Composers frequently make use of the clefs, the tenor especially, for the pur pose of transposing into other keys with the utmost facility: thus, if a piece of music be composed in the key of D, with two sharps, by annulling the sharps, and placing the tenor clef on that line where D stood, the whole piece is transposed one note lower. In the hurry of compo sition this is essentially useful, regarding such parts as are intended for horns, trumpets, &c. which never having sharps or fiats prefixed to their staves, but being guided by a written notice as to what key the crooks should be arranged to (for their music is always written in C natural) by observing the clef, instead of any su perscribed direction, and the proper crooks beingaifixed, accordingto the clef, the performers go through their partswith out difficulty. The great importance of becoming perfectly familiar with this use ful and versatile clef must be obvious ; indeed the deficiency of a competent and ready knowledge of it, at sight, is not merely a disadvantage, but in many in. stances &complete disqualification; espe cially to public performers, who are often served with pelts, either separately copi ed, or in a score, which they are ex pected to go through without hesitation or error.
Etymologists differ in regard to the de rivation of the terms treble, tenor, bass, used for the names of the cleffs. Some derive treble from the theatre, others from the old practice of singing trios, in which the middle part, thence said to be called the tenor, bore the burthen ; while the upper voice proceeded always a third, 1. e. a treble above it. In all probability the latter is the most correct, thoqgh at the best we can only venture a conjec ture, the strict derivation having been lost. The origin of the term tenor may, as some authors assert, be from the verb knee, to hold; but the manner of its ap plication, though from the same root, may be somewhat different; some have hint• ed, and not without reason, that it was on account of the tenor being that link which held the upper and lower parts together. As for the bass, that evidently proceeds from bah i. e. low.
Having premised thus much, regarding those points which we deemed of much importance to have fully explained, be fore we prpceed to detail the relations of notes, in regard to their places and to their distances on the stave,or scales, we will now treat of the latter, and also of the mode of ascertaining the key in which the music is composed. Respecting the value or duration of the notes, we shall reserve what is necessary to be stated, until we come to explain that moat im portant matter, the time table.
There are but seven sounds in music, which are distinguished by the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. The situation of the original sounds, of which all bearing those names are replicates, whether they be above or below those seven which we as sume in any part of the stave as a stan dard, it is perhaps out of our power to as certain, for every atom in nature is capa ble of producing some sound correspond ing with some part of our scale, either perfectly in unison, or inclining to be sharper or flatter. Whatever may be the sound produced, we can, by the various means in common use, accommodate our instruments thereto: Thus, if any tone is heard, we can to a certainty accord,w ith out de viati ngmore thanfour notes either above or below the then pitch of the instrument that it is to imitate. For supposing a string to be tuned to A, and that a sound cor responding with the note E, below it, were heard, the intonation would be per fectly imitated, by relaxing the string un til it should have descended six semi tones, or a fourth ; it would then cor respond so very exactly, as to be in per fect unison with the sound in question ; but if, instead of relaxing, the string were to be tightened, so as to cause its note to be raised eight semi-tones, or a fifth, the two sounds would blend completely, not in perfect unison, but in replicate unison ; for the former term, in its strict sense, relates to sounds which positively yield the very same note in the same part of the scale.
This requires no proof to persons skill ed in acoustics, or the science of sounds ; but its demonstration would occupy more space than can be allotted to this article ; under the head of Sourrns more will be said. At present it suffices to state, that all notes of the same name are consider ed by harmonists as being the same note, as will be shewn ; though the effects pro duced by placing them differently, in va rious parts of Chords, are extremely vari ous. The melodist, who is utterly unac quainted with music, as a science, and who whistles, or sings, either a well known air, or the wild effusions of his own imagination, naturally concludes, that every sound he can produce, from the lowest to the highest pitch of his compass, is a distinct note ; not considering, that a woman or a child, who should sing the same tune with him, in what is called uni son, (i. e. in the same sound), would abso lutely sing throughout, in a parallel of notes, one octave above him ! or that if accompanied by a base voice, that accom panimentwould be a whole octave below him ! The truth of this is, however, firmly established, except in the minds of those few, who endeavour by sophistry, and a subtle mode of arguing, which, however, cannot bear the scrutiny of reason, to cre ate a difficulty, by asserting that the note A, (&c.) between the second and third lines of the stave, cannot be the note A, which is intersected by the first ledger line above the stave ! But if, when these two notes are sounded together, they so perfectly blend, that every audi tor, however exquisite his sense of hear ing, should not be able to discover more than one sound ; and, that any vessel, such as a rummer, &c. should equally ac cord to either note, how can we say that the octave is a distinct note. We admit it to be a distinct degree in the scale of sounds, but maintain, that they are, at least, as closely allied as the echo is to the voice ! But, let us suppose that a house were built so completely like a mo del, that, when the former were diminish ed, by means of a suitable mirror, it should be so very perfectly similar, as not to be distinguished from the model or, that the latter should be magnified so as apparently to equal the house itself in bulk ; and that, in such states, they could not be distinguished ; what would the fas tidious critic, or rather sceptic, say? that they were not the same!" True,—nobody would doubt it ; but they would be so forcibly represented to the sense, that, if shewn alternately, without the decep tion being known, the spectator would be mentally convinced that only one exist ed ! We cannot, however, have a more satisfactory illustration of our position, than by adducing the well known fact, that all the instruments, of whatever pitch, used in a concert, and whether sounded by percussion, inflation, or col lision, may be tuned from a common tuning fork, or by the given note of any instrument. We find also, that where a sharp, or a flat, is necessary in any part of the stave, the same is indispensable among all the whether graver or acuter in their Intonations.