The Power Of Music - free ebook by Anonymous

THE POWER OF MUSIC.

IN WHICH IS SHOWN , BY A VARIETY OF PLEASING AND INSTRUCTIVE ANECDOTES, THE EFFECTS IT HAS ON Man and Animals. LONDON : PRINTED FOR J. HARRIS, CORNER OF ST. PAUL’S CHURCH-YARD. 1814. THE POWER OF MUSIC, &amp;c. &amp;c....

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CONVULSIONS RELIEVED BY MUSIC

The following extraordinary instance of the effects of music, is related by M. Menuret. “An unmarried lady, about thirty years of age, in consequence of violent grief in her youth, experienced various derangements in the natural functions, and was afterwards attacked by convulsions, which, at first, returned every month, and in the sequel, became more frequent. Medicines of every kind seemed only to aggravate the disorder; the fits recurred, not only every day, but several times a day, and were

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RECOVERY OF THE VOICE BY MUSIC.

“In the beginning of December, 1801, Elizabeth Sellers, a scholar in the Girls’ Charity School, at Sheffield, aged 13, lost her voice: so that she was unable to express herself on any occasion, otherwise than by a whisper. She, however, enjoyed very good health, and went through several employments of the school, such as knitting, sewing, spinning, on the high and low wheel, &amp;c. without any indulgence . Read audibly she could not; and her infirmity resisted, without intermission, all med

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THE EFFECT OF MUSIC ON A HARE.

The following anecdote was communicated, some years since, by Mr. James Tatlow, of Wiegate, near Manchester, who had it from those who were witnesses of the fact. “One Sunday evening, five choristers were walking on the banks of the river Mersey, in Cheshire, after some time, they sat down on the grass, and began to sing an anthem. The field in which they sat, was terminated, at one extremity, by a wood, out of which, as they were singing, they observed a hare to pass with great swiftness toward

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THE POWER OF MUSIC ON THE ELEPHANT.

“At Paris, some curious experiments have been lately made on the power of music, over the sensibility of the elephant. A band of music went to play in a gallery, extending round the upper part of the stalls, in which were kept two elephants, distinguished by the names Margaret and Hans . A perfect silence was procured; some provisions, of which they were very fond, were given them to engage their attention, and the musicians began to play. The music no sooner struck their ears, than they ceased

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THE EFFECT OF MUSIC ON A PERSON WHILE ASLEEP.

Dr. Burney, in his Present State of Music, relates the following story. “Among the anecdotes,” says he, “relative to the strange effects of music, which were given to me by Lord Marshal, he told me of a Highlander, who always cried, upon hearing a cer tain slow Scots tune, played upon the bagpipe. General G. whose servant he was, stole into his room one night, when he was fast asleep, and playing the same tune to him very softly, on the German flute, the fellow, without waking, cried like a chil

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CONTRARY EFFECTS OF ITALIAN AND FRENCH MUSIC ON A GREEK LADY.

“A young Greek lady being brought from her own country, to Paris, some years since, was, soon after her arrival in that city, carried to the opera by some French ladies, supposing, as she had never heard any European music, that she would be in raptures at it; but, contrary to these expectations, she de clared, that the singing only reminded her of the hideous howlings of the Calmuc Tartars; and, as to the machinery, which it was thought would afford her great amusement, she declared her dislike

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ANECDOTE OF ZAMPERINI.

About the year 1775, Zamperini, one of the actresses at the opera, returning from Lisbon by sea, was so terrified by a storm, that she fell into a state of stupidity, from which nothing could relieve her. Upon her arrival at Venice, among her family, she received every assistance which medicine could give, but in vain. She ate, drank, slept, and performed all the functions of animal life; but she knew nobody, took no interest in any thing, and seemed to be sunk into the most profound state of un

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EFFECTS OF MUSIC ON MICE AND SPIDERS.

An officer of state, being shut up in the Bastile, obtained permission to carry with him a lute, on which he was an excellent performer; but he had scarcely made use of it, for three or four days, when the mice, issuing from their holes, and the spiders, suspending themselves from the ceiling by their threads, assembled around him to participate in his melody. His aversion to these animals, made their visit at first disagreeable, and induced him to lay aside this recreation; but he soon was so a

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ANECDOTE OF STRADELLA.

Stradella, the celebrated composer, having carried off the mistress of a Venetian musician, and retired with her to Rome, the Venetian hired three desperadoes to assassinate him; but, fortunately for Stradella, they had an ear sensible to harmony. These assassins, while waiting for a favourable opportunity to execute their purpose, entered the church of St. John de Latran , during the performance of an oratorio, composed by the person whom they intended to destroy; and were so affected by the mu

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A MODERN TIMOTHEUS.

Modern music has had its Timotheus, who could excite or calm, at his pleasure, the most impetuous emotions.— Henry III. King of France, having given a concert, on occasion of the marriage of the Duke de Joyeuse, Claudin le Jeune, a celebrated musician of that period, executed certain airs, which had such an effect on a young nobleman, then present, that he drew his sword, and challenged every one near him to combat; but Claudin, equally prudent as Timotheus, instantly changed to an air, apparent

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TIMOTHEUS THE MELISIAN.

Timotheus was so excellently skilled in music, that, one day, when he play ed and sung a song, composed in honour of Pallas, in the presence of Alexander the Great, the prince, as one transported with gallantry and the martial humour of the air, started up, and being stirred in every part, called for his armour, and was going to attack his guests; when the musician immediately changed into more sedate and calmer notes, sounding, as it were, a retreat; the impetuous prince was calmed, and sat qui

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THIRTY THOUSAND PERSONS SAVED BY THE WONDERFUL EFFECTS OF MUSIC.

“Sultan Amurath, having laid siege to Bagdad, and taken it, ordered thirty thousand Persians to be put to death, though they had submitted, and laid down their arms. Amongst these unfortunate victims, was a musician. He besought the officer, who had the command to see the Sultan’s orders executed, to spare him but for a moment, and permit him to speak to the Emperor. The officer indulged him, and, being brought before the Sultan, he was suffered to give a specimen of his art. He took up a kind o

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PHILIP V. KING OF SPAIN.

Philip V. King of Spain, being seized with a total dejection of spirits, which made him refuse to be shaved, and rendered him incapable of attending council, or transacting affairs of state, the queen, who had, in vain, tried every common expedient, that was likely to contribute to his recovery, determined that an experiment should be made of the effects of music, upon the king, her husband, who was extremely sensible to its charms. The celebrated Farinelli being then at Madrid, of whose extraor

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THE MUSICAL PIGEON.

Mrs. Piozzy, in her Observations in a Journey through Italy, relates the following singular anecdote. “An odd thing,” says she, “of which I was this morning a witness, has called my thoughts away to a curious train of reflections upon the animal race, and how far they may be made companionable and intelligent. The famous Bertoni , so well known in London, by his long residence among us, and, from the undisputed merit of his compositions, now inhabits this, his native city; and, being fond of dum

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THE MUSICAL DOG.

Signor Morelli, the celebrated Opera singer, has a dog, who, aided by the well-known comic powers of his master, is productive of much amusement, by his attempts to sing, when called upon in company. On his master’s summons for that purpose, he seats himself on the chair left for him, and, with great earnestness, tries to follow the tones of his master’s voice; plaintively whining when he hears the high tones, and growling when the low ones are sounded. Signor Morelli pretends to be in raptures,

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THE EXTRAORDINARY EFFECTS OF MUSIC ON A BULL.

A few years ago, a man who lived at Allerton, near Liverpool, by trade a tailor, but who could occasionally handle his fiddle, as well as his needle, on his way home, from whence he had been exercising his musical talents, for the entertainment of his country neighbours, in passing through a field, about three o’clock, in the morning, in the month of June, he was attacked by a bull. After several efforts to escape, he attempted to ascend a tree; not, however, succeeding in the attempt, a momenta

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THE DYING MAN AND THE PIANO.

Died lately, aged 85, Mr. William Anthony de Luc. His passion for music was so predominant, in his latter days, that a piano forte was placed by his bedside, on which his daughter played a great part of the day. The evening of his death, seeing her father ready to sink into a slumber, she asked him, “Shall I play any more?”—“Keep playing,” said he, “keep playing!”—He slept, but awoke no more! Mr. W. A. de Luc had explored many volcanic countries, whence he had brought choice specimens of their p

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THE POWER OF MUSIC ON ANIMALS, IN THE WEST OF ENGLAND.

The style of driving an ox-team in Devonshire is remarkable, indeed, cannot pass unnoticed by a stranger. The language, though in a great degree peculiar to the country, does not arrest the attention, but the tone, or rather tune, in which it is delivered. It resembles, with great exactness, the chantings, or recitative of the cathedral service. The plowboy chants the counter-tenor, with unabated ardour, through the day; the plowman, throwing in, at intervals, his hoarser notes. It is understood

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TWO INSTANCES OF THE SURPRISING EFFECTS OF MUSIC, AS RELATED IN THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES, AT PARIS.

A famous musician, and great composer, was taken ill of a fever, which gradually increased, till the 7th day, when he was seized with a violent delirium, almost constantly accompanied by cries, tears, terrors, and a perpetual watchfulness. The third day of his delirium, one of those natural instincts, which makes, as it is said, sick animals seek out for the herbs that are proper for their case, set him upon desiring earnestly to hear a little concert in his chamber. His physician could hardly b

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INTERESTING PARTICULARS OF MONSIEUR MOZART.

“Mozart, the celebrated German musician, was born at Salzburg, in the year 1756. His father was also a musician of some eminence, but not to be compared with the son, of whom we have the following account, in one of the Monthly Miscellanies, taken by Mr. Busby, from some biographical sketches, of two eminent German professors. “At the age of three years, young Mozart, attending to the lessons which his sister, then seven years old, was receiving at the harpsichord, he became acquainted with harm

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G. F. HANDEL, ESQ.

Handel’s government of the fingers was somewhat despotic; for, upon Cuzzoni’s (a famous singer of his time) insolently refusing to sing his admirable air, Falsa Imagine , in Otho, he told her, that he always knew she was a very de vil ; but that he should now let her know, in his turn, that he was Belzebub , the prince of the devils; and then, taking her up by the waist, swore, if she did not immediately obey his orders, he would throw her out of the window....

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TARTINI, AN ITALIAN MUSICIAN.

Tartini was a celebrated musician, born at Pirano, in Istria, and being much inclined to the study of music in his early youth, dreamed one night, that he made a compact with the Devil, who promised to be at his service on all occasions: and during this vision, every thing succeeded according to his mind: his wishes were prevented, and his desires always surpassed, by the as sistance of this new servant. At last, he imagined that he presented the Devil with his violin, in order to discover what

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MR. HANDEL.

When Handel went through Chester, in his way to Ireland, in 1741, he applied to Mr. Baker, the organist, to know whether there were any choirmen in the cathedral who could sing at sight , as he wished to prove some books that had been hastily transcribed, by trying the chorusses, which he intended to perform in Ireland. Mr. Baker mentioned some of the most likely singers then in Chester; and, among the rest, a printer, of the name of Janson, who had a good bass voice, and was one of the best mus

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FARINELLI AND HIS TAYLOR.

“The following story,” says Dr. Burney, “was frequently told, and believed at Madrid, during the first years of Farinelli’s residence in Spain. This singer, having ordered a superb suit of clothes for a gala at court, when the taylor brought it home, he asked him for his bill. “I have made no bill, Sir,” says the taylor, “nor ever shall make one. Instead of money,” continues he, “I have a favour to beg. I know that what I want is inestimable, and only fit for monarchs; but, since I have had the

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MR. ABELL.

Mr. John Abell was one of the Chapel Royal, in the reign of King Charles II. He was celebrated for a fine counter-tenor voice, and for his skill in playing on the lute. The king admired his singing, and was desirous of sending him, with the subdean of his chapel, Mr. Gostling, to the Carnival of Venice, to show the Italians what good voices were produced in England: but the latter expressing an unwillingness to go, the king desisted from his purpose. Mr. Abell continued in the chapel till the ti

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HANDEL.

George Frederick Handel, unquestionably the greatest master of music the world has ever known, was born at Halle, in Upper Saxony, on the 24th of February, 1684. Scarcely could he speak, before he articulated musical sounds; and his father, a phy sician, then upwards of sixty, having destined him for the law, grieved at the child’s propensity to music, banished from his house all musical instruments. But the immortal spark of genius, which Heaven had kindled in the infant’s bosom, was not to be

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DR. ARNE.

The father of this celebrated composer, and the still more celebrated Mrs. Cibber, was an upholder and undertaker in King Street, Covent Garden, with whom the doctor, when a young man, resided. At this time, there was a gentleman, of much celebrity in the musical world, employed at Drury Lane Theatre.—Many may still remember Mr. John Hebden, who, for almost half a century, stood in a corner of the orchestra, and performed on the bassoon and the bass viol, on which two instruments he was unrivall

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JEREMIAH CLARKE.

Jeremiah Clarke was originally bred to music, and had his education in the Chapel Royal, under the celebrated Dr. Blow, who seems to have had a paternal affection for him. Early in life, Clarke was so unfortunate as to conceive a violent and hopeless passion for a very beautiful and accomplished lady, of a rank far superior to his own; and his sufferings, on this account, became so intolerable to him, that he resolved to put an end to his existence. He was at the house of a friend, in the countr

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HANDEL.

One night, while Handel was in Dublin, Dubourg, having a solo part in a song, and a close to make at his pleasure, he wandered about in different keys a great while, and seemed a little bewildered, and uncertain of his original key; but, at length, coming to the shake which was to terminate this long close, Handel, to the great delight of the audience and augmentation of applause, cried out, loud enough to be heard in the most remote part of the theatre, “ You are welcome home , Mr. Dubourg!” In

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MR. BROWN.

The late Mr. Brown, leader of his Majesty’s band, used to tell several stories of Handel’s love of good cheer, liquid and solid, as well as of his impatience: of the former he gave an instance, which was accidentally discovered, at his own house, in Brook Street, where Brown, in the Oratorio Season, among other principal performers, was at dinner. During the repast, Handel often cried out——“O, I have de taught, (thought),” when the company, unwilling that, out of civility to them, the public sho

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LULLI.

This fortunate musician, the son of a peasant in the neighbourhood of Florence, was born in 1633. He had a few instructions in music from a cordelier. His first instrument was the guitar, to which he was always fond of singing. The Chevalier de Guise brought him into France, in 1646, as a present to his sister, Mademoiselle de Guise, who placed him among the assistants of her kitchen, where he was assigned the honourable office of sous marmiton [1] . [1] Under scullion. In his leisure hours, bei

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MADAME LE MAUPIN.

This celebrated lady seems to have been the most extraordinary personage of all the siren troup , instructed by Lulli. She was equally fond of both sexes, fought and loved like a man, and resisted and fell like a woman. Her adventures are of a very romantic kind. Married to a young husband, who was soon obliged to absent himself from her, to enter on an office he had obtained in Provence, she ran away with a fencing-master, of whom she learned the small sword, and became an excellent fencer, whi

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ARCHANGELO CORELLI.

That this celebrated composer was a man of humour and pleasantry may be inferred from the following story, related by Walther, in his account of Nicholas Adam Strunck, violinist to Ernestus Augustus, Elector of Hanover. This person being at Rome, upon his arrival, made it his business to see Corelli: upon their first interview, Strunck gave him to understand that he was a musician. “What is your instrument?” asked Corelli. “I can play,” answered Strunck, “upon the harpsichord, and a little on th

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HENRY PURCELL, ESQ.

Mr. Purcell received his professional education in the school of a choir; it is therefore not very surprising, that the bent of his studies was towards church music. Services he seemed to neglect, and to addict himself to the composition of anthems, a kind of music which, in his time, the church stood greatly in need of. The anthem, “ They that go down to the sea in ships ,” was composed by him, on the following extraordinary occasion. “King Charles II. had given orders for building a yatch, whi

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THE QUEEN OF SWEDEN.

In the extracts from the Duchess of Orlean’s Letters, we find, that Queen Christina, of Sweden, (who was as peculiar in her night dress, as in almost every thing else, and who, instead of a night-cap, made use of an uncouth linen wrapper,) having spent a restless day in bed, ordered a band of Italian musicians, from the opera, to approach near to her curtains, which were close drawn, and strive to amuse her. After some time, the voice of one of the performers striking her with singular pleasure,

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THE ORIGIN OF CHANTING IN CATHEDRALS.

St. Austin, who was originally a monk at Rome, and was sent about the year 596, by Gregory I. at the head of forty other monks, to convert the English to Christianity, was the first who introduced chanting in the Divine Service, which is still continued in our cathedrals. His desire was to induce converts; and he strove, not only by argument, to effect his object, but by every other laudable means he could devise; hence he endeavoured, as much as possible, to render the Divine Service interestin

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ORIGIN OF THE CELEBRATED OX MINUET, BY SIGNOR HAYDN.

Haydn saw with surprise a butcher call upon him one day, who being as sensible to the charms of his works as any other person, said freely to him, “Sir, I know you are both good and obliging, therefore I address myself to you with full confidence;—you excel in all kinds of composition; you are the first of composers: but I am particularly fond of your minuets. I stand in need of one, that is pretty, and quite new, for my daughter’s wedding, which is to take place in a few days, and I cannot addr

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MUSICAL BATTLE.

On Monday evening, June 2, 1783, one of the most extraordinary attempts to prove the power of music, that ever yet has been made in this kingdom, was exhibited, in the style, and under the title of a concert, at the Assembly room, King Street, St. James’s, Westminster. The idea was that of representing the martial music, din, and horrors of an embattled army, so that the tones of the different instruments should cause the ear to believe a reality of the action, whilst the eye was convinced of th

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THE MEDICINAL EFFECTS OF MUSIC.

The medicinal effects attributed to music are so numerous, and some of them so well authenticated, that to reject them totally would be to deny credibility to many respectable historians, philosophers, and physicians. Martinus Capella assures us, that fevers were removed by song, and that Asclepiades cured deafness by the sound of the trumpet. Plutarch says, that Thetales, the Cretan, delivered the Lacedemonians from the pestilence, by the sweetness of his lyre. Many of the Ancients speak of mus

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THE MUSICAL PRODIGY.

In the public prints for February, 1807, appeared the following account of an infant musician. “Miss Randles, who astonishes the world with her wonderful performance on the piano-forte, was born at Wrexham, in Denbeighshire, North Wales, in August, 1799. Her father (an organist, and the celebrated lyrist, mentioned by Miss Seward, in her beauti ful poem, called Llangollen Vale,) was deprived of his sight by the smallpox, at the age of three years. When Miss Randles was but sixteen months old, sh

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MASTER WILLIAM CROTCH, THE MUSICAL PHENOMENON.

This very extraordinary child, who now (in June 1779,) daily attracts the notice and attention not only of persons of the first distinction, but of all lovers of natural genius, is the son of Michael and Isabella Crotch: he was born at Norwich, on the 5th of July 1775. His father being an ingenious carpenter, built an organ for his own amusement; and it was owing to this incidental circumstance that the musical talents of his little son William were discovered so early: they might have lain dorm

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ACCOUNT OF MADEMOISELLE THERESA PARADIS, OF VIENNA, THE CELEBRATED BLIND PERFORMER ON THE PIANO-FORTE.

The following account of this wonder ful woman appeared in one of the periodical papers for March, 1785. “This young person, equally distinguished by her talents and misfortunes, is the daughter of M. Paradis, secretary to his Imperial Majesty, in the Bohemian department, and god-daughter to the Empress Queen. “At the age of two years and eight months, she was suddenly deprived of sight, by a paralytic stroke, or palsy in the optic nerves. “At seven years old, she began to listen with great atte

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THE LEGEND OF ST. CECILIA.

As this celebrated patroness of music has given rise to some of the most beautiful poetic productions in our language, the Legend of the said lady, not being generally known, the following particulars of her life and martyrdom, it is presumed, will prove highly acceptable to our readers. “St. Cecilia, among Christians, is esteemed the patroness of music: for the reasons whereof, we must refer to her history, as delivered by the notaries of the Roman church, and from them transcribed into the Gol

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CLINIAS, THE PYTHAGOREAN.

“This philosopher was a person very different, both in his life and manners, from other men. If it chanced at any time that he was inflamed with anger, he would take his harp, play upon, and sing to it; saying, as often as he was asked the cause of his so doing, ‘That by this means he found himself reduced to the temper of his former mildness.’” Treasury of Ancient and Modern Times....

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THE SPARTAN POET TYRTŒUS.

Tyrtœus, the Spartan poet, having first rehearsed his verses, and afterwards made them to be sung with flutes, well tuned together, he so stirred and inflamed the courage of the soldiers thereby, that, whereas, they had before been overcome in divers conflicts, being then transported with the fury of the Muses, they remained conquerors, and cut in pieces the whole army of the Messinians....

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THE RAGE OF THE EMPEROR THEODOSIUS SUBDUED BY MUSIC.

At such time as the tyrant Eugenius raised that perilous war in the East, and that money grew short with the Emperor Theodosius, he determined to raise subsidies, and to gather, from all parts, more than before he had ever done: the citizens of Antioch bore this exaction with so ill a will, that, after they had uttered many outrageous words against the Emperor, they pulled down his statues, and those also of the Empress, his wife. A while after, when the heat of their fury was past, they began t

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THE BISHOP OF ORLEANS RESTORED FROM PRISON BY MUSIC.

The sons of Ludovicus I. then Empe ror, had conspired against him, and amongst divers of the bishops that were confederate with them, was Theodulphus, Bishop of Orleans, whom the Emperor clapped up in prison in Anjou. In this place, the Emperor kept his Easter, and was present at the procession on Palm Sunday, in imitation and honour of Christ’s entrance into Jerusalem. All the pomp was passing by the place where Theodolphus was under restraint; the Bishop, in sight of that solemnity, had prepar

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A WOMAN PREVENTED FROM STARVING HERSELF TO DEATH, BY MUSIC.

Among the many anecdotes related of persons whose lives have been preserved by music, is the following. “A woman, being attacked for several months with the vapours, and confined to her apartment, had resolved to starve herself to death. She was, however, prevailed on, but not without difficulty, to see a representation of the Servo Padrona (a musical piece so call ed.) At the conclusion of which she found herself almost cured; and, renouncing her melancholy resolution, was entirely restored to

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REMARKABLE EFFECTS OF A SWISS AIR.

There is a celebrated air in Switzerland, called, Rans des Vaches , which had such an extraordinary effect on the Swiss troops in the French service, that they always fell into a deep melancholy when they heard it. Louis XIV. therefore forbade it ever to be played in France, under the pain of a severe penalty. We are told also of a Scotch air ( Lochaber no more ) which had a similar effect on the natives of Scotland....

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THE DENMARK MUSICIAN.

There was a musician, formerly in Denmark, that so excelled in the art of music, that he used to boast, that he could, with his performance, set his hearers beside themselves, or make them merry, pensive, or furious, as he pleased. This he performed upon trial at the command of Ericus II. surnamed the Good, King of Denmark....

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WONDERFUL POWER OF MUSIC ON MADAME DE LA MARCH.

Madame de la March, a young lady of beauty and virtue, (near to Garet,) upon report of her husband’s inconstancy, fell into such a fury, that, on the sudden, she would throw herself into the fire, or out at the window, or into a fish-pond, near her house, out of which she had been twice rescued: but was afterwards more diligently watched. The physicians attended her to no purpose, notwithstanding all their endeavours; but a Capuchin passing that way to crave alms, and hearing what had befallen h

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A RHODIAN MUSICIAN’S REPLY TO APOLLONIUS.

When Apollonius was inquisitive of Canus, a Rhodian musician, “What he could do with his instrument?” He told him, ‘that he could make a melancholy man merry, and him that was merry, much merrier than he was before: a lover more enamoured, and a religious man more devout, and more attentive to the worship of the gods....

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EXTRAORDINARY EFFECTS OF MUSIC ON SNAKES AND SERPENTS.

In the month of July, 1791, (says an eminent historian,) we were travelling in Upper Canada, with several families of savages, belonging to the nation of the Onontagues. One day, when we had halted in a spacious plain on the bank of the river Genesse, a rattlesnake entered our encampment.— Among us was a Canadian who could play on the flute, and who, to divert us, advanced against the serpent with his new species of weapon. On the approach of his enemy, the haughty reptile curls himself into a s

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THE DANCING SNAKES.

The dancing snakes are carried in baskets throughout Indostan, and procure a maintenance for a set of people, who play a few simple notes on the flute: with which these snakes seem much delighted, and keep time by a graceful motion of the head, erecting about half their length from the ground, and following the music with gentle curves, like the undulating lines of a swan’s neck. It is a well attested fact, that when a house is infested with these snakes, and some others of the coluber genus, wh

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CURIOUS CONTEST ABOUT THE ERECTION OF THE CELEBRATED ORGAN IN THE TEMPLE CHURCH, LONDON.

After the Restoration, the number of workmen in England being found too few to answer the demand for organs, it was thought expedient to make offers of encouragement for foreigners to come and settle here; these brought over from Germany Mr. Bernard Schmidt and—— Harris; the former of these, for his excellence in his art, and the following particulars respecting him, deserves to live in the remembrance of all such as are friends to it. Bernard Schmidt, or, as we pronounce the name, Smith, was a

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QUEEN MARY AND MR. PURCELL.

The famous old ballad, “ Cold and raw ,” was greatly admired by Queen Mary, consort of King William; and she once affronted Mr. Purcell, by requesting to have it sung to her, he being present. The story is as follows: The Queen, having a mind, one afternoon, to be entertained with music, sent to Mr. Gostling, then one of the Chapel, and afterwards subdean of St. Paul’s; to Mr. Henry Purcell, and Mrs. Arabella Hunt, who had a very fine voice, and an admirable hand on the lute, with a request to a

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THE HIGHLAND CHARGING TUNE.

In one of the late battles in Calabria, a bagpiper of the 78th regiment, when the light infantry charged the French, posted himself on their right, and remained in his solitary situation during the whole of the battle, encouraging the men with a famous Highland charging tune; and actually, upon the retreat and complete rout of the French, changed it to another, equally celebrated in Scotland upon the retreat of and victory over an enemy. His next hand neighbour guarded him so well, that he escap

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EFFECTS OF FOREIGN MUSIC ON DIFFERENT ANIMALS.

Sir William Jones, in his curious Dissertation on the musical Modes of the Hindus, relates the following story. “After food, when the operations of digestion and absorption give so much employment to the vessels, that a temporary state of mental repose must be found, especially in hot climates, essential to health, it seems reasonable to believe that a few agreeable airs, either heard or played without effort, must have all the good effects of sleep, and none of its disadvantages: putting the so

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EFFECT OF MUSIC ON LIZARDS.

A modern traveller assures us, that he has repeatedly observed, in the island of Madeira, that the lizards are attracted by the notes of music, and that he has assembled a number of them by the powers of his instrument. He tells us also, that when the negroes catch them, for food, they accompany the chase, by whistling some tune, which has always the effect of drawing great numbers towards them. Stedman, in his expedition to Surinam, describes certain sibyls among the negroes, who, among several

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MUSICAL ANECDOTE FROM MARVILLE.

Marville has given us the following anecdote. He says, “that doubting the truth of those who say it is natural for us to love music, especially the sound of instruments, and that beasts themselves are touched with it, being one day in the country, I enquired into the truth; and, while a man was playing on the trump-marine, made my observations on a cat, a dog, a horse, an ass, a hind, cows, small birds, and a cock and hens, who were in a yard, under a window on which I was leaning. “I did not pe

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ACCOUNT OF THE RECITATION OF THE BOATMEN OF VENICE.

It is well known, observes a celebrated literary character that, in Venice, the gondoliers know by heart long passages from Ariosto and Tasso, and are wont to sing them in their own melody. But this talent seems at present on the de cline:—at least, after taking some pains, I could find no more than two persons who delivered to me, in this way, a passage from Tasso. There are always two concerned, who alternately sing the strophes. We know the melody eventually by Rousseau, to whose songs it is

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