The philosophy of the human voice: embracing its physiological history; together with a system of principles, by which criticism in the art of elocution may be rendered intelligible, and instruction, definite and comprehensive. To which is added a brief analysis of song and recitative ... / By James Rush, M.D.

  • Rush, James, 1786-1869.
Date:
1833
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The philosophy of the human voice: embracing its physiological history; together with a system of principles, by which criticism in the art of elocution may be rendered intelligible, and instruction, definite and comprehensive. To which is added a brief analysis of song and recitative ... / By James Rush, M.D. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    59/448 (page 49)
    * ward direction through all the intervals of the scale. Referring to the mode of illustration formerly proposed, if the bow be drawn whilst the finger is moving continually from the eighth place on the string to the first, it will produce the concrete descending sound of the octave. And in like manner, by taking other parts of the scale as the commencement of a de- scending course, all the other downward intervals may be made. The trial by the voice will exhibit a similar down- ward continuous sound: for after ascending the diatonic scale by the dipthongal concrete of ‘a’ and ‘e,’ if we descend by eighth place, we shall hear the continuous movement between all the points of the downward scale. In the first interval of the descending series, we have the concrete downward semi- tone; and in the last, the tone. And in like manner, by a previous rise to the place of a third, fifth and octave, and a consequent descent, we may prove the existence of a Down- ward radical and vanishing third,—fifth,—and octave. Now if this simple phrase ‘ farewell a’? be uttered without emotion, and with a complete fall of the voice, as if it were the close of a sentence, the downward concrete tone will be heard on ¢ a’ with all the properties which belong to the radi- cal and vanishing movement, in-ther ising direction: with this difference, that the radical, if I may now so call it, is at the summit of the tone; whilst the vanish flows dwindling from it to the lower extreme of this interval; the ¢e’ faintly sub- ‘siding there. He who is acquainted with the musical scale, but who has not yet looked upon it in reference to speech, may ascertain the upward intonation of the tone and semitone, when made upon any vowel sound, by a comparison of their effects with the beginning and the end of the rising order of the scale. And in like manner, he may know the downward courses of the semitone and tone, by comparing them respectively with the beginning and end of the descending scale. Every one knows a plaintive expression in speech; therefore it is easy to discriminate a semitone. And I have full confidence in as- serting, that before the attentive reader has finished this essay, he will have no more difficulty 1 in recognizing every other i im- portant interval of the rising and falling movement. Ra ge 8. bas