Le luth et sa musique by Jean JacquotReview by: Suzanne BlochNotes, Second Series, Vol. 17, No. 3 (Jun., 1960), pp. 403-404Published by: Music Library AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/892303 .

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On the other hand, Arthur R. Miller's "Problems in the Transfer of Interests in a Copyright" is probably too technical for the average librarian even though the librarian is of necessity interested in the ownership of copyrights. Martin Leach-Cross Feldman's article on "The Relationship between Copyright and Un- fair Competition Principles" includes some discussion of recordings as well as other types of material, but L. Lee Phillips' "Related Rights and American Copyright Law: Compatible or Incom- patible?" dealing with the international attempts at a treaty on rights connected with performances, goes to a far greater extent into the problems of phonogra- phy. The remaining two articles, "The Jukebox Exemption" by Eugene Mooney and "Copyright Publication: The Sale and Distribution of Phonograph Records" by Peter H. Morrison, are entirely de- voted to problems of sound recording. The question of collecting royalties for jukebox performance is obviously of great interest to the performing rights societies and to composers and perform- ers in general.

The general interest shown in phonog- raphy by these authors undoubtedly is due to the fact that the 1909 Act is nowhere in greater need of moderniza- tion than in this area. This is the no-

man's land in the field of copyright. In the absence of modern legislation, the courts may be said to be improvising- or so it seems to a layman. It is not surprising, therefore, that the conclusion of L. Lee Phillips' essay begins "That the efforts of performers, recorders and broadcasters merit legislative protection requires no further discussion"; simi- larly in Peter H. Morrison's conclusion: "Legislation is badly needed. Confusion reigns supreme."

The need for new legislation has been recognized for some years now and the Copyright Office has been engaged in ex- tensive research preliminary to the draft- ing of new legislation. During the months to come the world of scholarship and the arts, including librarians, will have a rare opportunity to be heard on the subject of copyright. Those wishing to express themselves must of course familiarize themselves with the problems inherent in the field. It cannot be maintained that this set of essays constitutes an ideal primer in the field, but it does contain a series of interesting discussions of some contemporary problems. ASCAP is to be congratulated for instituting this compe- tition, which also serves to interest the young men entering the legal profession in the field of copyright.

HAROLD SPIVACKE

Le luth et sa musique; etudes reunies et presentees par Jean Jacquot. (Colloques internationaux du C. N. R. S., Neuilly-sur- Seine, 10-14 septembre 1957.) Paris: Editions du Centre Na- tional de la Recherche Scientifique, 1958. [356 p., music, 8vo; 3,200 fr.1

This unique book is the result of a four-day colloquium held at Paris in 1957. With the revival of the lute, a growing interest in its technique and its immense literature has become evident. The lute's special tablature notation can- not easily reach the public, and the spreading demand for playable instru- ments is even creating questions of con- struction. It was felt that the collabora- tion of experts in these subjects could be of great value in filling these needs.

The colloquium was organized under the persistent and inspired leadership of Prof. Jean Jacquot, with representatives

from France, Austria, Belgium, USA, Gt. Britain, Italy, Netherlands, Poland. and Switzerland. Twenty-three papers were read, each followed by informal discus- sions among the members present. The papers, together with their faithfully re- corded discussions, form this book and provide us with the first vital report on the status of the lute and its practical .problems in this century. It should be of endless value to anyone interested in the lute, the music of its time, and customs related to it.

The papers are concise and short, full of quotations from original sources. The

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discussions following, between present- day lutenists and musicologists, give a refreshing and vital touch to a subject that has long been considered antiquarian. Many aspects of lute technique are dis- cussed in these papers, with notable quo- tations from early sources thrown about, and a good deal of lively discussion be- tween present lutenists on the subject of hand pos.ition and problems of plucking and stopping the strings. Some manu- scripts are described and analyzed, bring- ing up problems of rhythm and tempo in various dance forms and their relation to one anoither. Several lute tutors are de- scribed, giving an insight into traditions and social customs that are at times quaint and amusing. A study of the records of Parisian lute makers gives one an idea of the extreme popularity of the instrument. Analysis of lute fantasias and ricercare, transcriptions of works of Orlando di Lasso, the evolution of the lute as accompaniment for the voice, the

question of pitch in lute tuning, string- ing up a lute, constructing a late, meas- uring an ancient lute, the description of other members of the lute family-all these varied papers add much needed in- formation never before gathered together. Probably the most acute problem involv- ing the lute in our day is that of ade- quately transcribing its tablature into modern notation. Rhythmic problems and the difficulty of lute voice-leading are dwelt upon often throughout this book, culminating in a general discussion of how to bring the music to the public in its most authentic and logical form.

Though a few sections of this book might be too technical for some readers, the rest is clear and well worth reading even for non-lutenists. It gives a novel insight into the musical world of the 16th and 17th centuries. I consider it a major contribution in the field of true and vital musicology.

SUZANNE BLOCH

Die Entwicklung der Musiktheorie in England nach der Zeit von Jean-Philippe Rameau. Von Erwin R. Jacobi. (Collection d'etudes musicologiques, T. 35, 39, 39a.) Strasbourg: P. H. Heitz, 1957 & 1960. [3 vols., facsims., music, 8vol

The first of these small volumes (T. 35), listed with a brief annotation in NOTES of December 1957, is a survey of music theory in England between the death of Rameau and the publication at London in 1845 of a Treatise on Harmony by Alfred Day, English physician and music theorist. Currently issued are the second of the three volumes (T. 39), dealing with Alfred Day and his sue- cessors, and a facsimile reprint (T. 39a) of the second part of Day's Treatise. The facsimile includes a specimen of a later (1885) edition by Sir George Maefarren. Mr. Jacobi's pointing up of the sources (chiefly in Rameau) and. conversely, of the far-reaching effects of Day's book, as well as his pereeptive presentation of sub- stantial portions of the Treatise, are a reflection of high scholarship and a sig- nificant illumination of a heretofore very shadowy view of English music theory in the early part of the nineteenth century. Anyone doubting the validity and vi- tality of the bulk of 19th-century theory

for music education of today is well- advised; yet, Mr. Jacobi demonstrates that there is an unbroken line of thought leading out of Rameau's Traite through the 19th-century and into the teaching of Ebenezer Prout, whose influence is even today very active in many places and at least present, even if moribund, in most. It is then of value to have the kind of understanding of Alfred Day's book, and its predecessors and followers, which the present study affords.

The quotation and criticism of Day con- stitutes the nucleus of Mr. Jacobi's text,. The Treatise is divided into two parts, one dealing with diatonic, the other with chromatic harmony, and it is the latter which is reproduced in facsimile and in- corporated by translation into Mr. Jacobi's second volume. Day's work is an exceed- ingly elaborate attempt to evolve a ra- tional statement of principles of harmony which, to ithe modern theorist accustomed to drawing conclusions from the observed practices of established musical styles,

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