The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1878-05-09
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The best musle has been rendered IN
der trouble TIE hrsi dptt that ! know
Anything Of wAs given bY Paal and sla'
when they sang praises % God aud The
prisoners heard them The Scotch Cove
napters, bounded BY the dogs Of perseeu'
tion, sang the psAims Of David with more
spirit lbsn they have ever since been rem
drgpA The chplsTS in The text hsd mu-
sic lcfi in them, aud declare thAt II they
could find, amid al their trials, two
hundred and forty aud five singing men
aud singing women, then 10 this dsy Of
gospel sunlight aud free from all persecn.
ton, there ought TO be great multitude
Of men and women wiling 10 sing ihc
praises OF God Az osis skuroties need
aroasal on this subject. Those who can
sing must throw their souls into the ex.
ereise, and those who cannot sing must
learn how, aud il shall be heart to heart
voice to voice, hymnio hymn, anthem TO
anthem, aud the music shall swell jubi-
liant with Thanksgiving snd tremulous
with pardon.
Music seems dependent on The law Of
acoustics and mathematics, and yet
where these laws are not understood at
all the art Is practiced. There are to-day
five hundred musical journals IN China,
Two thousand years before Christ the
Egyptians prscticed this art. Pythagoras
learned It. Lssns, OF Hermione, wrote
essays on 1t. Plato and Aristotle intro
duced II into their schools; but | have
not much interest in that. Ny chief in
terest is In the music OF the Bible. The
Bible, like great harp with innumerable
strings, swept by the fingers of inspira-
tion, trembles with IL. SO far back as
the first chapter OF Genesis you find the
first orgaDist and hsrper-Jubsl SO far
back as the thirty-iirst chapter of Genesis
| you iihd the first choir. All up and down
the Bible you find sacred music-at we'd
dings, at inangurations, at the treading
of the wine press. The Hebrews under
stood how TO make musical signs above
| the musical text. When the Jews came
from their distant homes to the great fes.
tails at.Jerusalem they brought harp and
timbtel and trumpet, and poured along
the great Jndean highways river OF
harmony, until in and around the temple
the wealth Of nations song and glad.
ness had accumulated. In our day we
have division of labor in music, and we
have one man to make the hymn, another
man 10 make the tune, another man TO
play II on the piano, and another man TO
sing II. Not SO in Bible times. Miriam,
the sister. Of Moses, after the passage of
the Red Sea, composed doxology, set it
TO music, beat IL on timbrel, and then
sang 1t. David the psalmist, was atthe
same time poet, musical composer, harp
ist, and singer, and the majority of bis
rhythm goes tingling through all the
ages. There were In Biblo times stringed
instrumental harp of three strings
played by fret and bow; harp OF ten
strings, responding only to the fingers of
the performer. Then there was the
crooked trumpet, fashioned out of the
horn OF the OK or ram. Then there were
the sistrom and the cymbals, clapped in
the dance or beaten In the march. There
were four thousand Levites, the best men
OF the country, whose only business 1t
was 10 look after the music OF the temple.
These four thousand LeFites were Gyid-
led Into two classes, and ofliciated on dill.
erent days. Can you imagine The barmo-
ny when these white.robed Levltes, be-
fore the symbols Of Gods presence, and
by the smoking altars, and the candle
sticks that sprang upward aud branched
out like trees Of gold, and under the
wings Of the cherubim, chanted the one
hundred aud thirty.sixth psalm of DavidS
You know how 1t was done. One part
of that great choir stood up aud chanted:
"Ohl give thanks unto the Lord, for be
is good" Then the other part of the
choir, standing in some part OF The temple
would come In with the response; "For
his mercy endureth forever" Then The
first part wonld take up the song again,
and ssy; unto him who only doeth
great won lers." The other part of the
choir would come In with overwhelming
response; "For bis mercy endureth for
ever" until in the latter part Of the song,
the music floating backward and forward
harmony grapplipg with harmony, every
trumpet sounding, every bosom heaving,
one part Of this great white-robed choir
would lift the anthem, "Ohl give thanks
unto the God Of heaven" aud the other
part of the LeYite choir would come in
with the response; "For bis mercy en-
dureth fofever.H A2A
Bot am glad TO know that all through
the ages there has been great attention
paid 10 sscred music. Ambrosius, An.
gusIine, Gregory the Great, Charlemague
gave ii their mighty influence, aud 10 our
dsy the best musical genius is throwing
itself on the altars Of God. Handel, and
Mozart, and IasA, and papn,e, and
Wolf, and scores Of other men aud wo-
men have given the best part Of their
genius TO church music A truth in
words is no, bali so mighty as truth Ia
cong. Lulher's sermons have been for
gotten, bat the Judgment Hymn be
composed "a sesounding yet ali through
i Cbristendom.