DICTIONARY OF MUSIC - El Atril

522 JACOBI JACOTIN
consisting principally of psalm tunes, and a few
glees. He edited a collection of tunes, with ap-
propriate symphonies, set to a course of psalms,
and published under the title of ' National
Psalmody' (1817). w. H. H.
.JACOBI, Georges, was born on Feb. 13,
1840, in Berlin, where, at the age of six, he
coinmenccd to study the violin under Edward
and Leopold Ganz. In 1849 he went to
Brussels, studying under De Beriot until that
master became blind, when he removed to Paris,
where Halevy heard him play, and sent him
to Auber, then director of the Conser\'atoire.
There he joined Massart's class, at the same time
studying harmony and composition under Reber,
Gevaiirt, and Gheri, and in 1861 obtained first
prize for violin-playing. On July 13 of that
year he playeil the 13th concerto of Kreutzer,
while the illness of two of the competitors
reduced their number to thirteen. These singular
occurrences dispelled any belief that il. Jacobi
might otherwise have had in the ill-luck associated
with the number thirteen. After playing
for two years in the orchestra of the Opera
Coraique he became, by competition, first
violin of the Grand Opera, where he remained
nine years, and played, amongst many other
notable productions, in that of Wagner's
' Tannhauser.' During this period he played at
many concerts in Paris and in the provinces.
He also formed a stringed orchestra of sixteen
members, and gave concerts, performing from a
platform in the centre of the room, in the
picture-gallery of the Societe Nationale des
Beaux- Arts on the site of which now stands the
Theatre des Nouveautes, and the success of
these was so great that the number of concerts
given, originally announced as six, was increased
to twenty in one winter. In 1869 he left the
Opera and assumed the baton at the Bouifes
Parisiens, where Otfenbach was then the rage.
In the following year he came to England to
make arrangements for performances by the
company of that theatre (which proved abortive).
He was unable to return to Paris owing to its
investment by the Germans. After the war,
however, he did return, only to he recalled
immediately to London by John Baum's offer
of the conductorship of the Alhambra orchestra.
This he accepted, and during the twenty-six
years that he was associated with the theatre
composed no fewer than 103 grand ballets and
divertissements, many of which have been reproduced
in the cities of America, in Brussels,
Berlin, Munich, Rome, and Paris. Besides
these he composed comedy -operas, of which
'The Black Crook' had a run of 310 perform-
Mariee depuis midi,' written for
' ances, and La
Mme. Judic, was played by her all over Europe ;
incidental music to Irving's productions at the
Lyceum of 'The Dead Heart' and 'Robespierre';
two concertos for violin ;
a concertino for viola ;
many violin pieces, songs, and music to tab-
leaux vivants. Since leaving the Alhambra
(on April 30, 1898), where under his guidance
the orchestra became the best permanent one
of any theatre in the kingdom, 11. Jacobi
directed that of the summer theatre at the
Crystal Palace and wrote two ballets for it.
At the opening of the London Hippodrome he
was appointed conductor, but gave up the post
after a short time, as the work was too fatiguing.
Of his most successful ballets may be mentioned
' Yolande,' 'The GoldenWreath, "Hawaya,' 'The
Swans,' 'Melusine,' 'Dresdina,' 'The Seasons,'
' Antiope, '
' Irene, '
' Asmodeus, '
' Oriella, '
' Ali
' ' Baba, ' Titania,' ' Lochinvar,' Blue Beard,' and
' La Tzigane. ' M. Jacobi's compositions are always
full of melody, and display a complete know-
ledge of stage requirements. They are devoid of
the affectation, the vagueness, and the vulgarity
which characterise much theatre music in Eng-
land, and their colour always meets the demands
of the dramatic situation. As a teacher
M. Jacobi is in this direction unsurpassable,
and was appointed in 1896 a professor at the
Royal College of Music. He was twice elected
President of the Association of Conductors in
England, was made an ' Officier de I'Academie
by the French government, and was presented
by the King of Spain with the order of Isabel
the Catholic, of which he is Knight Commander.
H. V. H.
JACOTIN", according to Burbure, Jacob
GoDEBiiiE or (latinised) Jacobus Godefeidus,
was a chapjlain - singer in Antwerp Cathedral
from 1479 to 1528. Mention, however, is
made of another Jacotin or Jacotino, who was
singer at the Ducal Court of Milan from 1473
to 1494, and Eitner suggests that some of the
compositions ascribed to the former may really
belong to the other. It is just possible the two
may be one and the same, since we know that
Flemish singers and composers were greatly
in request in Italy at that particular time, and
often continued to hold church benefices while
residing elsewhere. The period just before the
Reformation is notorious for the prevalence of
the abuses of pluralities and non-residence in
connection with church preferments. If, however,
we are to distinguish between the two
Jacotins it would be natural to ascribe the
motets published by Petrucoi in the Motelti
della corona, 1519, to the Italian Jacotin, while
the French chansons and other works published
by the Frenclihouseof Attaingnantwouldbelong
to the Antwerp master. Ambros (Gesch. iii.
260) refers to a masterly 8-voice setting of
'Sancta Divinitas unus Deus' in Ulhardt'sCoZ^ection
of 1546, as showing Jacotin to be a composer
of importance, also to the Psalm Credidi as
notable for the careful declamation of the text.
(Ambros misnames one of Jacotin's Motetti in
Petrucci ; the Psalm Judicais by Caen, Jacotin's
other Motet is Michael Archangel, etc. ; see
Eitner, Bibliographic.) French Chansons con-