Grove's dictionary of music and musicians

I
SONG 537
principles as other kinds of music, but it both
demands, and at last has received, the care and
serious attention necessary for its proper cultivation
and appreciation. For the art-song simple
' guitar ' accompaniments no longer suffice ; the
instrumental part must have a beauty, a fulness
and elaboration of its own apart from the voice,
though primarily its duty is to enhance and
support the melody and the meaning of the
words. Further, composers have now recognised
that no song can be really good without coiTect
accentuation and emphasis ; they have turned
their attention to the study of accent, and to
the proper relations of musical cadence to
grammatical punctuation.' (See Accent, Declamation
(iii.).
The importance of the choice of words is
happily now manifesting itself in every country,
for the necessary dependence of the Song upon
poetry is obvious. 2 Until the poet supplies
lyrics of adequate power and beauty of form,
the skill of the composer alone cannot develop
the full capacities of the Song. When, however,
poets and composers of the first rank have worked
together in mutual sympathy and admiration,
as did the German poets and composers of
Goethe's age, the Song has quickly mounted to
the loftiest heights of art. Time alone can
produce men of genius and breathe the inspiration
of great events, but poets and composers
are alike the children of their age, and vividly
reflect the dominant emotions of the hour and
the scene in which they live. History colours
every branch of art, and none more so than the
Song, for it is the first and simplest mode of
giving expression to strong feeling. Men
naturally sing of what fills their heads and
hearts ; and thus there is a close con'espondence
between great historic events and the multitudes
of songs to which they generally if not invariably
gave birth.
Enough has now been said to show the right
the Song has to be cnltivated as a branch of
pure art, and it remains to attempt to trace
its history, so far as possible, in each civilised
country. In some countries the art of music
has not advanced beyond the most primitive
stage of national melody, but in others the
development of music can be followed from
the simplest folk-song to the highest form of
artistic composition.
Feance
As France was the original home of the
Troubadours, France may legitimately occupy
> In M. Mathla Lusay's Traiti de VSxpreition muricale clear
rules win be found for the cotrespondenoe between the mualcal
rhythm and the verse rhythm, with examples which show how the
sense of the musical phrase may he destroyed, If it be interrupted
by a new line of the Terse, and how the Terse in turn may l>e marred
by the interruption of resiAor pauses in the musical phrase. There
the student may learn why the strong and weak accents of the
uiasic should coincide respectively with the long and short ayllablea
of the Terse, and when the departures from this rule are Juatiflable.
This excellent treatiae was translated into English by M. E. Ton
Olehn, and published by NoTello & Co.
3 That the poet's share in the Song la at length recognised. Is
proTed by tlie poet's name being given nearly as often as that of
the composer in the programmes of the present day.
the first place in this scheme. Another valid
reason for treating this country first is that
it possesses, perhaps, one of the oldest songs in
existence. This is a Complainte on the death
Ex. 1.
i
Facsimile of 'Planotus Kaeoli.''
HCl PIT LLA.s.ltTi(
ASoxis z r \/
Y
fau4xX.cloc•
3 Ftftlfl, Biaoire ginSrcUe de la Musiqtte. iv. 4T4.
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