The Express.
London, England, 1852-12-06 00:00:00

musia

MUSICAL INSTITUTE OF LONDON.
On Saturday evening, at the weekly meeting of
this association, a paper was read by Mr. Thomas
Oliphant on the English dramatic music of the
seventeenth century, and particularly the celebrated
music in " Macbeth," generally ascribed to Matthew
Lock, whose claim to its authorship, till of lately
held to be undoubted, has recently been 'called in
question, and sometimes positively denied. Mr.
Oliphant's object was to bring forward such circum-
stances as might tend to threw light on this subject,
and he accordingly entered into a number of parti-
culars, both of fact and criticism, full of interest in
themselves, but hardly slat:lent (as it appeard to us)
to invalidate a title of which old Matthew Lock has
remained in undisturbed possession for the best part
of two centuries.

We cannot in this slight notice give any idea of
the variety of interesting and entertaining matter
contained in Mr. Oliphant's paper, which was
rendered still more agreeable by vocal War
trations sung by Mrs. Newton, Mies Dolby, Mr.
H. Phillips and otherr; and accompanied on the
piano by Mr. Lucas. Mr. Oliphant gave a prefa-
tory sketch of the state of English dramatic music
from the beginning of the 17th century. He de-
ecribed the " Masque," the fashionable entertain.
ment of those days, which employed the genius of
the greatest poets of the time, including Ben
Jonson and Milton ; and the mod eminent musi-
cians, among whom Henry Lawes was the chief.
One of these masques was Shirley's "Cupid and
Death," the music of which was partly composed
by Matthew Lock; and Mr. Oliphant gave, as a
specimen, a song and chorus, in order to show the
great inferiority of this music (known to be Lock's)
to the music is " Macbeth." The argument, that
Lock's known music is not comparable to the nisei
in " Macbeth," and that therefore it is to h. pm
I fumed that this music is not his, is very far rem
conclusive • and Mr. Oliphant, moreover, could
have foundi specimens of Look's made vm
superior to that which he produseL We
have carefully examined the opera of « Pupils,*
undeniably by lash, in which there are things
which might have well been written by the author
of the music in " Macbeth.*

That the music in "Macbeth was ascribed to Look,
at the time it first appeared, is unqussnonabls.
libakspeare's tragedy, altered by Davenant, was ro.
duced at the Duke's Theatre, in 1674 ; and, as Mr.
Oliphant stated, Downes, the contemporary annalist,
who was for forty year. the prompter of that theatre,
expresidy asoriliss, in him "Ramos Apennine,' a
book of acknowledged authority, the mum of the
play to Matthew Look ; a pike of positive evidence
vary difficult to rebut. On the other hand, there is
no evidence which km the authorship on any one
eles. Copies of the meek have been found in the
intedwrieng of Hoary Pirelli, and likewise of John
Eosin bat though Purcell and Moils. my ham
bensidked • pros of muidc, at a period when thine'
wee hee printing than there is now.a.days, Whet
not lis my means follow that either of them NW
posltak.
was, however, shown bry Mr. Oliphant that On
mak in " Mkbeth: se In unes kw nadeffim
meteriel skinniest and these nit foe the belles
The eldest editi
oyce,if on the muds in its present Aim
Ad if Dr. B indilideel abed iheseiddie dee
bag awn; bet awe b s NIL espy le tits Britieh
leUas'appieni a amine* la& be the
lshlisters Mr. Oliphant had the priaelpel
plias sift en they stand he this eopyond is
modern widen; sad the superiority sf the
in mud iestancss, was strikingly sweat.
This was rasseltehly the cess in the shires, *We
sheuld rekise," the meg "Lees hays a denim upon
the heath," kid the chorus, "At the kt raven's
dieted wise," in whisk the eY vied. had the ad-
vrnts. is variety, ezpemikk aid ma in sontrapin-
els. How, or by when, these alterations were
min tiseetnbos=r—peehably by mesisksc ein-
lby the emillendvilliffitleths:ipiti was
l Mr.
011 EneeZZ* pikes of a *massy in
Boyeds the eguneeny to one if Biyee's
own sties% min it appear piebeble that the Dieter
limit had a head in miming with the miss
There is another curious circumstance to which
Mr. Oliphant adverted. It is well known that the
poetry of the RIM in " Macbeth" is not Shake-
speare's, bet pertly from "The Witch," by Middle.
too, • cootoigorary of Bbakepears, and partly by
Dasseant. The original music to Middleton 's py_ is
=bat, though nothing is known of its authorship.
Mr. Oliphant had several portions of it sung ; and it
was evident, that, though comparatively rude and
inartificial, it had furnished many ideas to the sub-
noes t composer of the mono.
Mil able paper, with its illustrations, was listened
cps restinterest and pleasure by a large as-
s( distinguished musicians and amateurs.
We de sot know what conclusions were formed by
the iseemed cognouroti present ; but we still preserve
our faith in Matthew Lock, though it appears un-
questionable, first, that he was in some measure in-
debted to an unknown composer of a previous age,
and secondly, that the music, as now known and
dperformed, has been greatly altered since he pro-
uced it.
MONIES

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the a. of Cantaseei plated ea &glade', it apposes
that ea the 27th Wine awe in the Exchequer, or re.
meielas IS be read, lis 9d., to complete the
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