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MUSICAL ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY. succeeded by his younger brother, Thomas P. Chappell. [ W. C. ]

MUSICAL ASSOCIATION, THE, established in 1874, after preliminary meetings at the house of Mr. W. Spottiswoode, F.R.S., and at South Kensington Museum, at the latter of which, on May 29, Mr. John Hullah presided and several members were enrolled. On August 4, 1874, the first general meeting of the members was held, Mr. A. J. Ellis, F.R.S. in the chair, and it was resolved that the Society's title should be 'Musical Association for the investigation and discussion of subjects connected with the Science and Art of Music.' The members, according to the rules, 'consist of practical and theoretical musicians as well as those whose researches have been directed to the science of Acoustics, the history of Music or other kindred subjects.' The Association meets at the Beethoven Rooms, Harley Street, on the first Monday of every month from November to June, when papers are read and discussed and published. Subscription is one guinea a year, and members are elected by ballot. The President is the Rev. Sir F. A. G. Ouseley, Bart. The Vice-presidents are Messrs. W. Chappell; Otto Goldschmidt; G. Grove; J. Hullah; Prof. G. A. Macfarren, Mus. Doc.; G. A. Osborne; W. Pole, Mus. Doc.; C. K. Salaman; W. Spottiswoode; W. H. Stone, and J. Tyndall. The Council includes the vice-presidents and Messrs. W. A. Barrett, Mus. Bac.; C. H. Barry; J. Bennett; R. H. M. Bosanquet; J. F. Bridge, Mus. Doc.; W. H. Cummings; W. H. Monk; A. H. D. Prendergast; J. Stainer, Mus. Doc.; and C. E. Stephens. The other officers are—Treasurer, Mr. Stanley Lucas; Auditors, Messrs. W. S. Collard and C. Mackeson; and Hon. Sec., Mr. J. Higgs, Mus. Bac. During the five sessions since the establishment of the Society, papers on a great variety of subjects have been read, including musical nomenclature, musical notation, pitch, temperament, systems of harmony, ecclesiastical music, musical criticism, Bach's Art of Fugue, Purcell and his family, the formation of a national musical library, orchestral music, the history, character and possible improvements of certain instruments, and questions connected with acoustics and the mathematics of music. The Society's Proceedings are published annually by Lucas & Weber. [App. p.722 "The list of Vice-Presidents for the present season (1888–9), is as follows:—Prof. W. G. Adams; R. H. M. Bosanquet; J. F. Bridge, Mus.D.; W. Chappell; G. F. Cobb; F. E. Gladstone, Mus.D.; Otto Goldschmidt; Sir George Grove; J. Higgs; Mus.B.; W. H. Monk, Mus.D.; G. A. Osborne; W. Pole, Mus.D.; C. K. Salaman; J. Stainer, Mus.D. The ordinary members of council are as follows:—H. C. Banister; C. A. Barry; Major G. A. Crawford; W. H. Cummings; F. W. Davenport (Hon. Sec.); F. Praeger; A. H. D. Prendergast; E. Prout; W. de M. Sergison; T. L. Southgate; C. E. Stephens. The auditors are Messrs. D. J. Blaikley and W. S. Collard."] [ C. M. ]

MUSICAL BOX. [See .]

MUSICAL FEASTS. The Musical Feasts which preceded the Musical Drama were so called because it was the custom in Italy to celebrate any joyful occasion, such as the marriage of princes, with feasts, and games, and melodramatic poetry, accompanied with theatrical representations. Feats of arms, jousts and tournaments, also made part of the entertainment, which was in Italy of much the same character as the masques and pageants in England in the time, of Elizabeth and James I. So much were these Musical Feasts in request that the most celebrated poets and musicians of the day were employed to arrange the scheme, celebrated architects devised the extraordinary and elaborate machinery brought in to enhance the effect, and great painters—in one instance a pupil of Perugino, Bastiano di san Gallo—condescended to paint the scenery.

'Like the musical feasts,' says Burney (Hist, ii. 50), 'the first Italian operas were performed in the palaces of princes, for the celebration of marriages, or on some particular occasion of joy and festivity, at the expense of the Sovereign or the Republic, and not in theatres supported by general contribution.' (See Il Quadrio, vol. v. p. 500) [ C. M. P. ]

MUSICAL GLASSES. [See .]

MUSICAL LIBRARIES. The authors of this article cannot hold themselves responsible for the correctness of the statements contained in their accounts of the principal European and American collections of music. It has not been possible to examine every library for the purposes of this work, but every care has been taken to ensure accuracy by obtaining the information direct from librarians, cathedral dignitaries, organists, or other persons who have access to the collections. Circulating libraries have not been noticed, as, although they often contain many thousands of musical works, they are not generally of a permanent nature, and consist principally of modern works. It is to be regretted that libraries devoted solely to music should be so rare. Even where, as in the British Museum, the musical part of the collection is kept separate, musical literature has to be sought for in the general library. The Imperial Libraries at Berlin and Vienna, and the libraries of the Sacred Harmonic Society and Paris Conservatoire are gratifying exceptions to this rule.

[App. p.723 "The information with regard to the German libraries is mainly derived from various numbers of the 'Monatshefte fur Musik-Geschichte,' where further information as to the contents of these libraries is to be obtained. For the account of the recent discoveries at Durham, the writer is indebted to Dr. Armes. "]

. a. The Fitzwilliam Museum contains a valuable collection which has been already noticed. &#x005b;Vol. i. p. 530.] A new catalogue has been recently (1879) completed. [App. p.723 "The catalogue of the music in the Fitzwilliam Museum is now (1888) in the press."]

b. The University Library, besides a considerable and somewhat miscellaneous collection of printed music (chiefly of the present century) contains a few MS. books of music, consisting principally of collections of well-known airs, dance-tunes, and lessons for the lute, bass viol and recorder, arranged and composed by Bachelor, Dowland, Holborne, Byrd, Tallis, Johnson and other composers of the early part of the 17th century. They are written in tablature and date principally from 1600 to 1640. Besides these there is a valuable volume of 16th-century anthems and masses by Fayrfax, Prowett, Davy, Austen, Taverner, Lovell, Pasche, and Ashwell. Amongst the masses in this volume may be mentioned a 'Missa Regalis' and a mass, 'God save King Harry.' There is also preserved here an undoubted 15th-century mass in two parts, unfortunately wanting one page. MS. installation odes by Boyce and Walmisley are also in the library, and it is hoped that in consequence of a recent regulation,