New-York tribune., 1902-01-19
MUSIC.
AZ EXHIBITION OF MUSICAL. L1rERA-

,Ae T=rrx Foundation Of the New-York Public Ii
t-s-v having just closed exhibition Of literature
concerning Alfred the Great which was a delight
81 -ha historical scholar and phiOlOgfst has opened
me rf books relating 70 music None but special
s-s IN the various departments Of art know how
extensive are the treasures preserved in New
work The seventeen casefUls Of books placed on
rlhie exhibition give only an mixing OF the city's
rssI-b IN ile musical field. but il might uever-he-
less surprise many an investigator in this depart
rrent Il IS a one sided exhibition. and therefore
zsT be disappointing 70 mere visitors after curtos-
..tas- f7~ no special effort has been made 10 dis
NAV the Characteristic features OF the ubrary's
-ruscaL collection n the way Of manuscripts and
-a-a books. The space limited. and the ex-
bi5i-son therefore confined 70 printed works about
music -ra single exception being caseful Of auto
r-gnh letters u famous musicians.
wear 1r more ago the musical features Of the
.-ro- and L=n0x Libraries were united IN the
buld-ag If The latter. which had long been the
boae # me Drexel collection a check list Of this
collection (which was made by Joseph ". Drexel
forty or more years ago. shows 5542 titles OF
hound volumes and 765 Of manuscripts and panph-
LET'S IN -he Ast0r Library the time of the union
there was a reasonably full working collection Of
hooks On musical history. theory and biography
and q fne collection Of scores. The latter has no
re7reseutation in the present exhibition. viii
s-v GRE guess from what he sees how many
raluahEe hooks and manuscripts are housed at
Fifth-ave. and SevenIleth-sI- which were kept out
OF the British Museum and private English col
D. R.rnhaulrs library in 1871 Concerning some Of
rbera there have been inquiries from abroad al
ready and there VIII be more hereafter, for Dr.
pf-r1a-r vas an Industrious investigator and col
Ie-ra- IL The field Of music for the instruments
winch were precursors n the pianotorte-the splnet
virginia and harosichor5-
Leaving This feature Cl- q consideration the
-arest ard most valuable books IN the collection
-e -hose devoted To ancient and ule5iaval- Several
rc1-es II these rf almost priceless value are n
a.-r -% h-r
chased 1y ,I-. Drex=l from + ?, Alhrecht, Ger
r1an musician and political ideallst who lived III
PhzEdelr1.a 1t-y years ago AI1recht was be
lever IN -e -1--r.ri i=-ic theories Of Erelne Ca5et
and cane 70 this country as member Of the Ger
mania Orchestra l- ISIS playing viola ana second
clarinet he did not remain with the band long.
but 1C--e5 the Ta5erist colony which succeeded
the Mormon community a- Eauvoo III On the fall
ups n Ca1e-.s experiment he became a resi-
dent of Philadelphia There he met Sr. Drexel,
s-6 determining 70 return 70 Germany. he sold him
The books which he had spent many years IN gath
e--g us own --s- Ct the treasures and a manu-
SCRIPT history Cf the CTe-mania Orchestra are pre-
served al The LerCZ Library De and his family
log- r-etr lives IN the disaster which 5efeL the
steamship Schiller. s. highly were Albrechts tai
e-ts Is a musical photographer appreciated that
before he came - America Dr. DehI, head Of the
musical section ot The Royal Library al Berlin,
tried 70 induce him n take The post Of assistant
librarian. He declined The invitation because he
was seeking the regeneration ot the world on the
lines Of CADETS social philosophy
The arrargers Of The exhibition, instead % show
lrC its curious treasures uusysternarized man
rar have aimed al displaying these features of
the Larary.s collection % The bi6iograPhy OF
music, 90 literary and thematc catalogues; CD
biography and history. "a technical Dictionaries
80 the literature Of opera; j6i books or musical
Instruments @ the works OF ancient and medieval
writers or The history and theory o. music; 80
books Of The seventeenth and eighteenth CenIl-
nav O
the most famous books. There Is copy Of the !
first printed edition OF Boethiuss De Nusca'
C4sg and OF Glarearus's edition C57ll as vel
as editions showing The results Of modern /
scholarship The first seems 70 be the old
book in the collection Next 10 Il is
first edition G4s6l OF the "Fractica Nusice" by
Fra-ch4lus Gafor1Gs treatise which IS generously
Illustrated with wood eug-arrgs: also the same au-
th0-s De Harmonic M-siC0rurn IDsrrumentorum
Opus" Milan. -5-s wiki illustrated title page
showing ne author -ecturiEg his disctples-prob
ably OF the music of TIE Creeks. which Is the sub
5ecI OF the treatise. Also GiOsefo Zarltnos
Institution Arm11.eher l55s) Mersenne's "I9ar-
rlonicur---" -65sl LezcaTte's work on the mathe-
-z-cal proportions n the intervals Of the musical
sca-e. done into English and printed II 1868 under
the -t= 'Ee--a--s Describes Excellent CompeI-
dun e Gus--k with Necessary and JucicioUs
An!rla diversions The-eUpon BY person Of
Honour" The person Of Honour was Lord
BTU--cker 1rsr president CT the Royal Society A
curious ole work is the 'AIgsurgia Criversalis'
C5zg e z-LE-EsIuE Etrche-. q Jesuit priest, VINO
wrote 1E natural science magic. music and scores
Of ether subjects. From his AIagnes, sive de Arte
Nag1et1ca-" Cs4l1 also n the Lenox Library,
0ur medical men may learn how 10 cure the bite
o. the rarantula by dancing lhe prints the music.
which does not az al resemble the modern taran-
teiat- From his ''MIsurgia' the lovers OF big
things IL music may get acquainted with the
-NOGus Sa-ornOnis.' a canon composed 10 be sung
By ri1ely-six voices distributed 81 Uwenty-fOur
ch0irs. EirCher shows now II might be sung by
I25oo5 voices n SEQ 90 choirs and occupy 90
csvs ~ the performance allowing no intervals or
rest When The book gets back OF the shelf per-
haps some q oLr readers VIII test his denonsIra-
lOE- The seven ancient authors who 6iscOursed on
music (ArfstoxenUs Euclid. Nic0ua chus. Alypius,
Gaude1Iiuz, Bacch.us, senior, and Aristides Quin-
clanus} are on hand Il the original tongue and q
Latin translation II the famous publication Of
Aeibol---s, printed II Amsterdam by Elzevir IN
To- Until this work was reprinted with additions
By jam tCaroIus janus n 1895 the old publication
vas Indispensable 70 all students OF ancient music
Eho wished 10 consult original sources MeiboInius
vas the Lat-uized name OF Marcus Meyb a
native Of schleswig- -Eostein and a member Of the
Swedish court he dedicated the book 10 Queen
Christina, stood nigh Il her favor until he lost
his temper and boxed the ears OF her physician for
making merry over one of his performances. Then /
he had e leave the court
Two English publications OF great value form an /
exception the rule limiting the exhibition 10 the
literature u music. They copy OF the 1855 OF
Es edition OF 'Partheria. the Maydenhead of /
the trst nusicke .rhat ever printed for the /
FrgnaIs. composed by three famous masters 1
William Byrde Dr. John Bull and Orlando Glib /
hoas Gentlemen Of His Majesty Illus
i10us ChappeL-" This the FIRST book printed /
n England containing music for d keyed stringed /
instrument and bought al the Rimbault sale |
% also a copy OF q 'Parthenia Inyiolata, or |
Aayoen Muslcke for the Eirginalls and Bass Viol"
which was printed soon after the first edition Of
ne other ''Parthenia" O6ID. With these verses on
Us ute page.
AZ yon professors of this arte divine.