Composers From England

"My loving Maister (never without reverence to be named of the musicians) M. Bird."

"If we consider Byrd's versatility alone, and the fact that he produced work of the highest class in every field that he explored, it becomes abundantly clear that he did stand above all his contemporaries. Like Palestrina, he wrote magnificently for the Latin rites of the Church. Nor was he behind any of his contemporaries in his capacity for handling ingenious and complex contrapuntal devices such as were in vogue among the Church musicians of the sixteenth century. His contrapuntal skill was astonishing. Like Tallis, Tye, and Robert Whyte, he excelled in music for the English Church whether for the Latin or English rites. Like Marenzio, Wilbye, and Weelkes, he could write finely in the madrigalian style, not only when treating the severer subjects, where again he stands alone, but also in the lighter vein, as we shall see presently when dealing more closely with this branch of the subject. Like Bull, Gibbons, and Giles Farnaby, he wrote with exceptional fertility of invention for the keyed instruments of his day, yet here again he excelled the others; while for the viols he produced chamber-music which to-day amazes students of musical form when its date is borne in mind."

"They call William Byrd the English Palestrina; I shall not rest until Palestrina is called the Italian Byrd!"

"An Englishman, by name, William Birde for his skill. Which I should heve sett first, for soe it was my will, Whose greater skill and knowledge dothe excelle all at this tyme And far to strange countries abroade his skill dothe shyne; Famous men be abroad, and skilful in the arte I do confesse the fame and not from it starte; But in Ewroppe is none like to our Englishe man, Which dothe so farre exceede, as trulie I it scan As ye cannot finde out his equale in all thinges Throwghe out the worlde so wide, and so his fame now ringes. With fingers and with penne he hathe not now his peere; For in this worlde so wide is none can him come neere, The rarest man he is in musicks worthy arte That now on earthe doth liue: I speake it from my harte Or heere to fore hath been or after him shall come None suche I feare shall rise that may be calde his sonne."

"Revolutionaries themselves are the last people to realize when, through force of time and circumstance, they have gradually become conservatives. It is scarcely to be wondered at if the public is very nearly as slow in the uptake."

"So long as I was in your sight I was your heart, your soul, your treasure; And evermore you sobb'd and sigh'd Burning in flames beyond all measure: —Three days endured your love to me, And it was lost in other three!"

"Sure you have made me passing glad That you your mind so soon removed, Before that I the leisure had To choose you for my best beloved"

"Nothing is so common as to see a political upheaval pass practically unnoticed merely because the names of the leaders and their parties remain the same."

"We were walking through Spring-gardens-passage, when a small distance before us, a young Fashionable said to his companion, loud enough to be heard, "Smoke Othello!" This did not escape my Friend Sancho; who, immediately placing himself across the path, before him, exclaimed with a thundering voice, and a countenance which awed the delinquent, "Aye, Sir, such Othellos you meet with but once in a century," clapping his hand upon his goodly round paunch, "Such Iagos as you, we meet with in every dirty passage. Proceed, Sir!""

"His Letters to various Friends, published for the benefit of his surviving widow and family, breathe the spirit of true piety and Christian benevolence, whether addressed to the old or the young; at the same time, a playfulness pervades the whole, which seldom accompanies the writings of a Moralist, but which always renders advice more palatable; and by them it will be seen that he possessed, in an eminent degree, the happy art of laughing Vice out of countenance, and arresting the progress of Libertinism in the youthful and thoughtless."

"This- this- is liberty! genuine British liberty!- This instant about two thousand liberty boys are swearing and swaggering by with large sticks"

"[this letter concerns the naval duel in which HMS Flora captured the French navy frigate Nymphe] When Capt. Williams had conquered the crew, they found sixty dead upon deck;- the two ships exhibited a scene more like a slaughter-house, than any thing imaginable- These, oh Christians! are the features of war- and thus Most Christian Kings and Defenders of Faith shew their zeal and love for the dying commands of their Divine Master"

"Without the least desire to play the Cynic, I feel justified in saying, that a general intercourse with mankind rather diminishes that charity for each other which our Holy Religion so strongly presses upon us. In him that principle seemed to increase with his years; and although he had experienced neglect and repeated disappointments where he might have least expected them, yet he ceased not to afford comfort and relief to the distressed, of whatsoever complexion or country the objects of his compassion might be. Neither were these endeavours to do good confined to his advice and information, which were invaluable; but his pittance (as far as the duty he owed to his family permitted) was shared with the needy and the wretched."

"...an awkward loon- whom I do sometimes care about- who has more wit than money- more good sense than wit- more urbanity than sense- and more pride than some princes"

"... confess now- could you lie with the wife of your friend? could you debauch his sister? could you defraud a poor creditor? could you by gambling rejoice in the outwitting a novice of all his possessions?- No! why then thou art a silly fellow, incumbered with three abominable inmates; to wit- Conscience, Honesty, and Good-nature"

"[written when news was received that a vast French invasion fleet had appeared off the south coast of England ] MA CHERE AMIE, … I awake to fears of invasion, to noise, faction, drums, soldiers, and care:- the whole town has now but two employments- the learning of French, and the exercise of arms- which is highly political, in my poor opinion, for should the military fail of success, which is not impossible- why, the ladies must take the field, and scold them to their ships again."

"... as you are not to be a boy all your life- and I trust would not be reckoned a fool- use your every endeavour to be a good man"

"... to my inexpressible happiness, she is my wife, and truly best part, without a single tinge of my defects"

"A wise economy- without avaricious meanness, or dirty rapacity will in a few years render you decently independent."

"Were I as rich in worldly commodity, as in hearty will, I would thank you most princely for your very welcome and agreeable letter;- but, were it so, I should not proportion my gratitude to your wants;- for, blessed be the God of thy hope!- thou wantest nothing- more than, what's in thy possession, or in thy power to possess:- I would neither give thee Money, nor Territory, Women, nor Horses, nor Camels, nor the height of Asiatic pride, Elephants;- I would give thee Books"

"Old folks love to seem wise- and if you are silly enough to correspond with grey hairs, take the consequence."

"Commerce was meant by the goodness of the Deity to diffuse the various goods of the earth into every part, to unite mankind in the blessed chains of brotherly love, society, and mutual dependence: the enlightened Christian should diffuse the riches of the Gospel of peace, with the commodities of his respective land. Commerce attended with strict honesty, and with Religion for its companion, would be a blessing to every shore it touched at. In Africa, the poor wretched natives, blessed with the most fertile and luxuriant soil, are rendered so much the more miserable for what Providence meant as a blessing: the Christians' abominable traffic for slaves, and the horrid cruelty and treachery of the petty Kings- encouraged by their Christian customers- who carry them strong liquors, to enflame their national madness, and powder, and bad fire-arms, to furnish them with the hellish means of killing and kidnapping. But enough- it is a subject that sours my blood"

"Dame Sancho would be better if she cared less. I am her barometer- if a sigh escapes me, it is answered by a tear in her eye; I oft assume a gaiety to illume her dear sensibility with a smile- which twenty years ago almost bewitched me; and mark! after twenty years enjoyment, constitutes my highest pleasure!"

"I am one of those people whom the vulgar and illiberal call "Negurs."- The first part of my life was rather unlucky, as I was placed in a family who judged ignorance the best and only security for obedience."

"... how comes it that- without the advantages of a twentieth generationship of noble blood flowing uncontaminated in your veins- without the customary three years dissipation at college- and the (nothing-to-be-done without) four years perambulation on the Continent- without all these needful appendages- with little more than plain sense, sheer good-nature, and a right honest heart- thou canst,"

"Poverty and Genius were coupled by the wisdom of Providence for wise and good ends, no doubt"

"Could I new-model Nature, your sex should rule supreme, there should be no other ambition but that of pleasing the ladies, no other warfare but the contention of obsequious lovers, nor any glory but the bliss of being approved by the Fair."

"I do request you to thank Mr. W___ for me, and tell him he has the prayers- not of a raving mad whig, nor fawning deceitful tory- but of a coal-black, jolly African, who wishes health and peace to every religion and country throughout the ample range of God's creation!"

"My friend L___ is in town, and intends trying his fortune among us- as teacher of murder and neck-breaking, alias, fencing and riding."

"..."the only intrinsic nett worth, in my possession, is Mrs. Sancho- who I can compare to nothing so properly as to a diamond in the dirt- but, my friend, that is Fortune's fault, not mine- for, had I power, I would case her in gold.""

"Self-love, my friend, bewitches parents to give too much indulgence to infantine foibles;- the constant cry is, "Poor little soul, it knows no better!" If it swears, that's a sign of wit and spirit; if it fibs, it's so cunning and comical; if it steals, 'tis only a paw trick- and the mother exultingly cries, "My Jacky is so sharp, we can keep nothing from him!""

"We are in great hopes about poor Lydia.- An honest and ingenious motherly woman in our neighbourhood has undertaken the perfect cure of her, and we have every reason to think, with God's blessing, she will succeed- which is a blessing we shall owe entirely to the comfort of being poor, for had we been rich, the doctors would have had the honor of killing her a twelvemonth ago."

"[few of Sancho's letters were actually intended for publication, but here is one sample, written during a military recruiting crisis] The vast bounties offered for able-bodied men sheweth the zeal and liberality of our wise lawgivers- yet indicateth a scarcity of men. Now, they seem to me to have overlooked one resource (which appears obvious); a resource which would greatly benefit the people at large (by being more usefully employed), and which are happily half-trained already for the service of their country, by being- powder proof- light, active, young fellows: I dare say you have anticipated my scheme, which is to form ten companies at least, out of the very numerous body of hair-dressers..."

"With respect to excellence of Style and Composition, it may perhaps be said that to practised ears the most pleasing Music is such as has the merit of novelty, added to refinement, and ingenious contrivance; and to the ignorant, such as is most familiar and common."

"The umbrage given to Cuzzoni by her [ Faustina Bordoni's] coming hither, proves that as Turkish monarchs can bear no brother near the throne, an aspiring sister is equally obnoxious to a theatrical Queen."

"Now, as discord is allowable, and even necessarily opposed to concord, why may not noise, or a seeming jargon, be opposed to fixed sounds and harmonical proportion? Some of the discords in modern music, unknown till this century, are what the ear can but just bear, but have a very good effect as to contrast. The severe laws of preparing and resolving discord, may be too much adhered to for great effect; I am convinced that provided the ear be at length made amends, there are few dissonances too strong for it."

"God save our gracious king! Long live our noble king! God save the king!"

"He certainly over-heated himself at Venice by walking at a season when it is said that only Dogs and Englishmen are seen out of doors at noon, all else lie down in the middle of the day."

"Go call a coach, and let a coach be called; And let the man who calleth be the caller; And in his calling let him nothing call But “Coach! Coach! Coach! Oh for a coach, ye gods!”"

"To thee, and gentle Rigdom Funnidos, Our gratulations flow in streams unbounded."

"The king shall eat, though all mankind be starved."

"Let the singing singers With vocal voices, most vociferous, In sweet vociferation out-vociferize Even sound itself."

"Of all the days that's in the week I dearly love but one day, And that's the day that comes betwixt A Saturday and Monday."

"Aldeborontiphoscophornio! Where left you Chrononhotonthologos?"

"Of all the girls that are so smart, There's none like pretty Sally."

"His cogitative faculties immersed In cogibundity of cogitation."

"Genteel in personage, Conduct, and equipage; Noble by heritage, Generous and free."

"What a monstrous tail our cat has got!"

"Come again: sweet love doth now invite, Thy graces that refrain, To do me due delight, To see, to hear, to touch, to kiss, to die, With thee again in sweetest sympathy."

"Flow my tears, fall from your springs, Exil'd for ever: let me mourn Where night's black bird her sad infamy sings, There let me live forlorn."