New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-09-26
MUSIC OF THE BIBLE
It's instrumental New Ed
ton of Stainer's Book.

John Stainer's "The Music of the
Bible" published in England in 1879,
has remained practically the OILY au-
thority on its interesting subject.
Later archaeological discoveries in
Babylonia, Egypt. Assyria, Arabia
Crete and elsewhere had, however,
rendered a revision and application
of the text highly DESTROYS, and this
task was undertaken by the Rev. r.
W. Galpin, whose labors have result
ed in a new edition of the book that
answers in every way to the demands
of modern scholarship. The new
edition, like the first one, is pub
lished by Messrs. Novello, of Lon
don. Reviewing the book, the Lon
don Saturday Review" says, after
brief introduction. paying tribute to
the remarkable quality of Stainer's
scholarship in the light Of the scant
facts at his disposal thirty-fve years
ago:
The Authorized Version of the Bible
is full of vaguenesscs and actual
errors where musical instruments are
spoken Of. Hundreds Of thousands
CT people have lived happily enough
in the belief that on certain historic
occasions the dulcimer was used; and
they might, even if Scotch, have been
shocked to learn that the bagpipes
was meant. They have read Of the
sackbut, and may have looked in a
dictionary and found that to be
trombone; but from this book they
will find that the word sabeca or
sambuca was wrongly translated and
| the instrument meant was an early
harp. What has commonly been un-
derstood by psaltery, a translation of
p5auterin, we do not know; and prob
ably most of us are little vague as
| TO the form of Chaucer's "sautrie";
out both words mean exactly such a
! dulcimer as can commonly be heard
in London streets to-day. The He
brew word "ugab," again, is rendered
organ, but nothing like our church
organ was thought of: rather the
thing meant was nearer to the Fans
pipes once the invariable orchestra
of a Punch and Judy show. The
Lutheran translation of ugab is sim
ply "p!pes, which reminds u5 OF the
Scotch Dist o wnu ties"
The first English translators Of the
Bible could not do other than make
a shot at the lanes of instruments
they had never seen; and the danger
of ba5ing conjectures on the supposed
derivations Of words, a danger TO
which Stainer was fully alive, is shown
by the innumerahle mistakes of the
Authorized Version. Much remains
even now in the realm of speculation.
The Jews left behind them no monu-
ments or sculptures to Guide us, partly
because of their w&nderings and wars,
partly because, as Stainer pointed out,
Jerusalem was besieged so frequently;
but mainly, Mr.. Galpin says with jus
tice, because 1.-The Hebrews were bound
by the laws of their race not to make
ANY craven image or the likeness Of
any thing that is in the heaven above
or in the earth beneath or in the water
under the EARTH" The archaologist
must therefore go to the contemporary
OE GdllltI monuments VI QUIET udllODS
and speculate as to the probability or
the reverse of the Jewish instruments
beng what they find there depicted.
Many points may be regarded as final
IL settled: the for Of the harps,
flutes, trumpets and other wind instru-
ments, the cymbals and timbrels, and
the various kinds of drums. Incident
ally, Stainer in the first instance, and
now Mr.. Galpi' have shown the evolu-
ton of our modern instruments from
the oldest in use amongst the Egyp-
tians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Greeks
and even the Chinese.
Accustomed in these days to the
Ipomp of great organs and orchestras on
ceremonial occasions, many who have
been in the habit of reading modern
ideas into the words of the Bible may
be surprised at the homelncss of their
most solemn services. There seems a
want of dignity in the picture Of a few
dozen people twanging crude harps,
blowing bagpipes and the precursors Of
the penny whistle, tapping dulcimers,
| banging cymbals, beating drums and
shaking tambourines. But these repre-
| scented the most magnificent music of
| those old days; and there is another
side to the picture. Reading the text
carefully, and especially studying the
| illustrations, we do not need a time
machine to carry us back, filled with
awe, to civilizations that persisted
| thousands of years ago, when the peo-
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