Daily Kennebec journal., 1894-04-11
Mu'SICOF THE ORIENT
A tilnOOO DEFENDS IT AS AGAINST
THE WESTERN IDEA.

He Argues That the Human Ear Il Not tbs
Same In Different Eaccs-Row the Octayt
Was roundrd-India Ii Rightly Gale,
the Mother of Music.
You westcrnerg do not like our orienta
music, and we eastern people do not Ike
yours. What you call music to us ia dis
cord, while TO you our most harmonious
strains appear mesnfngless-Bot to say
harsh Now, why fl thiss Is it matter
of education only, or Fl there real phyai
ologicsl difference in the hearing organs
of widely different nationss I pnt this
question to one Of your college professors
and IL WAS bis opinion that educational
methods, psychological influences, Incnts.
bias. etc, were sufficient tI account foI
the various national pecuIiarities In tht
way os music We orientais however, rs
sert that physiological differences Tic at
the root Of this divergence in musical taste.
Reflect n moment on the influence climate.
food, environment, etc. have on the phys
ical body. = such Influences are created
the variants ~ to complexion. vitality,
mental capacity and hundred others.
Change MI these modifying conditions foi
others of different type. aud ~ course Of
time you will have a different type Of man.
Now take the human ear. We kngT
that M the organ for the perception Of
sound IL responds 10 the vibrations Of the
sonfcrous ether These vibrations are ma
tcral--must be-, 10 call forth any response
In n material organ. Every time the hu-
sinan e1r takes in these vibrations Of the
sound waves the physical organs within
respond accordingly Given ages Of a spe-
ciaIized type of mural vibrations and the
result will naturally be- specialized type
Of organ 10 receive them. This i. the real
reason why the people of one race have no
ear, 50 10 speak, for the music Of another.
The nural nerves yibrntc tua different rate
and nre attuncd TO different pitch and
quality Ha to sound. Originally, Of course,
We were NIL alike Hs 20 physical structure,
but we IIiudoos believe in seven original
types Of mankind, and each such type de,
yelOped along it's own "liuc Of least resist
nnce" evolving civilizations and CORE
spondcnt physical notifications Of iis own.
Hence the present wide diyergenccs he
tween tho great races of the world in cY-
erything that pertains to modes Of life,
hnbita of thought, art and harmony. Zach
race has its own keynote, physical, men
tai and spiritual. aud to this alone will II
fully respond.
We lliudoos. for instance, started out
with certain definite conceptions of our
own concerning the nature of harmony it
self and in time developed n musical sys-
ten of expression peculiar To ourselves.
Our aural nerves have been modified diff,
fcrcutiatcd, yoil may say-by ages of pc
cuinr training, until physiologically the
harp Of Corti within the enr responds only
49,. - III
Others appearing uonmusiCal and dscord-
mt, so with the Chinese. Their aural
nerves are uttuucd to another key pecul-
lar Ia them as a people. and that which
is to you meaningless tomtom beating
cScitcs in them emotions Of keCncSt de
light The same applies to every other
race as we'll, the European included The
ears of n people are thus modified physio-
logically according to its peculiar genius
and inherent character The conception
of music, therefore, differs with each race.
and ms TO what eon-titutcs harmony and
what docs not there can be no possible sat
islactory agreement in this on present
stage of evolutionary velopment, at
least. II follows. therefore there can he
no absolute standard Of harmony, no uni
versally accepted criterion as to what mu-
sic Is.
Every race has its own Hural develop
ment and it's own opinion on the subject,
aud no two of them will he found to per
icctly agree. The historical aspect of the
development of music illustrates these ra-
cial aural differences: the different types
never change. however modified. As to
where the study of harmony originated.
even your western experts acknowledge
that India has been rightly called the
mother OF music. Some of our musical
MSS, are from 900 to s 600 years old
China has musical compositions written
centuries before the Christian era; Egypt
too. for in Que of tho ancient tombs Of
Thcbes there was found a harp OF 20
strings, aud musical instruments of Vari.
Gus kinds are pictured among the ruius Of
other civilizations that have tourishcd
since.
We Hindoos claim that ours ia the only
natural music, because in il we but seek
to echo the voices of nature. Says one of
our teachers, "Nature has no false or ar
tifcial notes. and all her sounds. moreover,
make hut one tone, which we can all hear
IL we know how to listen. This tone is
the middle r, the fundamental tone in ma
ture In our melodies tt serves rs the start
ing point, which we embody in the key.
notes. anu around WhiCh are grouped all
the other sounds. Our ancient Aryan an
ccstors. moreover, discovered the natural
origin of the octave itself in seven typical
tones in the animal Kingdom. These seven
tones are said 10 correspond to the cries Of
the goat. the peacock, the OK. the parrot,
the frog. the tiger and the elephant, sub
divisions and measures find their basis IN
the complicated variations of the same
sounds, Thus was founded the octave.
and from this sprung the Subsequent rise
OF harmony aN an art, wish not to be
ccnsortous. hut compared with the simple
and natural melody OF my own country
the finest compositions and performances
of your western nation seem to me Int ar
tiiicial strzinirrxs aud strivings. suggest
i've of n tangled chaos of sounds, which
convey to me no meaning. and which. /
am sorry to say. do hut give me the head
ache, My aural nerves. you see, refuse to
vihrate tremendously To the strident key
note of the west Cor, Pittsburg Dis
patch,
Our First Printing Press.