stronomer
or naturalist; for the absence of order, that is, Disorder, constitutes
a condition which is regarded with abhorrence and dread by every
rational mind.

A musical composition, then, in which Order prevails; in which all the
factors are chosen and treated in close keeping with their logical
bearing upon each other and upon the whole; in which, in a word, there
is no disorder of thought or technique,--is music with Form (_i.e._
good Form). A sensible arrangement of the various members of the
composition (its figures, phrases, motives, and the like) will exhibit
both agreement and contrast, both confirmation and opposition; for we
measure things by comparison with both like and unlike. Our nature
demands the evidence of _uniformity_, as that emphasizes the
impressions, making them easier to grasp and enjoy; but our nature also
craves a certain degree of _variety_, to counteract the monotony which
must result from too persistent uniformity. When the elements of Unity
and Variety are sensibly matched, evenly balanced, the form is good.
On the other hand, a composition is formless, or faulty in form, when
the component parts are jumbled together without regard to proportion
and relation.

Which of these two conditions is the more desirable, or necessary,
would seem to be wholly self-evident.

The error made by pedantic teachers is to demand _too much_ Form; to
insist that a piece of music shall be a model of arithmetical
adjustment. This is probably a graver error than apparent
formlessness. Design and logic and unity there must surely be; but any
_obtrusive_ evidence of mathematical calculation must degrade music to
the level of a mere handicraft.

* * * * * *

Another and higher significance involved in the idea of Form, that goes
to prove how indispensable it may be in truly good music, rests upon
the opposition of Form to the material.

There are two essentially different classes of music lovers:--the one
class takes delight in the mere sound and jingle of the music; not
looking for any higher purpose than this, they content themselves with
the purely sensuous enjoyment that the sound material affords. To such
listeners, a comparatively meaningless succession of tones and chords
is sufficiently enjoyable, so long as each separate particle, each beat
or measure, is euphonious in itself. The other class, more
discriminating in its tastes, looks beneath this iridescent