984 
obvious advantages of ConTRAsT are 
Enjudicioully : abandoned. 
. I aife cannot help thinking thet mo- 
dern amateurs are far more tenacious of 
the old ftyleof writing than.the compo- 
fers themfelveés would have been, had the 
midern fyle been introduced in, their 
days. 
The modern fiyle of compefition was 
“principally brought about, by the ufe of 
wind urtrumenis, of which the ancients 
had: not experienced the good effects, 
and were alfe-probably prejudiced again ft 
them. The great Scarlatti declared to 
diate, on. ‘the latter de firing to antro- 
duce Quantz, the flute-player, to him, 
fas related by Dr. Burney, in his 
ay 
German Tour) that he ated wind in- 
ficuments, as being wever in tune. In 
this, affertion «he “night probably “at 
that period have been right, “from 
the, then emperfection of thofe inftru- 
ments; but, as great improvements jave 
lately been made by means of additional 
Keys, &c. the objettion no longer holds 
good ° 
Axnonegit rhe Act that introduced wind 
enftcuments 1 in overtures, concertos, &c. 
avere Handel and Martini, fe far they 
xvere- innovators; firing mflruments be- 
rng chiefly ufed before their time. More 
modern compoters have, however, mitch 
improved the mode of introducing them, 
suhich ks no difparagement ro .Handel, 
&c. becaufe it is quite as meritorious 
for one perfon fuccefsfully to introduce 
a new fyftem, as it can be for others to 
SIEPrOve * upon it. Neither can it, I 
4hink, be doubted that had Handeland 
Martini - lived and oes their faculties 
a few years longer, but that they would 
chemfelves in fome meafure have altered 
their flyle, and conformed to that of the 
smodern fym phony. 
‘The frt.compefers of thefe fympho- 
“mes obferved, and with reafon, that hold~ 
Ayle, were bett calculated 
firuments, to which the ‘accordingly 
applied. them, leaving difficult paffages 
£0 be executed by fring cntntbeo In 
‘she generality of Handel’ s overtures, the 
hhautboy parts are mere duplicates of 
shole és the violin, witheut regard to 
the compas of the inftrument, or. the 
ai fiiculty’of executing many paffages on 
it. The folo paflages in: the overtures 
of Efther and Juftin, were evidently at 
firkt compofed as harpfichord paffages*. 
for wind in- 
* The ‘narplichord ana the or gan ‘appear, 
art to ave been the only inilrumept Han- 
bag: fellly andérfieod, or, at ‘Teal, ex- 
Comparifon of Ancient and Mrdern Music. 
[ Sup. 
The fir inventor of 'the ‘ftyle of the 
modern fymphony is faid to ‘be Richter, 
whofe com pofitions beg more feidritifie 
than thofe ‘of the gener cality of his. im- 
mediate fucceffors, (the lait ‘trams of 
maty of them be ing x thort fugues) are 
therefore: more ‘p! ealing to connoiffeurs. 
Mufic, however, 1s capable of being fo 
conftructed, es to yive-pleafute to people 
in general. Perhaps the proper’ telt ‘of 
excellence ‘in this art fhould nee be; that 
it affords’ pléafure’ to profeffors and con- 
noiffeurs ‘only, but'to the greateft num- 
bor of amateurs indifcrimina el Ly taken. 
As we are therefore obliged’ ro’ Richter 
for the zaveniion of this ftyle, fo we are, 
perhaps, much obliged to othéts for' the 
(ql nt “of it.’ “To Stalmitae ae 
eldér, we are indebted for che introduc- 
fion of the crefecado and diminuendo, 
the efeets of which are fo wonderfully 
frikice in mcdera mufic. “Phe Forte, 
piano, and even fortiffine and Pranifimo, 
had been'lone before in ufe, ‘yet the re- 
gular, and almoft- imperceptible grada- 
tion fror the ote to’ the other, had not 
bee n difeovered. That this ‘invention oF 
3 

celicd in the practice of; many of his’ fiddle 
paflages lie very aukwardly for the hand, and 
difficult to be taken without frequent and 
annatural fhiflings. The French horns alfo 
in the fugue of the overture in Sampfon, are 
made to cxecute the fame kind of paflages as 
the violins and tenor, though in the ‘higheft 
and mof dificult key for the inftrument. 
It is {id of Handel, that when he fat at 
the harpfichord in a modern fymphony, (in 
the latter part of his life) he ufed to ridicule 
the reiterated quavers on the fame note in 
‘the bafs, for feveral bars together; faying, 
“Now D is ‘trumps, now- A is tramps,” 
&c.—But however unmeaning ~ this repeti- 
tion of the fame notes may appear in them- 
felves, and independent of the variety of 
harmony that is ufually made thereon by the 
other parts, it cannot’ pofibly, be. more un- 
“meaning than a lone holding note for fevera 
ing .notes.or paflages in the. centabile - g than a long holdingino : 
bars, which fr equently occurs in the ancient 
Sate: The fat is, that thefe reiterated 
quavers in the bafs, and ferniquavers inthe 
‘violin parts, were introduced after wind ‘ins 
flruments came into ufe, and merely for the 
fake of variety: and additional brilhiancy. 
Reiterated femiquavers in the fiddle’ ‘parts 
are, therefore, generally accompanied with 
plain or holding notes ‘in unifon in the‘ haut 
boy parts, and repeated quaveys in. the bails, 
by loag or holding notes in ainifon: in .the 
horn or ‘baffoon paris;, by which means, a 
new effet is introduced, “2 and the wind and 
fring | inftruments are kept diftine from 
each other, while each plays in the Ryle pe- 
culiat te ‘felt. 
Stamitz 
z 
