[Music: DVO[VR]ÁK: SymphonyFrom the New World]
It is now necessary for the student to know something about
the constructive principles by which large works of music are
fashioned; not so much that he could compose these works him-
self, even if he had the inspiration, but to know enough, so that
the reception of the music is not a haphazard activity but an
intellectual achievement, second only to that of the original cre-
ator. Every genuine work of art in whatever medium, stone,
color, word or tone, must exhibitunity of general effect with
variety of detail. That is, the material must hold together, be
coherent and convince the participant of the logical design of
the artist; not fall apart as might a bad building, or be diffuse
as a poorly written essay. And yet, with this coherence, there
must always be stimulating and refreshing variety; for a too
constant insistence on the main material produces intolerable
monotony, such as the “damnable iteration” of a mediocre prose
work or the harping away on one theme by the hack composer.
In no art more than music is this dual standard of greater im-
portance, and in no art more difficult to attain. For the raw
material of music, fleeting rhythms and waves of sound, is in its
very nature most incoherent. Here we are not dealing with the
concrete, tangible and definite material which is available for all
the other arts, but with something intangible and elusive. We
know from the historical record[9] of musical development, that,
only after centuries of experimentation conducted by some of the
best intellects in Europe, was sufficient coherence gained so that
there could be composed music which would compare with the
simplest modern hymn-tune or part-song. And this was long af-
ter each of the other arts—architecture, sculpture, painting and
literature—had reached points of attainment which, in many
respects, have never since been equalled.
[Footnote 9: Compare Parry’sEvolution of the Art of Music,
passim and D.G. Mason’sBeethoven and his Forerunners, Chap-
ter I.]
Before carrying our inquiries further, something must be said
about the two main lines of musical development which led up
to music as we know it to-day. These tendencies are designated
by the termsHomophonicandPolyphonic. By homophonic,[10]
from Greek words signifying a “single voice,” is meant music
consisting of asinglemelodic line, as in the whole field of folk-
songs (which originally were always unaccompanied) or in the