A WORD ABOUT MUSIC.

THAT there is an elective in music open to students who have comparatively little knowledge of the study is a fact not generally known. There certainly are many who would like to elect a course in music, but do not because they think their knowledge is not sufficient to qualify them. The Historical course - now Course 5 - is open to any one who has a practical knowledge of music; that is, to any one who has an acquaintance with the keys and chords as well as a knowledge of notes and their values. That is all that is meant by "practical knowledge" in this case. It is the object of this course to give the student a thorough and accurate knowledge of the development of music from the time of its birth. Its progress and the new impulses that it received from the different masters are fully discussed. The opera - both the Italian and Bouffe - is taken up from the time of its invention, and in this connection the lives of the most prominent singers of the different centuries are studied. The composers of the Middle Ages receive a great deal of attention, and the advancement each one made is carefully pointed out. Later, the lives and works of more modern masters are studied, those masters whose works have such an influence on the public of the present day, and the merit of their works as compared with that of their predecessors is fully discussed. By frequent illustrations upon the piano the student is easily shown the effect which different composers had on the music of their day, and is enabled to distinguish and compare the different styles.

Thus the student acquires a very desirable knowledge of the history and advancement of music in all its forms, as well as an insight into the moral effect which it has had over all ages. As a whole the course is a very enjoyable one, and cannot be too highly recommended to those who have a taste for music.

M.