Triplex Of Songes, for three, fower, and fiue voyces, composed and made by Thomas Whythorne ... the which Songes be of sundry sortes, that is to say, some long, some short, some hard, some easie to be songe, and some betwene both: also some solemne, and some pleasant or mery: so that according to the skill of the singers (not being Musitians) and disposition or delite of the hearers, they may here finde Songes for their contentation and liking. Now newly published. In the Tenor or fift booke, ye shall haue the Preface of the Author, wherein he declareth more at large the contentes of these his fiue bookes |
 |
The Præface of the Aucthor, wherin is declared the contents of these his fiue bookes. |
 | 1. |
| 2. |
| 3. |
 | Triplex |  |
The Præface of the Aucthor, wherin is declared the contents of these his fiue bookes.
Of Musick though the cheef knowlege hath long time hindred been,Becaws vertu not be'ing maintaind, soon ceaseth it is seen,
Yet through the good zeal of a few, who therin pleasure took,
No costs nor pains, it to preferu of long time they forsook,
Beside our princes charge of late to haue it eft renewd,
With verte'ous rulers vnder her, whose willingnes is shewd,
Like loou of gentils and honest hath raizd it from low eb,
Helping Phœbus to pluck from fatall sisters that his web,
The which he hath dispozd into the minds, so, of a few
As what, they haue late wrought therby, abrode sum part they shew:
All which doth now encorage me this wurk to send to light,
Onely for those who in singing of Musick do delight.
(As likewise do the Dutch, the French, and the Italiens,
Who put in Print, most that they write, with their musicall pens)
Part of the matters or ditties that I haue set heerto,
The Psalter, or Psalms of Dauid, I haue them taken fro.
To the rest of this haue I set (the base minds for to pleas)
Such Sonets as I think will sum of their sowr dumps appeas,
Deuizd vpon common chaunces, and out of worldly wurks,
So, as the reason hath me taught, which in my rude hed lurks,
Sum of them be Poeticall, sum Philosophicall,
On sacred write, I made others to cumfort me withall,
In which is toucht th'affects of youth, the like of riper yeers,
Also of those that do decline, when cold old age appeers.
Poeticall, whose gods I vzd, as then in mind did cum:
Heer wold I that all such shuld know, that likes not Poets write,
Wherin towching their heathen gods, their fanci'es they endite,
That those of them, who Christi'ans ar: know (as the Psalmist sayth)
They ar but vain, whose credite like, deserus to haue no fayth.
Eke Christi'ans know, that mighty God, the Lord, who rewls our fate,
And sends such fortewn as he knows is meet for our estate.
For fortewn is none otherwise to vnderstand I know,
Then that which pleaseth th'almighty, on vs for to bestow.
Of Poetry thus heer I end, my writing take at best,
My pen heerafter from such toys, shall alway be at rest.
This my sayd Musick made, do I, for voyces thus contriue,
To sum for thre, to most for fowr, and t'all the rest for fiue.
Of these songs sum be short, sum long, sum hard, sum easi be,
And of both sorts between them both, ye shall emong them se,
Heerin be diuers songs also, the which altred haue I,
By mending of sum the Musick, of others the ditti,
So that they be not now, as they were when I first them gaue
Out of my hands, abrode to seru their turns who now them haue:
Also becaws sum songs heer be, whose trades perchaūce b'vnknown,
Not onely to such who in skill of singing ar well grown,
But eke to sum Musitians, who songs can well compose,
(That name belongs to none others, though sum theron do glose)
Eeu'n such with the others (I say) I let them vnderstand,
That I, A traueller haue been, in sundry forrein land:
Whose diuers trades of Musick, part (although not all) I spide,
But cheefly the Italian, emong the which is one,
That called is Napolitane (a prety mery one)
Beside all those forreiners trades, sum English I haue herd,
Their diffrence shall appeer, when they together be conferd,
All which when causes moued me, these songs at times to make,
Now one trade, and then an other, I did follow and take,
(Those trades thus toucht, brings heer to mind, how sundry sorts there be,
Through whose selfwils, no harmony can very well agre,
Except that which they list to like, or sounds both shrill and sharp,
(Such oft with Midas, prays Pans pipe before Apollos harp)
And as in the compositi'on of this my Musick made,
I ioyn th'english with the stranger t'agre in musicks trade,
So I the flats, and sharps do set, as if both sorts heer sing,
Can haue no iust caws to mislike, or cauellati'ons bring.
But in other obseruances though we sumwhat vary,
Yet as I learnd in natiue land, so in this wurk vse I.
Also wheras this mark ij. is set, t'is but to put in mind,
For to repeat, if that ye list (and not ye therto bind)
Part of the word or els sentence, the which before it stands:
Now vse these matters as ye list, I make none other bands.
Part of my yoong days (late ended) on this I did employ,
As thing wherin (for cawses sayd) I had as then sum ioy.
If gratefully it be accept, my content meed I haue,
Becaws for other benefite, I neither look nor craue.
Though diuers others, otherwise, of this, their minds will show.
As nothing can be so well ment, that may be sayd or doon,
But that the enui'ows to deface the same will frame them soon.
So I for my well meaning heer, to haue the like reward,
I dowt I shall, haue of all such, whose wits haue no regard
For to consider of all things, as they of right shuld do,
And to geeu eu'ry vertu that, which doth belong therto.
First of these sorts, who I speak of, ar one that barb'rows be,
Who though of cre'atures reas'nable, all their fourms shaped be,
Yet they so deep infected ar, either with ignoraunce,
Grosnes of wit, cruell nature, franzi, or els perchance
With sum, or altogether of those diseases in sort
As inwardly they neuer felt, or tasted (to be short)
The secret wurking of the concordant sounds of Musick,
And therfore they with taunting terms, against it spurn and kick.
What I cowld write in Musicks prays, I will at this time stay,
And let you se what one famows, of that science doth say,
I mean the wurthy gentilman, Doctor Haddon by name,
Whose learned Muse, for Musicks sake, these verses thus did frame.
Musicen primum docuit voluptas,
Musices auxit studium voluptas,
Musices vsum retinet voluptas,
gaudia fundens.
Musices auxit studium voluptas,
Musices vsum retinet voluptas,
gaudia fundens.
Musicen lusit placidus Cupido,
Musicen lusit Cytherea mollis,
Musicen lusit cithara suaui
clarus Apollo.
Musicen lusit Cytherea mollis,
clarus Apollo.
Musice mentes tenuit virorum,
Musice sensus tenuit ferarum,
Musice montes, & aquas, & ornos
Sede remouit.
Musice sensus tenuit ferarum,
Musice montes, & aquas, & ornos
Sede remouit.
Musice summis dominatur astris,
Musice terræ dominatur imæ,
Musice ponto dominatur alto,
cuncta pererrans.
Musice terræ dominatur imæ,
Musice ponto dominatur alto,
cuncta pererrans.
Musice mentis medicina mæstæ,
Musice multum minuit malorum,
Musice magnis, medijs, minutis
maxima mittit.
Musice multum minuit malorum,
Musice magnis, medijs, minutis
maxima mittit.
In perusing of others wurks, to se wher they be right:
What in theim lacks, or what to much, so fine these priers be,
As Lynceus was, who (it is sayd) cowld through a stone wall se.
But if that no man wold write more, then they abrode do show,
We must content vs with that, which, we do already know.
A third sort now I must heer towch, a sort of iangling Iays,
Whose spightfull pens, to scof and skowld, is prest at all asfays.
As Zoylus did to that Poet, who we do Homer call,
So wold these Zoylings haue vertew vnto their pens be thrall.
Momus mates, and Zoylings (foresayd) who be'in such peeuish plights,
That easi'er t'is for sum to find fawts written that doth lurk,
Then it is for theim, theim t'amend and make perfect a wurk.
And easi'er t'is for other sum t'amend fawts that do rise,
Then out of their brains by study, for to make or deuise
A new wurk so great, and perfect in all points as that is,
In which they can amend the fawts, that they do spy amis.
To such who as be fawt finders (perchance wher as none be)
In that wherin they haue no skill, and yet wold seem to se.
I now say as Apelles did the shoomaker vnto,
When he beyond the slipper wold haue had Apelles do.
Heer to conclude I say that I this wurk do not set owt
To greeu any of those foresayd (of whom I may haue dowt)
But I do it only therwith, Gods prays ech wher to sing
Together with heau'nly solas, to heauy harts to bring.
For priuat vse of baser thoughts, not aspyring so hy,
Which like to feed their fansies, all, on wurks that be worldly.
To recre'at th'ouer burdened, and sore afflicted minds,
To cumfort eke the powrs and spreets, which mans helth brings and binds.
And so consequently to benefit ech part b'accord,
Of those that do delite to liue, alway in trew concord.
FINIS.
| Triplex | |