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 CHAPTER XXXVI

CHORAL MUSIC. THE SONG. THE ENGLISH SCHOOL

218. The Revival of Choral Music.—The keen attention to instrumental music which began in the later 18th century was so absorbing that for a long time choral music was relatively neglected. Various kinds of church services, to be sure, demanded fresh material, and this was continually supplied, though usually without much originality or depth. The only branch of vocal music (aside from the opera) that made distinct advance during the opening years of the 19th century was the song, but even this was wrought upon only by some scattered composers.

With the definite access of romantic feeling, however, it was inevitable that choral music should receive new consideration. The conservative party emphasized it because it was to them the normal medium for the application of the older counterpoint which they admired, and because it was opposed to the prevalent instrumentalism which they disliked. Workers like Mendelssohn and Schumann found in it the means for embodying poetic conceptions too varied or exalted for merely solo treatment. And the most radical experimenters with orchestral color, like Berlioz and Liszt, fully recognized the tonal splendor of large vocal combinations and were quick to utilize such impressive effects in building up their complex ensembles. So it came to pass that from about 1820 onward the volume of dignified choral music for concert purposes rapidly increased, and also the variety of its forms.

In the competition for popular effectiveness and artistic achievement choral music is noticeably handicapped. Orchestral music is supported and purveyed by salaried bands of professional players under constant discipline and giving frequent concerts in extended series, often in more than one place. But choral music, with comparatively few exceptions, is set forth by volunteer organizations largely made up of amateurs, having much less rehearsal and giving concerts at much longer intervals. The consequence of all this is that the resources of choral music are popularly not as well understood as those of orchestral music, its repertory is rela