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were drawn to a country where the art was better appreciated, and where the number of towns and chapels attracted and required a proportionate number of professors and practitioners.

What would have been over abundant in the low countries, or any other state, could not be so in Italy, where chapels and schools were maintained in most towns, as Milan, Venice, Florence, Rome, Naples, Palermo, Ferrara, Urbino, Mantua, &c.

At the beginning of the 14th century Count Castiglione assures us, that music made an essential part of the education of every courtier. The ladies, whose talents were most conspicuous in this century, attended particularly to the cultivation of vocal and instrumental music. Gaspara Stampa, Elisabetta Gonzaga, Tullia d'Aragona, Maria Cardona, Tarquinia Molza, &c. worthy of imitation for their mind and talents, were admired as much for their knowledge of music as of literature. But music was more than an object of amusement amongst the nobles. Leo X. to whom Poliziano had communicated his taste for the art, made it a study; he often employed himself with his favourite lute on the most difficult theories of harmony. We may easily imagine what influence the particular taste of this sovereign pontiff must exercise over the artists and learned men of his time.

Leonardo da Vinci was so expert in vocal and instrumental music, that it is said, Louis Sforza entreated him to come to Milan, and exercise his talent there. It is certain that he astonished all the courtiers and musicians, and even the foreign singers, entertained at the Court of Milan. It is also well known that this famous artist and mathematician gave new and better combined forms to his lyre, violin, and organ. Vinci was afterwards imitated by Parmegiano, Collini, Tintonetto, and one of the Caracci, all clever artists and musicians. Many other learned men and poets may be enumerated, who cultivated music with the same passion.

But those who made music their particular profession are almost

countless. F. A. Doni left a list of them in his work upon music, and in his " Bibliotheca," but they only belong to the beginning of the 16th century. F. Patrizi mentions some of those who flourished at the latter part of the same century. We will enumerate a few of the most celebrated.

Franchino Gaffario, contemporary with, but not a pupil of Tinctoris, studied music at Lodi, his native country, and at Mantua; and though he went to Naples he learnt nothing there; he maintained in argument his own theories, and published in 1480 his first treatise upon harmony (Theoricum opus harmonica disciplina). From this period to the end of the 16th century the number of didactic treatises of this kind is extraordinary. Zarlino, the first restorer of music after Guido d'Arezzo, eclipsed all his predecessors. But how many works were published after his example? It seemed as if the most distinguished men employed themselves entirely in bringing music to perfection. As Orazio Tigrini, Lodovico Zocconi, Aleandro, Maurolico, Vincent Galilei, father of the great Galileo, F. Patrizi, G. Mei, Artusi, Botrigari, and many others whose names are honourably mentioned in the literary History of Italy. Some time before Gaffurio, about the middle of the 15th cen tury, the art of music flourished amongst the English, French, Spanish, and particularly amongst the Flemings; but why are not their works published when so many Italian works of that period are reprinted? There are but two or three copies of the Dictionary of Music, by Tinctoris, which is considered as the first work of the kind ever printed, and if it was not composed, as M. Perne says, before the year 1478, it was only a year before Gaffurio's work, printed at Naples in 1480. There still exists a crown or collection of masses and anthems by old composers of foreign music, published at the beginning of the 16th century. But may not these pieces, allowing their authors the praises they deserve, give rise to the supposition that though their authors concurred with the Italians in propagating this study, they also

contributed to corrupt the art by elaborate counterpoint, which rendered it rather an object of labour than of pleasure? Did they not introduce into music what the Greeks from Constantinople at the same time introduced into philosophy?

It appears that the Flemish School remained stationary at this point, while the Italian School took the character of its climate, and developed itself more and more till the end of the 16th century. Almost all the musical and didactic compositions of this time bear the character of that spirit of invention which searches into, reforms, and creates. This spirit may be found in the discoveries, or in the essays, of Vinci, Nicola Vicentino, Palestrina, Zarlino, Galilei, &c; and it caused the development of the Mellopeia. After the farces, mysteries, and feasts, celebrated in this country and every where else, music was introduced towards the end of the 15th century in all kinds of theatrical representation. It seems that some parts of the Orpheus of Poliziano, the first Italian pastoral performed before 1483, was sung. In the Errore Femineo, a tragic piece by Notturno, a Neapolitan poet, there are some anacreontic strophes certainly designed for singing. During the 16th century music was often employed in tragedies, comedies, and pastorals, and even in prose, but only in interludes, chorusses, or in a certain part of any particular scene. The music composed for the Sacrificio, by Beccari, for the Egle, by Giraldi, and several other tragedies, for the Aminta, Pastor Fido, &c., was never continued throughout the whole piece, but only at certain parts as we before mentioned. But what was the first piece entirely sung throughout? Though this honour was given to the Orpheus of Zarlino, and it has been proved that the two pastorals set to music by Emilio del Cavaliere were entirely sung in 1590, it still remains to be determined what was the character of the music. Now it is incontrovertible that it was not only the music called madrigal and which, appropriated to such pieces, gave it the form of a continued series of madrigals, the length

of which made the heavy and disagreeable style still more monotonous. The Anfiparnaso, by Oragio Vecchi, a poet and musician, represented at Venice before 1597, has been regarded by Muratori and others as the first modern opera; but there is not that regular declamation, and that rapid and expressive singing, which constitute the character of the modern Mellopeia. This discovery may be dated from the same period, but the honour of it is due to more composers than we have: mentioned.

Grecian tragedy was entirely sung throughout. Of all the learned men of the 14th century, Francesco Patrizi demonstrated this truth in the best manner, and determined the character of the ancient Mellopeia of the Greeks. V. Galilei and G. Mei, with Count Bardi and Jacopo Corsi, both poets and musicians,' wrote essays on this dramatic melody. The young poet Rinuccini, the secret lover of Mary of Medici, composed the Daphne; Caccini and Peri made the music to it, and this pastoral was represented at Florence in 1594. The success of this first essay soon brought out a second; and the fable of Euridice and Orpheus was performed in 1600 with. much eclat. These may be said to constitute the new style of singing, called representative or recitative, and also some traces may be perceived of the airs and duos before. observed in Ariano, a lyric drama composed by Rinuccini, set to music after the same principles by Claudio Monteverde, and represented at Mantua in 1608.

We have only mentioned the principal objects in M. Orloff's work. The details, which the amateurs of the musical art will read with pleasure and interest, will be found more at length in the book. We are obliged to Count Orloff for the care he has taken to interest us in the history of the Fine Arts in Italy.

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ticle before his name to be illustri ous. No one cares for his nobility; genius alone made him illustrious. The editor might then have dispensed with the ceremony of treat ing him as a mere noble. Besides the sources common to all the other biographers of Schiller, M. Doering has taken advantage of the correspondence between Schiller and M. de Dalberg, published in 1819, which contains some interesting details upon the life, labours, and opinions of this tragic poet. The editor has inserted many anecdotes, some of which have been disputed by the German journals. The part of the biography devoted to an analysis of the poetical works of Schiller is very feeble. This poet is supposed,' by the French, to have wished to overturn Aristotle's rules of poetry. Schiller thus expresses himself on this subject in these letters: "I read some time ago Aristotle's poetry; instead of discouraging and constraining, it has strengthened me. To judge by the restraint which the French attributed to him, I expected to find him a cold, strict, anti-liberal legislator, and was astonished to find him quite the contrary. He decidedly insists upon the essence of tragedy; but as to the form, it is as

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relaxed as it is possible to be. What he exacts from the poet are what must necessarily be done, and are conditions inherent in the nature of things. The rules of the Greek author relate almost exclusively to tra gedy, for which he had a greater predilection than for any other kind of poetry.

It is evident that he speaks from experience, and had been witness of a great many tragic représentations. There is nothing speculative in his book and not a trace of theory; all is the result of experience; but the number of examples be cites, and the happy choice of models he has in view, give to his experimental observations the form of laws."

With respect to the unfinished romance of the "Visionary," recently translated into French, and announced in the Parisian journals as something quite new, though it was translated twenty years ago, M. Doering thinks that the mysterious adventures of Cagliostro inspired Schiller with the design of this romance; but M. Daring does not explain satisfactorily the reason why Schiller stopped at the very moment when the curiosity of the reader was most excited, and never finished his

romance.

ENGLISH BOOKS.

Memoirs of the History of France, fess that we have never considered during the reign of Napoleon, dicit of any great weight; for the avocatated by the Emperor, at St. He- tions of the Emperor Napoleon were lena, to General Gourgaud, his so much more varied and numerous Aid-de-Camp. Octavo. pp. 404. than those of Cæsar, that whatever London, 1823. might have been either bis talents or his inclinations for literary or scientific pursuits, it was obvious that, during his political career, it was absolutely impossible for him to abstract his mind in any degree from the civil and military functions of his station. Had he, however, never possessed those opportunities which his imprisonment at St. Helena afforded him for study and reflection, his Code of Laws would have evinced, to the latest records of time, that his mind possessed the powers of tracing intricate subjects through their remotest ramifications, with the comprehensive faculty of generalising his ideas and combin

IN the comparisons, which havė been so frequently drawn between the Emperor Napoleon and the two great heroes of antiquity, Alexander and Cæsar, it has often been observed, that however the modern phenomenon may surpass the ancient rivals of his fame, with respect to military genius and to the capacity for governing mankind, he had not, like Cæsar, evinced his possession of any high degree of intellectual powers at literary composition. For our part, although this observation has been made by men of profound sagacity, we must.con

ing the most numerous and compli cated details with the most exten. sive results.

Cæsar, after he had achieved the conquest of Gaul, found his task at an end; and, except the vigilance necessary to protect the frontiers of his conquest from the incursions of the Causi, the Catti, and of other neighbouring tribes, and which, indeed, was the duty rather of his lieutenants than of himself, he was, if we may be allowed the parvis componere magna, rather like a commander in country quarters than a general in the anxieties of a campaign. His leisure was therefore spent in the elegant occupation of letters; but far different was it with Napoleon. From his leaving the Academy of Paris to his final surrender at Bourdeaux he was incessantly engaged in the most numerous, diversified, and important actions that ever occupied the human attention. Any subsequent attempts at composition that he might make during the leisure of his confinement would, therefore, derive their complexion solely from the natural powers of his intellect; for as to any study of the literary art, or of the higher models of literary eminence, it was precluded by the very circumstances of his intermediate career.

A mind, however, like his, the essence of which seemed to be the height of vigorous exertion, could never sink into lethargy or inaction; and it was therefore anticipated that when he arrived at St. Helena he would devote his energies to composing the history of his own life, or of some of those great events with which he had been so intimately connected. That anticipation has now been realised, and the world have before them what may be considered the literary works of this surprising character, and the first production of which we are now about to analyse.

This volume, as its title page announces, is the dictation of the Emperor, and it bears a most decided stamp or character of a peculiar genius. It is evidently the emanation of intellect, formed upon no study of models, nor deriving its complexion or features from any factitious associations, or from any in

timate acquaintance with preceding works; it is the offspring of a mind intuitively conscious of its vast powers, and therefore never even thinking of rules of art, or of the roads by which others have attained to literary eminence, but depending solely upon its own strong concep tions and vast resources.

This work bears all the features of Napoleon's genius; a sort of characteristic association with his conduct. There is a continued and ardent pressing on to some great result; a powerful compression of facts; a contempt of epithets, and of every thing trivial or indifferent but a judicious enumeration of all that leads to an ultimate result;-a style of this sort is the very soul of business.

General Gourgaud, in what he calls an advertisement, describes the manner in which the Emperor die tated this and other similar works. Too ardent and rapid in his concep tions to endure the tardy mechanism of writing his thoughts, he dictated to others like lightening, expecting them to transcribe his words with equal rapidity. He always corrected these transcripts, and, if they were not to his liking, would sketch the page a-new, by filling up the mar gins. These MSS. are now in existence, and put at rest any doubts as to the works which, like the present, pretend to be from his dictation. The public have long been imposed upon by the numerous anos nymous publications that have pretended to divulge important facts relating to the Emperor, such works as the present will at least destroy all such impositions, and will throw that light upon the momentous transactions of the late eventful wars and revolutions, from which history must derive its complexion.

This first volume with which General Gourgaud has favoured the public is almost exclusively on military subjects, and although such technical matters may be, if not above, at least without, the pale of our literary acquirements and functions, yet, imitating the philosopher of old, we may avow such parts as we do understand to be so excellent, as to justify the inference, that equally excellent are the parts which

are beyond the sphere of our acquaintance.

The first fifty pages give us a clear idea of the celebrated siege of Toulon, the account of which developes the nature of Napoleon's talents, and presents us with a pretty accurate picture of the revolutionary management of that period. We have a very intelligible statement of the situations and objects of the French, and their opposing armies in Piedmont and in the neighbourhood of Toulon, as well as a rapid sketch of the face of the country, and of the fortresses on the south-eastern coast of France. We have also the characters of several of the commanders-in-chief appointed to command on this Italian frontier by the revolutionary government of 1792 and 1793; and, considering the gross ignorance of those who had assumed the helm of state, considering the absurdity of their plans, the inconsistencies of their military appointments, and the endless fluctuations of their measures, it is little less than miraculous that the genius of Buonaparte could have saved his country from the overwhelming. force of foreign armies, and from the internal conflicts of opposing factions.

In September 1793, the royalist party delivered up Toulon to the English, and the harbour and town were immediately occupied by our fleet under command of Lord Hood, and by a combined force of English, Spaniards, Sardineans, Neapolitans, &c. under General O'Hara. This great French naval depôt then contained thirty-one ships of the line, numerous other vessels, an immense quantity of cannon, ammunition and stores, with the most extensive docks and buildings of every description requisite to the first naval establishment of a great nation like France. General Cartaux was marched to recover this important cession, and, beating the English on the 10th of September, at the passes to the west of Toulon, his army took up a position on the west of the town. It was about fifteen days after this that Napoleon, a chief of a battalion of artillery, was sent to command the besieging engineers. He found the grossest ignorance and the most

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ruinous disorder prevalent at head quarters. Points of attack absurdly chosen, positions badly taken up, and batteries erected without science, and often further from the objects of attack than the range of cannon shot; and yet with such officers, and with such misrule, France had withstood the attacks of all Europe; an irrefutable proof of what has so often been asserted, that the continental governments of that period were rendered impotent by corruption and abuses. Napoleon, saw the inutility or almost hopelessness of retaking Toulon by a regular siege laid against its defences. He therefore proposed to drive the English from a peninsular eminence, which, from its strength, they had called Little Gibralter, and which was at so considerable a distance from Toulon that his proposal was laughed to scorn. But Napoleon calculated that this position would command the whole anchorage, and that if the whole mass, of French ordnance could be brought to play upon the fleet, the English, whose objects were principally naval, would abandon the town to its fate, The French officers, impervious to these shrewed calculations, would not listen to the proposal until after a month's discussion, and when the English had so entrenched themselved, that the capture of this peninsula became a matter of great difficulty. At last Napoleon's plans were adopted, but in total ignorance of their ultimate object; for the Little Gibraltar was to be taken, only as a preliminary to a regular advance to the out-works of the town; and it was in vain that Napoleon assured them that the occupation of this point would prevent the necessity of any further siege whatever. Two days, said he, after we gain this point, Toulon will surrender at discretion. At length a siege was commenced against this Little Gibraltar; but the government of Paris, no more than the General-inChief, could conceive the utility of attacking a point so very distant from the town; and in such despair of success were the commanders of the army that they wrote to Paris, strongly advising that the siege should be raised, and the army

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