a scale unknown to the modern musician; but like the scale of D minor, without the Bb; the third tone commences on E, (as the first does on D,) and ascends diatonically to its octave; the 5th on F; the 7th on G; the 9th on A, (being the modern minor scale ;) the 11th on C, (being the modern major scale ;) these tones were called authentic, and from each of them was formed one called plagal; by taking the lowest five notes of the authentic, and adding three below. Thus the 2nd, derived from the 1st, begins on A; the 4th, derived from the 3rd, on B; the 6th, derived from the 5th, on C; the 8th, derived from the 7th, on D; the 10th on E; and the 12th on G. The 10th, 11th, and 12th, seem to have fallen into disuse. In each tone there is one predominating sound called the dominant; in the psalms and canticles this is used as the reciting note: the dominant in the first tone is A. Those who wish for a fuller explanation on these points, should consult our excellent contemporary, "The Parish Choir," which, in addition to its primary object of spreading sound information upon Ecclesiastical Music, urges, (as we have before remarked,) the propriety of Catholic arrangement in churches, and a due observance of ritual and rubric. We have great pleasure in expressing our gratitude to it for its valuable services; and if sometimes we see ideas and opinions in it, which we could not ourselves admit, we must remember the prejudices of the people, for whom this publication is chiefly intended, and overlook occasional unsatisfactory expressions, in consideration of great preponderating good. The Parish Choir, (which recommends Mr. C. C. Spencer's "Treatise on the Church Modes," published by Novello,) defines a Gregorian Tone for the Psalms as a melody, or way of reading a psalm musically, in one of the Church Modes.' It divides the tones into Simple, which are those ordinarily used for the psalms, and complex such as the Ambrosian Te Deum, and such as are used for single verses of psalms, introits, anthems, &c.

All this that we have said will make it clear how great is the difference between the very first principles of the ancient and modern systems of chanting. We will just remark that the Gregorian chants are said to have been used by the Jews; we are also told that S. Ambrose arranged the four first authentic modes, or gamuts; and that S. Gregory added the four plagal modes corresponding to them, and rearranged the whole. Before the Reformation the relation of the psalm-tones to the modes was kept constantly in view, by the circumstance of every psalm having a short antiphon or anthem sung before and after it; and the psalm was chanted in the same mode as that in which the antiphon was set.

The simple Gregorian Tone consists of the dominant or reciting note; the mediation, or change of tone at the middle of the verse; the dominant, which occurs again in the second half of the verse; and lastly

the cadence, which last admits of great variety in some Tones. An intonation is sometimes prefixed, especially on festivals: this is sometimes sung only by the officiating priest.

This explanation is necessary before we attack our careless or injudicious friends for spoiling the psalm-tones in the intolerable way, that may be heard in certain choirs.

One would suppose that in London, where so many facilities exist for acquiring musical knowledge, these faults would scarcely be found to exist. The reverse is, we are sorry to say, the fact. A country correspondent of the Parish Choir, described as a clergyman of considerable musical taste, in the number for last August, expresses his deep disappointment at the manner of chanting the Gregorian Tones in some of the London churches. In two instances, he says, "the singing is admirable; but the Gregorian Tones are barbarously murdered, and the English language rendered unintelligible by a false accent. The accent is invariably spoiled at the mediation, when the penultimate syllable is unaccented, and in the cadence, a certain number of syllables sung to as many notes constantly spoils the effect, both of the tone and the language. Thus the eighth tone is sung to the Gloria Patri :

ますま

Glory, &c. the SON: and to the Ho LY GHOST.

"and in every other case, where a wrong accent might be avoided, this same system is adopted, of using both the notes at the mediation, and four syllables, be they accented or unaccented, as O, Lord, &c., vengeance belong eth, show Thy-self, &c.' I thought the anthems admirably performed, and could not help regretting that such an excellent quire should be made to spoil the Church tones by the use of such a system. I must also notice that the time was a complete gallop from the beginning to the end of the Psalms; there was no majestic flow, so peculiar to the tones when used aright, and to my mind there was nothing to recommend them to general use; for good singing cannot reconcile one to a wrong principle."

The editor remarks, "These strictures are but too well founded. We know the churches to which our correspondent alludes, and we have ourselves been frequently grieved by the defects in question." We too know the churches, or at least, some of them, though they are not named in the Parish Choir; and we are surprised and grieved that those who have the management of the music in them are unable, it would seem, to realize that there is a science of properly ecclesiastical music.

The modern plan of singing each note to a single syllable has unfortunately been sanctioned by two or three authorities, so that it is as well to inform our readers that it is (as is admitted in the preface to Mr. Oakley's Psalter) quite contrary to the ancient mode of

chanting the Gregorian tones; it, moreover, ruins the effect of the chant, and is the very mistake into which the modern Anglican chanting had fallen, that of making the words give way to the music, instead of the music to the words; in fact, if we were to speak severely of it, we should say it was not (strictly speaking) chanting at all, but half chanting, and half bad metrical singing, As regards the spoiling the mediation of some of the tones by wrong accentuation, we must explain that in the 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 8th tones the voice rises in the mediation, (something in the same way as in common language the voice is raised in interrogation) and then, if a short unaccented syllable follows, especially such a syllable as ing or ed, the voice must fall again one note, but in other cases, the final note, on which the voice falls, should be altogether omitted. Thus

##

O LORD, Thou, &c.

is perfectly correct; there is an accent or stress upon is an unaccented syllable.

But to sing thus

the

O come, let us sing unto

the LORD:

is so manifestly incorrect, that one would think the defect need only be pointed out to be avoided; assuming of course that it is admitted that in sound chanting the words regulate the music, as if this be not granted, we have of course nothing further to say. This last specimen should be sung as follows:

by which means, the rhythm, so to speak, of the chant is preserved; for the mediation seems to rise, and when it falls again, it is only because there is a short syllable, the note allotted to which does not alter the effect of the tune. Another plan has been suggested, but which we think is by no means so good; which is, to commence the mediation on the nearest accented syllable to the end of the half-verse, and then to let the voice fall, putting the remaining syllables, if there be more than one, into one note; thus,—

##

LORD, now lettest, &c. de-part in peace: & There brake he the arrows of the bow.

This is not at all offensive, but neither the letter nor the principle of the old rule is here followed; and it seems not only more correct in theory, but practically far more beautiful and reasonable to chant these verses as follows:

LORD, now lettest Thou,&c. peace : & There brake he the &c. bow.

We can assure our readers that there is no difficulty in all this; a very little pains suffice to acquire it.

The rapidity with which the Gregorian Tones are sometimes rather gabbled than chanted, is another very serious fault; it is one into which people are extremely likely to fall, unless great care be taken to prevent their doing so, and we suspect that it is probably a fault which has existed occasionally wherever chanting itself has existed. Especial attention should therefore be paid to the correction of this very irreverent defect. The Church tones are quite spoiled by it; perhaps where we have a good proportion of men's voices it is much less likely to occur: boys will gabble. We are not partial to drawling, but we confess we prefer it to the galloping pace at which we have sometimes heard these sublime chants sung. We must assure those who permit this fault to exist in their choirs, that it is one thing which brings discredit upon chanting altogether, not to mention its own irreverence; it is indevout, and therefore cannot so well edify the congregation; and (which is very important) supposing the not unfrequent case of a well-intentioned person of another and a laxer school coming to see how they perform the service in some celebrated church, the probability is that he will be disgusted. If one error must be committed, we prefer a drawl to a gabble; but there is no necessity that a well-taught choir should fall into either one or the other of these vices. At S. Mark's, Chelsea, they do not gabble the chant, nor wrongly accent the syllables (though we do not think we could speak with approbation of all their musical services); neither did the large and magnificent choir assembled on the occasion of laying the first stone of S. Mary Magdalene church, in the district of Christ church, S. Pancras, fall into any of the defects of which we have now been speaking.

To conclude what we are saying of the Gregorian psalm-tones, we will observe that they were the only authorised chants for the Psalms before the Reformation, and that they kept their place for some time after it.

With regard to metrical hymns, we are anxious to combat what we

hold to be an unreasonable prejudice; there are many people who think that because the Puritans chose to turn the Psalter into metrical hymns, therefore all metrical hymns are inadmissible in churches. We do not attach much weight to the fact of the modern Roman Church using hymns; but when we consider that it was practised in the Church for centuries, and was sanctioned by such men as S. Ambrose and S. Gregory, we think that there is some little presumption in condemning it in the way some people do. There is a good collection of Latin hymns published, both with and without the organ accompaniments, by Novello, entitled, "Complete Collection of the Gregorian Hymns for the whole year:" many of these, when translated and adapted, are admirably suited for the use of our own communion. There does not seem to be the same authority for the exclusive use of Gregorian Hymns that there is for the Gregorian Psalm-tones, so that we can hardly lay it down that no others ought to be used, yet we think their superiority, as far as we know them, is decided. We would recommend an objector to listen to, and to endeavour to learn, the " Dies Ira," the Pange Lingua, the Vexilla Regis, and the "Jesu Dulcis Memoria," (in the 2nd tone), and if he is not impressed with them, we have little more to say-his case is hopeless. We may add, that several of the more common hymn tunes (e. g., S. Ann's) are founded on the Gregorian Tones.

The 66 Parish Choir," which we have so frequently mentioned, has published music for the occasional services of the Church, and (which is pre-eminently important) for the Holy Communion. It is with reverence that we touch on this last-named and most solemn subject. Surely no music that tongue can sing or pen can compose, is sufficiently sublime to celebrate this crowning act of Christian worship, yet here our music has generally been grievously defective; the Responses to the Commandments have been sung, and sometimes the Nicene Creed; but the Sanctus and Gloria in Excelsis have been much neglected.

We would earnestly beg the managers of our choirs carefully to eschew all the operatic music so frequently used for the Nicene Creed ; it is far too solemn a symbol to be sung to Haydn's music, or that of many other composers, who had little idea of what the song of the Church ought to be. The Sanctus, we may remark, is most improperly sung as an introit; other pieces of a more appropriate kind should be used in that place, and the Sanctus should of course be sung in its own place. The Gloria in Excelsis has been removed, as is well known, from the beginning to the end of the Communion Office. This hymn should always be sung: to recite it coldly is almost a contradiction in terms.

We will say a word on organs; we like them much when kept within their proper bounds, but not when they are made to take the part which really belongs to the human voice. The psalms, if accompanied at all, should be accompanied with a soft organ, a louder one being used in the Gloria Patri.

To conclude what we have been saying,—there is a severity, and frequently a penitential tone, about Gregorian music, which, es