called, no one dared to 
write till lately. Even the orthodox and good Padre Mar¬ 
tini, at length vanquiihed his' fears of the impiety of 
ufing an accidental flat or fharp in the inward parts of 
^anfo fermo, flee Burney's Hift. of Mufic, 
Of the Modes , or Scales, of the Chinefe and Siugeelrfe. 
All the fpecimens which we have been able to procure 
of genuine Chinefe mufic are without femitones; and 
feem to confirm the idea of of pere Aniiot, and the abbe 
Roufller, that it has been formed by a feries of perfect 
fifths, produced by the triple progreflion of Pythagoras. 
Of this feries of perfeft fifths, however, the ancient Chi¬ 
nefe ufed only five, beginning at F, the fundamental or 
lowed found of their fyftem, which produced the follow¬ 
ing treble fcales either way, by beginning at the top or 
bottom of their great Lu , as each diftinft arrangement of 
founds is called : 
And, by giving to thefe founds a regular diatonic pro- 
greflion, they furnifh the following fcale without femi¬ 
tones : 
and which is, in faft, the precife Scottiffi fcale, that may 
be played on the fhort keys of a liarpfichord, or piano¬ 
forte, in G* or Fb. For example: 
We had long been trying, (fays Dr. Burney,) to afeer- 
tain the faft concerning the want of femitones in the* 
Chinefe mufic, and had lent enquiries into different parts 
of the empire, among which one was, Whether the Chi¬ 
nefe had any femitones in their mufic ? or whether their 
oftave only confifted of five tones, inftead of feven with 
which the lcale of Guido is furnilhed ? Which queftion 
was anfwered by an Italian who had been thirty years at 
Pekin, and was a good mulician; whofe anfwer was i 
La Chief, nella loro mufea non hanno femituoni; “ The Chi¬ 
nefe have no femitones in their mufic.” This confirmed 
the conjecture to which the melodies which we had feen 
gave birth ; but did not aflign a reafon for the deficiency. 
But, after perufing the 6th volume of “ Memoires con- 
cernantl’Hiftoire des Sciences, &c. des Chinois,” by themil- 
fionaries of Pekin, publilhed in 1780, and the Memoir con¬ 
cerning Chinefe Mufic ancient and modern, by pere 
Amiot, one of the Pekin miffionaries, of which the abbe 
Rouflier was the editor, we faw no difficulty in affigning 
a reafon for the deficiency in the Chinefe fcale according 
to European ideas. For if, inftead of Hopping at A, the 
fifth of D, they had proceeded two fifths further, they 
would have had an E and a B, which would have furnilhed 
materials for completing the diatonic oftave of five tones 
and two femitones: their fcale would then have been 
F, C, G, D, A, E, B ; which, arranged diatonically, fur- 
nifties every found in the natural fcales of C and A. 
Sir George Staunton, when at Pekin with the embafly 
in 1793, remarked the fimilarity between the Chineie 
mufic and the Scotch. “ The muiicians (lays he) affefted 
moltly flow and plaintive airs, not unlike thofe of the 
Highlanders of Scotland ; which they played in exaft and 
meafured time. To Mr. Huttner, a good judge of mufic, 
it appeared, that their gamut was fuch as Europeans would 
call imperfeft, their keys being inconfiftent; that is, wan¬ 
dering from fiats to ffiarps, and inverfely, except when 
directed by a bell ftruck to found the proper notes. Mr. 
Huttner farther obferved, that the Chinefe, in playing 
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