On the musical scales of various nations - Tapa blanda

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1885 Excerpt: ...on the way. If Mr. Ilipkins and 1 ever have an opportunity of measuring '.liein, I will communicate the result to the Society of Arts. Tn the meantime, everything concurs to give mc considerable confidence in our results. The javese bands are called fliinicliiii, and those which were in London were composed of two distinct bands, the fSamclan SalcmJr»' and the GumcUin Pelog, which must be considered separately. The performers were the same for each, but the instruments and scales were so different that they could not be played together, but were ranged on different sides of the platform. With two exceptions the instruments were all of pereussion, bars of wood, bars of metal, kettles, gongs. The exceptions were 1) a solitary rabab, the Arabic two. stringed viol, which, having no frets, could of course be played with either band, and 2) a flute or sorting, but I do not remember whether it was played with one band or both. Although many instruments were played together, there was no harmony in our sense of the word. Either all the instruments played in unison, or one, generally wit lithe-highest anil most evanescent tone, nourished away between the notes, regardless apparently of what the other instruments were doing, but falling into unison sufficiently to show that it wasplaying a part in the same music. There were no written notes. Phrases were repeated till, on a given signal, they were changed.! The music was used as an accompaniment to dancing, or rather posturing, by performers of both sexes, who were supposed to convey a story in dumb show. 1 There was occasional singing, but the singing In these Javcsc names I adopt the orthography of Prof. Land as more exact than Mr. Mitchell's. The English reader must remember that a" is nearly awe, oe is ...