that everything good in music we owe to the Teutons. Haydn
was largely Croatian; Mozart was strongly influenced by non-
Teutonic folk-music (Tyrolese melodies frequently peep out in
his works); Schubert’s forebears came from Moravia and Silesia;
and Beethoven was partly Dutch. If there be anysinglerace to
which the world owes the art of music it is the Italians, for they
invented most of the instruments and hinted at all the vocal
and instrumental forms. We may be grateful to the Germans
for their persevering appropriation of what others had begun;
only let them not claimallthe credit.]
In Mozart’s works, in distinction from the unconscious, naïve
folk-song type of Haydn, we find highly wrought instrumental
melodies; although such was his inborn spontaneity of expres-
sion that we are never aware of the labor expended. His works
are quite as clear as those of Haydn, but they show a more
conscious individuality of style. They are not so artless, and
the phraseology is more elastic—less cut and dried. There is a
higher imaginative vitality; trite, mechanical repetitions are in
general avoided, climaxes are led up to in a more subtle man-
ner, and a great gain is made in real organic development. For
Mozart, as a master of polyphonic treatment, is second only to
Bach. The most striking single feature in his work is the cease-
less flow of expressive melody, notably those wondrous tunes
found in his operas, such as “Voi che sapete,” “Batti, batti” and
numerous others. He had travelled so widely, so keen was his
power of assimilation that his melodic style embodied and en-
hanced the best qualities of contemporary Italian, French and
German practice. And yet his innate genius was of sufficient
strength to achieve this result without lapsing into formal eclec-
ticism. Whatever suggestions he took he made wholly his own;
and his music is nothing if not individual in its inimitable charm
and freshness. Whereas Haydn’s music often smacks too promi-
nently of the soil, with Mozart we have the fine flower of a broad
artistic culture. In his best symphonies and string quartets the
art of music made a distinct advance and began to be capable of
expressing the universal emotions and aspirations of mankind.
The reactive influence—each upon the other—of Haydn (1732-
1809) and Mozart (1756-1791) is a most interesting feature of
the period.[122] By the time Mozart was ripe for his best work
Haydn had formulated and exemplified the main lines of instru-
mental structure. From this preparatory work Mozart reaped