an interesting
one, and from the time of the great John Sebastian Bach, who stands as a
model of domestic purity, down even to the present day, they have played
a large part in shaping the musical destinies of the world.

From the twelfth to the seventeenth century is a long gap, and music
underwent many changes during this period. After the passing of the
minstrel knights, popular music fades out of sight. That it had an
existence, however, is amply proven. The Jongleurs must have continued
long after their masters were stamped out, for their direct successors
are with us to-day, and our hand-organ is the descendant of their
fearful and wonderful organistrum. The entire school of English national
music saw its palmiest days during this epoch. Even on the Continent,
the great schools of contrapuntists delighted to show their skill by
employing as their cantus firmus, or chief part, some well-known popular
song, such as "L'Homme Arme," for example.

In Germany, the mantle of the Minnesingers fell upon the guilds of
musical amateurs in the growing commercial cities. Less poetic than
their predecessors, these Mastersingers, as they named themselves, often
took refuge in arbitrary rules and set metrical forms that made a poor
substitute for real inspiration. That there was some genuine poetic
feeling and humour among them is shown by the work of Hans Sachs, the
greatest of their number. He wrote many poems and plays, of which the
"Fassnachtspiele" were the most popular and the most mirth-provoking.
Contrary to the version of his life given in Wagner's opera, he
succeeded in making a second marriage late in life; and contrary to the
general experience in such cases, the marriage was a happy one, for his
young wife was exceedingly proud of her famous husband. But in the
actual creative work of the Mastersingers woman played no part.

Sacred music and the science of composition flourished as never before.
There is an appropriate saying that old music was horizontal, while now
it is vertical; and the contrast between the interweaving of parts,
proceeding smoothly together, and our single melodies supported by
massive chords, is aptly illustrated by the remark. This very
interweaving led to a style of music that was extremely complex,
affording chances for intellectual and mathematical skill rather than
emotional fervour. It has been customary to say that this style of
composition was unsuited to women, and to pass over the e