Page:Polynesian Mythology by George Grey (polynesianmythol00greyuoft).djvu/365

always found they had lost something of their peculiarity when played upon the violin.

"The reason of this defect seems to have been that the intervals of the Indian music did not agree with those of Europe."^[1]

Mr. Tradescant might have added, that there will always be some difference in an air played on the guitar and on the violin, though the intervals used are esteemed the same; and, again, perhaps the learned traveller did not take care to divide the scale of his violin mathematically, like that of the kin, before he tried the effect; he might also not have noted the right interval. He concludes: "There is, however, a connection between the Chinese and old Scotch music, so that when any highly-admired airs of Scotland happen to fall within the compass of the kin, they seem at home when played upon this instrument."

Mr. Lane says the "canoon" of the Arabians had twenty-four notes. Dr. Russell to Burney says that the Arab scale of twenty-four notes was equal to one octave. But Mr. Lane adds, that "the most remarkable peculiarity in the Arab system of music is the division of tones into thirds." Hence, from the system of thirds of tones, I have heard the Egyptian musicians urge against the European systems of music that they are deficient in the number of sounds.

The same remark was made to me by Selim Agar, a Nubian, when singing some Amharic songs: "Your instrument" (piano), said he, "is very much out of tune, and jumps very much."

Mr. Lane adds: "These small and delicate gradations of sound give a peculiar softness to the performances of the Arab musicians, which are generally of a plaintive cha-