Encyclopaedia Britannica, or, a Dictionary of arts, sciences, and miscellaneous literature : enlarged and improved. Illustrated with nearly six hundred engravings > Volume 6, CHI-Crystallization

Chi»a.
*33
Of their
mufic.
*34 .
Mufical in-
ilrumeuts.
C H I
[ 43 1
C H I
is faid, affert that if the blows given the body were fo
violent as to occafion death, this procefs makes the
marks of them clearly appear, let the ftate of the bo¬
dy, when fubje&ed to this tell, be ever fo cadave¬
rous.
With regard to the mufic of the Chinefe, we have
the fame ftories related as of the Greeks and Egyp¬
tians, viz. that in former ages the muficians could
make brute animals leap at the found of their inftru-
ments. Our author, M. Grofier, indeed does not
quote any Chinefe author who aflerts that the ancient
mufic could make trees dance, or ftones arrange them-
felves into a city ; but he quotes them, aflerting, “ that
the muficians could call down fuperior fpirits of every
age from the ethereal regions *, raife up the manes of
departed beings } infpire men with a love of virtue *,
and lead them to the pra&ice of their duty.” Effetts
of this fupernatural kind are attributed to the facred
mufic by the infpired writers j as in the cafe of Saul,
out of whom an evil fpirit departed at the found of
David’s harp j and of Elilha, who was infpired with
the fpirit of prophecy at the found of a mufical in-
ftrument. It is probable, therefore, that the relations
both of the Greeks and Chinefe are founded upon
fa£ls of this kind ; and we cannot from thence infer,
that the mufic of early ages was at all fuperior to
that which followed. According to thofe who have
employed much time in thefe refearches, the ancient
Chinefe were acquainted with the divifion of the oc¬
tave into twelve femitones; and that before the time
of Pythagoras, or even Mercury himfelf: that the
lyre of Pythagoras, his invention of the diatonic tetra-
chords, and the formation of his grand fyftem, were
merely borrowed from the ancient Chinefe. In (hurt,
it is maintained, that the Greeks, even Pythagoras
himfelf, did nothing but apply to firings that theory
which the Chinefe had before formed, and applied to
pipes.
At prefect the Chinefe are not acquainted with the
ufe of our mufical notes they have not that diverfity
of figns which diftinguifh the different tones, and the
gradual elevation or deprefiion of the voice, nor any
thing to point out the various modifications of found
to produce harmony. They have only a few charac¬
ters to mark the principal notes ; and all the airs they
learn are repeated merely by rote. The emperor
Kang-hi was therefore greatly aftonilhed at the facili¬
ty with which an European could catch and remember
an air the firff time he heard it. In 1679 ^ie ^ent ^or
Fathers Grimaldi and Pereira, to play fome tunes on
the harpfichord, of which they had before made him a
prefent. He was greatly entertained with their mufic,
but altogether afionifiied when he found that F. Perei¬
ra could take down a Chinefe air while the muficians
were playing it, and then repeat the whole without
omitting a fingle note. Having made feveral trials of
this kind in order to fatisfy himfelf, he beftowed the
higheft encomiums upon the European mufic, and the
means furnifhed by it to facilitate and leffen the la¬
bour of the memory. “ I muft confefs (fays be) that
the European mufic is incomparable, and that the like
of this F. Pereira is not to be found in my whole king¬
dom.”
The Chinefe have always diftinguiftied eight differ¬
ent founds j and they believe that nature, in order to
Chin*.
produce thefe, formed eight different kinds of fono-
rous bodies. The order in which they diftribute thefe « *
founds, and the inftruments they have contrived to pro¬
duce them, are, 1. Ihe lounds of flcm produced by
drums j 2. That of ffone produced by the king ; 3. The
found of metal by bells \ 4. 1 hat of baked earth by
the huien; 5. Of filk by the kin and che; 6. Of
wood by the yu and tchou ; 7. Of the bamboo by the
koan, and different flutes j 8. I hat of a gourd by the
cheng.
The drums were originally compofed of a box made
of baked earth, and covered at the extremities with
the Ikin of fome animal j but on account of the brit-
tlenefs of baked earth, wood was foon fubfiituted in it#
ftead. Moft of thefe infiruments are (haped like our
barrels, but fome are cylindrical.
The inftruments formed of the fonorous ftones are
called king^ diftinguilhed into tfe king and pien-king.
The tfe-king confifts only of one ftone, and therefore
produces only one note. The pien-king confifts of 16
ftones fufpended together, and thus forming an in-
ftrument capable of producing all the tones admitted
into the mufic of the ancient Chinefe. I hey are cut
into the form of a carpenter’s fquare j their tone is flat¬
tened by diminiftiing their thicknefs, and is made ftiarp-
er by abridging their length.
Although in the eftimation of the Chinefe, univerfal
nature has been forced to contribute towards the perfec¬
tion of their mufic, by furniftiing them with the Ikins
of different animals, metals, ftones, baked earths, and
the fibrous parts of plants, Mr Barrow could difcover
no inftrument among them of a mufical nature, the
tones of which would have been even tolerable to a de¬
licate European ear •, and only one perfon in tbecourfe
of his inveftigations and refearches could with any pro¬
priety be faid to fing from tendernefs and feeling. Yet
without the fmalleft authority for fuch a bold affer-
tion, a certain Jefuit has maintained, that the mufical
fyftem of the Chinefe was borrowed from them by the
Greeks and Egyptians before the time of Orpheus !
He wdio can believe this extravagant afferlion, after
comparing the mufic of thefe countries together at any
given period, will find it an eafy matter to give credit
to any thing whatever. 155
The bells in China have always been made of a Bells of im¬
mixture of tin and copper. They are of differentmenfe
ftiapes, and thofe of the ancients were not round but
flattened, and in the lower part refembling a crefcent.
An inftrument, correfponding to the king, already
mentioned, is compofed of 16 bells of different fizes.
Some of their bells ufed on public oecafions are of
enormous magnitudes. One at Peking is defcribed as
13^ feet in diameter, I2jin height, and 42 in cir¬
cumference *, the weight being upwards of 120,000
pounds. It is ufed for announcing the hours or watches
of the night •, and its found, which is prodigioufly
loud and ftrong, has a moft awful effedl in the night¬
time, by reverberating round the walls and the echo
of the furrounding country. There are feveral others
likewife of vaft fize in the fame city j one of which
deferves greatly to be admired on account of the beau¬
tiful charadlers with which it is covered ; and which
are as neat and perfect as if traced out by the hand of
the fineft writer, or formed by means of a ftarap
upon wax. F. le Compte tells us, that in all the cities
F 2 of