The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1878-07-07

SIR r. STEWARDS BALFE MEMORIAL Lee
TURES.
Cuoted by the Dublin Nation, June g. from the Daily
Express, May 80
Last evening the first of q series of three
lectures on "Irieh Music and Musicians,"
and in aid of the Balfe Memorial Fund, was
given by Sir Robert P. Stewart, Mus. D.,
Professor Of Music in the University, in the
Antient Concert Hall, Great Brunswick
street. The attendance in the reserved
seats was select, and iu the other parts of
the hall moderately large, but on the whole
not as large as it ought to have been.
The lecture was given with vocal and in
strumental illustrations. the latter contri.
Auted by Sir K. Stewart, Mr. kingston, and
Ayoung lady amateur, and the former by a
choir OF amateurs.
Sir Robert Stewart said he wss sure he
Might assume that they were admirers of
abe music of Balfe. Although the move
neDt for q memorial to his memory had
fallen short of expectations, it had not been
altogether barren of results. A marble
bast Of the musicisu, designed for the Ma
tionsl Gallery, was nearly complete, and he
believed they would see 1t before them at
the concluding lecture of the series. Moore
had etated that music was the only talent
for which foreigners were willing TO allow
abe Irish any credit. Without adopting
shat rather sweeping declaration, there
wss no doubt that, in proportion to the
limited advantages which Ireland had en-.
joyed, she had contributed largely to the
muster roll of the SONS of song. lrishmen
were OF q lively temperament, and quick
and poetic imagination, end we'll fitted to
excel in music. From very early times the
Irish were regarded as q musical people ;
and since the Anglo Norman invasion their
claims in that respect had been admitted
by their conqHerors. The ancient Irish
harp was an instrument of considerable
compass and preteneions. It had been
long the national emblem, and, according
TO O'Halloran, was adopted as such by
Henry H., and the Irish harp appeared on
the coinage of 1880. That the ancient
Aarpers exercised great Influence amongst
the people was proved by the numerous
penal laws that were directed against them.
The bagpipe, one of the most ancient of
Instruments, was known in Ireland in the
tenth century. 1t was used for military
and funeral purposes, and Stauihurst stated
that by it the ancient Irish were stirred up
TO fight. The strings of the Irish harp
were of wire, and were struck with the
nails of the fingers, which the players suf-
fered to grow long for the purp sc. During
the last century, several efforts were made
to prevent the Irish harp from dying out.
One was by an Irish gentleman named
DUNCAN resident in Copenhagen. Between
the years 1890 and 1850 competitions of
Irish bards we're held at Bruree, in the
county of Limerick. In 1892 q meeting of
gentlemen took place in Dublin, which wac
attended by ten irish harpers. The late
Edward Bunting, skilfni musician, was
employed to write down the tunes that
they played, and from the notes thus taken
his collections of Irish airs were subse-
9uently published. In 1907 the Belfast
Irish Harp Society was established, but it
declined from want of funds. The fourth
and last effort emanated from some Irish
men resident in India. One Of the ancient
4Tish harps now before them belonged to
GSzOlan, of whom he would presently
aPeak. Another belonged to an ancient
Irish chieftain descended from the fourth
Earl of Kildare, and had been kindly lent
By Sir George Hodson. The splendid
tones and beautiful mechanism of Erard's
haTps had naturally cOneigned the Irish
instruments to oblivion but the latter