New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-08-24

.,.v usre not altogether successful. as the chro-
matte genus was regarded as mawkish anu '''~
and the enharmonic genus as too artificial
The question thus mooted Is again proush' w "
fore by the most recent discovery in HreeA ''"
The HYMN to Apo..o. found engraved on mar oe
sab AZ Delphi has been Translated into MODERN
notation by Professor Reinach In Paris VINO "'"
the official report upon the discovery TOT '"e
Schoo. at Athens. There has been pre''! se'i.'"'
agreement among scholars TO be satlsheu VIII" ~
fessor Reinachs version. but II Is much 10 De q"e
toned whether his work ought to be accepted as
Gna,ity In several respects he has proceeueu e'''
nrically and Dr. Reimann In Berlin. NJ hu''e'd'i
IN Rrlssels and a Mr.. TORI in London nave prous"'
forceful criticisms against his views Inc '''' ~
made an argument 10 prove that whhe '"e va"
scriptlon OF Professor Reinach may be the Dest "'
our modern notation permits, 1t Sill la's u convey
an idea Of what the hymn rea.y souhded IKE.
cause there are indications In the notation OF 'ne
use Of the soft chromatc which probably emp'oyeo
third tones-nterva.s wholly incomprehenslp'e 10
modern European ears There are reasons more
over. for suspecting that the hymn Is "''u''
enharmonic and makes Of quarter tones III
transcrlbing Greek music. modern students are COM
peI.ed to re.y on the tables Of Aypus, ana 'he
studies of men Ike Belermann, Gevaert ana west
pha. In all things Westphal has been the 'ead'hs
authority Now this author. in his "Harmonik ana
Me;op0le der Gretchen 0eipsic, 1869. reduced the
musical symbols Of the Greeks TO system "hich
is extremely simple and practicable. Application Oh
his scheme 10 the existing fragments OF the ahcl@h'
music such as the first Pythic ode by Pindar dis-
covered by Kircher and the three hymns to Ca'iope
Apollo and Nemesis described In The Tribune .ast
Aprio produces results In entire harmony win
the long-accepted musical Transitions OF those
pieces Analogy would suggest that the Key ousH'
also 10 work successfully with the De.phic hymn,
and x does, except that where Reinach uses Chro-
matte Intervals On the modern sense) the tran
,han OH
harmonic Intervals. Competed to choose between
the chromatI and enharmonic genera OF the Greeks
Reinach chose the former, on the strength OF 'he
statement by Aristoxenus preserved by f'u'a'e"
In his book on music that In his time the en-
harmonic genus almost obsoete Accepting 'he
earliest possible date for the hymn, Is at east
sixty years later than Aristoxenus; but does not
follow that this reasoning is conclusive P.utarch'
who wrote perhaps two centuries after IN" hymn
was composed speaks In the language or AristoN-
enus and defends the beauty. venerabhy' dignity
and practicabi.ity Of the enharnonc genus against
the attacks OF those who denied That the human
ear could detect quarter-tones Besides II 'he
sing,e remark Of Aristoxenus Is to argue the en-
harmonic genus out OF existence shorty AFTER Ms
aav we have only to wait hat century to Jose
also the chromatic genus for Gaudentus. supposedly
a pupil OF Arstoxenus. says that In MS time '"e
chroma,ic genus had as good as disappeared
The dlreful results TO modern ears when result
from transcribng the Dephic hymn according 10
the key provided by Wespha.s tame deprive US
OF the temerity 10 assert that the hymn Is en-
harmonic but the question ought to he discussed
in the hope of arriving at common UNDERSTANDING
II possible touching the nature of the enharhohic
scale OF the Greeks. 1t Is assumed 100 ud- "'c
paean to Apollo was sung as a processoha' an"
therefore must have been within the reach OF or
d,rarv cbor,s,ers This does not fo..ow. The en-
harmonic genus was so difficult OF performance
that II was set aside for vlrtuosi There can Dc
no doubt from the passage ia Plutarch mat nov"
ever iu,practicabe IT may have been at Inc time Oh
Aristoxenus and later, Il ye; had respect as "
classic element. What is more Ike'y IMAM ''"'
the hymn sung at some Dephic itS'N'' =!
vir,uoso and ordered be perpetuated IN Inarp-e
,r tho reason that 4, was relic OF the ancient art!