For this psalmody we are indebted to the Reformers of Germany,
especially Luther, who was himself an enthusiastic lover of music, and is
believed to have composed some of the finest tunes, particularly the
Hundredth Psalm, and the hymn on the Last Judgment, which Braham sings
with such tremendous power at our great performances of sacred music. Our
psalm-tunes, consisting of prolonged and simple sounds, are admirably
adapted for being sung by great congregations; and as the effect of this
kind of music is much increased by its venerable antiquity, it would be
very unfortunate should it yield to the influence of innovation: for this
reason, it is much to be desired that organists and directors of choirs
should confine themselves to the established old tunes, instead of
displacing them by modern compositions.
Towards the end of the sixteenth, and beginning of the seventeenth,
century, shone that constellation of English musicians, whose inimitable
madrigals are still, and long will be, the delight of every lover of vocal
harmony. It is to Italy, however, that we are indebted for this species of
composition.
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