in praife of his noble horfemanfhip,' it peculiarly irritates the mind of Hotfpur. His reply, particularly the conclufion, is truly characteristic.

-Come, let me take my horfe, Who is to bear me, like a thunderbolt, Against the bofom of the prince of Wales, Harry to Harry thall, and horfe to horse, Meet, and ne'er part till one drop down corfe!'

Hen. 4th, 1ft part, A. 4. S. 2. Hotspur feels himself touched in a tender point. His rival is celebrated for a qualification in which he thought himself pre-eminent; and his mind reverts with vexation to the unpleafing idea. The beauty of this natural fally of paffion efcaped the earlier editors of Shakfpeare; and it has been printed not horfe to horfe,' in every edition but the firit, till fir Thomas Hanmer reftored the original reading. Such a little trait diftinguishes a master's hand more than pages of laboured declamation.

"The mutual antipathy between Hotspur and the fword and buck

ler prince of Wales,' is finely conceived and admirably executed. They are planets in fiery oppofition, contending for fuperiority in the firmament of glory. We cannot find a fpeech but what feems dictated by nature itself. Their little ebullitions of paffion, their mutual jealoufy,

which one ftrives to conceal, by treating his rival with ridicule, and the other by holding him in affected contempt, familiarize them to us. We fee, we know them, are privy to the diffipated relaxations of the one, and the turbulent thoughts that agitate the mind of the other. This obfervation may be extended, to almost every leading character: We contemplate men like ourselves, endued with the fame propenfities as those that actuate them in real life, and are confequently interested in their fortunes. But our feelings are not excited by the pompous characters in declamatory tragedy: they are beings of another fpecies, and we have no concern with them.

"If the wonder-working pen of Shakspeare induces us to pay more credit to his reprefentation of our hiftoric characters, than historical feverity may fometimes allow, it is a delufion too pleafing to be lightly refigned. We fee, or feem to fee, realities; and the caufes, which I have juft explained, operate alfo in his fictitious dramas. Though he cannot there build on real facts, yet appropriate and ftrong marked defcriptions of perfons and places, familiar converfation and characteriftic anecdotes, commonly give an appearance of truth and confiftency to the most wild and extravagant fictions."

TANDEL's mufic, particu

Harly oratorio, being

till annually and occafionally performed in London and elsewhere,

it may not be incurious to enquire.

from what caufes this conftant re

petition arifes, and why the works of this mafter have had a fate fo

very different from that of contemporary compofers, the greatest part of which feems configned to oblivion.

"This enquiry will naturally lead to the fpeaking of general principles, fo far as they are applicable to the prefent fubject; to the state of inftrumental and vocal mufic; and to a comparison between Handel and other compofers of note which flourished at this period. Nothing more being intended than a few mifcellaneous obfervations fet down just as they occur, method will not be attempted, and of courfe must be excused.

"As the compofitions which are the fubject of the following remarks were produced in England, and fet to English words, the mention of foreign musicians and their works is excluded, as not appertaining to the subject, unless fo connected with it as to render the mention indifpenfable.

"Mufic, in its common application, is confidered merely as an entertainment: when bad, it difgufts; when good, it creates fenfations unknown from other fources; and if it reach the fublime, our feelings. are more powerfully excited than from the utmost perfection that poetry alone, or painting, has yet attained.

"With the latter, mufic cannot be connected; but when joined, or, as Milton phrafes it, wedded with poetry, it reaches the highest pitch of excellence, and foars a height which, disjoined from its powerful ally, was impoffible to be obtained.

"Before Handel, I cannot recollect any inftance of this perfection. Our beft vocal mufic was in the church, and our best com. pofers were Purcel, Wife, Weldon, and a little later, Croft, whofe me

rit, as far as it reached, will be ever felt and acknowledged.

"Inftrumental mufic was perhaps univerfally barbarous until the time of Corelli, whofe compofitions feemed to open a new world. Even in these our times, when inftrumental mufic is fo much improved, Corelli is ftill a favourite, and not only with old-fashioned people. The reafon why he is fo would carry me too far from my fubject. What Corelli did for bowinftruments, Handel did for the harpfichord. We acknowledge the improvements of the modern fymphonifts, but we ftill relish a concerto of Corelli; and no great performer on the harpsichord but fits down with pleasure to the Suites des Pieces pour le Clavecin.

"The mufic for the ftage was thoroughly wretched, and continued fo until the little mufical entertainments of Carey and the Beggar's Opera, which made their appearance long after the time of Handel's firft refidence in England. Such was the state of our music at the beginning of this century, and long after.

"What are called Handel's Hautbois Concertos, have fo much fubject, real air, and folid compofition, that they always are heard with the greateft pleafure, and are undoubtedly the best things of their clafs. I believe they were the first attempt to unite wind-inftruments with violins, which union was long reprobated in Italy.

"The operas of Handel are confeffedly fuperior to all preceding and contemporary ones. His oratorios, though called by a wellknown name, may be juftly esteemed original, both in defign and execution. cution. Thefe laft being the pieces which are fo frequently performed, I will with the utmost impartiality

confider

confider their merits and defects, and how far they deserve their continued approbation.

"Any works of a fashionable compofer, especially if exhibited by performers we are in the habit of applauding, will take a prefent hold on our attention, to the exclufion of works of fuperior merit not poffeffing the fame advantages; but when they have had their day, they fet to rife no more. On the contrary, thofe compofitions which depend on their own intrinfic merit, may make their way flowly, or perhaps, by being cut off from a poflibility of taking the first step, may never get forward at all; yet, if once they are prefented to the public, and their effect felt and understood, they are always heard with new pleafure, and claim an equal immortality with poetry and painting. Let us confider what are the effentials of good mufic, and how far Handel's compofitions poffefs them.

"The first effential (and without which all others are of no confequence) is what in popular mufic is called tune; in more refined, is denominated air; and in the fuperior clafs of compofition, fubject. Mufic having this property alone, is entitled to a long existence, and poffefies it. The next effential is harmony, the strongest ally by which air can be affifted, but which receives from air more confequence than it communicates. To these must be added expreflion, giving a grace to the former; and facility, which has the effect of immediate emanation, and, as the term imports, feems to accomplish with eafe what from its apparent difficulty fhould be rather fought for

than found.

"If words are to be connected with mufic, they ought like that to

6

be light and airy for tune, paffionate for air, and both paffionate and fublime for fubject; but in every cafe (except particular applications) muft appeal to the heart. The accent and emphafis must be expreffed, and whatever effect the reading of the words is to produce, must be encreased by the mufic.

"There are but few examples of Handel's poffeffing tune in the popular fenfe. He feldom is without air in its most refined application, and most commonly has an exuberance of fubject for greater purposes. His harmony is in general well-chofen and full; his expreffion fometimes faulty, but frequently juft; and his facility great from fo much practice, finking now and then to careleffnefs.

"In confequence of this general character, we find no fongs of his in the ftyle of Carey's tunes and the real English ballad. Most of his oratorio and opera fongs have air in them, fome very fine. His choruffes are as yet unrivalled, and those form the broad base on which his fame is built.

"They poffefs fubject and contrivance, frequently expreffion, and moft commonly facility, altogether producing a fuperior effect to any other choruffes yet known to the public. Their great number and variety fhew his invention, that strong criterion of genius. It will be found to hold true as a general remark, that where the words are moft fublime, the compofition has moft fubject and expreflion; and this ought to be confidered by thofe who hold words of no confequence: if they have no other than exalting the fancy of the compofer (which effect they certainly produce), we fhould for the fake of mufic, independently confidered, make choice of works of imagination.

"Befides

"Befides the advantages of fuperior genius and knowledge, Handel poffeffed another, without which his genius and knowledge might have remained for ever unknown. He had an opportunity of prefenting his works to the public performed by the beft band of the times, and of repeating his pieces until they were understood, and their fuperior merit felt. By thefe means they were impreffed upon the mind, and at last became so congenial to our feelings, as almoft to exclude the poffibility of other mufic being performed-but I have touched on this fubject elsewhere.

"Handel's mufic, then, having the great effentials of genius, fkill, and facility, and being at firft performed often enough to have its intention comprehended, and its merit felt and acknowledged, it neceffarily keeps poffeffion of the public favour, and its annual performance is expected with plea

fure, and always confidered as an entertainment of a fuperior kind.

"After this unequivocal and heart-felt praise, I may venture to point out what appear to be defects in this great mufician.

The first thing that an enlightened modern composer would notice, is an inattention to the fort of the different inftruments, more particularly apparent in the parts for trumpets and other windinftruments, which in general lie aukward and unkindly. At the time we acknowledge this, we fhould remark, that in thofe days fuch niceties did not exist, for they are fome of the real improvements of modern mufic. Handel's concertos and choruffes, without the leaft alteration of harmony or melody in the fubject (as every real muficiari well knows) might be improved in this point, and produce a very fuperior and increased effect."

ઠંડ

SING

INCE painting is a liberal art, it muft neceffarily have a method; and if it has a method, it must confequently, have fure and certain rules. I therefore think it will be useful for me to fet forth here, what reflections every young man ought to make before he begins this profeffion, and the path he ought to follow after he has undertaken it, that he may always advance the more in his career; and at the fame time, I fhall fay how the mafter ought to conduct himfelf in order to teach his art. Therefore, according to my cuftom, I

give up all pretenfions to eloquence, and fhall endeavour to explain myfelf as fimply as poffible, in order to be understood by all claffes of people.

The firft quality a boy ought to have who is deftined by his fuperiors to follow painting (I fay fuperiors, becaufe this profeffion must be commenced before we have a will of our own), is penetration, attention, and patience; and we must not fuffer ourselves to be dazzled by that vivacity, nor bý that fire which is commonly taken for genius, but is not it in reality:

undertook it.

"In order to fhun thefe inconveniencies, a mafter who is both kilful and honeft, should, before he takes a boy, examine well him and his parents. In the boy he ought to expect only penetration, patience, a love for work, and particularly an exact fight. The father ought to be perfectly difinterested, and have a strong inclination to afford his fon every neceffary help; and he must not do as many who call themselves friends, in having paid for a youth a mafter for a fhort time.

"If the boy is found to be poffeffed of all the requifite qualifications, the mafter muft on his fide begin by divesting himself as much as he can of his felf-love, and teach him all he knows, all he has learnt, and what has not been taught him by any one; and, above all, he must never be apprehenfive of teaching him too much; and if unfortunately he fhould be infected with this foible, I would advise him never to be a master, for it would not be acting as an honest man, wilfully to bring up people to be wretched; nor do I fee a greater inisfortune for a man than to have wafted his youth to become a bad painter and as that depends on the mafter, he can eafily avoid this

evil, fince no one has a precife obligation to inftruct pupils.

"It is true, that the world is full of ingratitude, and that a fkilful painter, in giving his pupil a good education, runs the rifk bringing up a viper in his own fom: but other men's vices are not an excufe for ours; nor can that painter ever exculpate himself, who in bringing up a youth is the cause of his repenting all his life having undertaken this profeflion. Thofe profeffors, who by powerful recommendation, and without intereft, fee themfelves compelled to receive pupils, if they do not teach them with requifite care and application, are nevertheless excufable; for it is certain that it costs more time and more trouble to finish a good pupil, than the largest picture in the world. Therefore, it feems to me very unjuft for patrons to pretend, that an artist fhould lofe his time in teaching the art to those who bring him no profit or interest in doing it. This unreasonable practice generally prevails in Italy, which by degrees ruins painting, and the youths who are brought up to it, in fpite of the fine geniufes which are to be found. But I fhall quit this fubject, which draws me from my object, and proceed to the rules and reafons of the art, which I

propofed to myfelf to explain, and therefore fhall employ a kind of dialogue, by questions and au fwers.

"Q. How can one know if a child has the neceffary difpofitions for painting?

"A. If he has more fenfe than vivacity, one may conceive good hopes.

Q. What age fhould the bes ginner be of?

"A. The more tender, the more proper to begin, for from four

years