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TOC
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pretend to say; all I know is, that the
symphonies seemed to me to be admirable,
full of fancy, full of fire; the passages
were well contrasted; sometimes the
graceful, sometimes the pathetic pre-
vailed; and sometimes, however strange
it may be thought, even noise and fury
had their effect.
No one will, I believe, at present, deny
the necessity of discord in the composition
of music in parts; it seems to be as
much the essence of music, as shade is
of painting; not only as it improves and
meliorates concord by opposition and
comparison, but, still further, as it be-
comes a necessary stimulus to the atten-
tion, which would languish over a suc-
cession of pure concords. It occasions a
momentary distress to the ear, which re-
mains unsatisfied, and even uneasy, till it
hears something better; for no musical
phrase can end upon a discord, the ear
must be satisfied at last.
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