170.—MUSICAL AND NON-MUSICAL ACCENT.
The matters called "time" and "accent" in music are stumbling-blocks for many a pupil and for many people who profess to understand the tone-art. If music students have trouble in understanding these subjects, it is small wonder that so stupid a body as the average court jury should need a detailed explanation of these somewhat common technical terms; and it would need a musician who not only understood his subject, but one who was able to express his ideas in clear, terse language, and to employ apt illustration, to elucidate the matter.
Such a musician was found, when, in 1833, there came up for trial before an English court a case of violation of copyright, and Cooke, the composer, was called as an expert witness. In the course of the examination the following dialogue took place:—
"Now, sir," said the lawyer, "you say that these two melodies are identical but different; what am I to understand by that, sir?"
"What I said," replied Cooke, "was that the notes in the two arrangements are the same, but with a different accent, one being in common, the other in triple, time; consequently the position of the accented notes is different in the two copies."
"What is musical accent?" glibly inquired the counsel.
"My terms for teaching music are a guinea a lesson," said Cooke, much to the enjoyment of the spectators.
"I don't want to know your terms for teaching; I want you to explain to his Lordship the Judge and to the jury what is 'musical accent.'" Here Sir James Scarlett, the questioner, grew warm and inquired,—
"Can you see it?"
"No."
"Can you feel it?"
"Well," drawled Cooke, "a musician can."
Again the lawyer put the question and the court required it to be answered.
"Will you explain to his lordship and the jury, who are supposed to know nothing about music, the meaning of what you call accent?"
"Musical accent," replied the witness, "is emphasis laid on a certain note, just in the same manner as you would lay stress on any word when speaking, in order to make yourself better understood. Let me give you an illustration, Sir James. If I were to say, 'You are a jackass,' the accent rests on jackass; but if instead I said, 'You are a jackass,' it rests on you, Sir James; and I have no doubt the gentlemen of the jury will corroborate me."