| Citation |
NYWJ.749.015
20 Mar 1749:21 (796)
(from the London public Register.) On the project for
painting sound, and rendring musick intelligible to the
deaf. Lions, Dec. 27, 1738.
Dear Sir,
In a former letter I believe I told you, that a violent
cold had threatned me with a total loss of hearing: My
fears upon that account are vanished for the present.
While I was in that cruel scituation, the Journal de
Savans brought me advice from Paris, of a new invention of a
very ingenious philosopher, Father Castel, for conveying
harmony to the eye by an instrument, which he calls an
oculary harpsicord. Upon this instrument, the skilful
player would be able to thrust up to view a succession of
harmonic colours, in such a manner as would give him, or any
other spectator, the same kind of pleasure, which the nicest
hearer receives from musick performed upon the common
harpsicord. Such an expedient could not but be extremely
acceptable to a lover of musick, threatned with deafness.
My curiosity was greatly excited: I recollected diligently
all that I had every heard or read about sounds and colours;
I remembred joyfully the analogy between them, which Newton
had discover'd; with great pleasure I contemplated the
scale of colours answering to that of the notes, (which
Voltaire had lately given;) and was in raptures to find
their proportions and dimensions exactly the same: That the
colour violet answer'd to A, purple to B, indigo to C, and
so on thro' the whole seven notes and colours; I did not
forget the chromatick part of both the arts; and partial to
my hopes began to conceive some possibility of executing a
discovery, which was to alleviate my misfortune. I wrote,
by the first post to a friend at Paris, to enquire farther
about this divine invention. In the mean while I did not
neglect proper applications to my ears: As these succeeded,
I grew more indifferent to Father Castel; and I now hear
that his eye harpsichord is a meer vision.
He continues however positively to assure us, that it will
do; that he has workmen ready, and wants only money to
produce the experiment: should not want it if I had a large
burse: but after all, why would we hope to the eye, the
pleasure we receive by the ear? because geometry and
reasoning have discover'd that the spaces between the
colours retracted by the prism, are equal to those by which
we measure sounds upon a string. What possible relation can
the sight discover between red, orange, the colours purple,
sunk into violet, and the yellow, green, notes, 2,4,7
resolved into 3,5,8 which gives such pleasure to your
judicious ear? In short, I have given over all hopes of
seeing a piece of painted melody. A succession of colours
play'd up to the eye in the manner proposed might serve to
make a child laugh, but could never please either a painter,
or a musician. Let us therefore, Sir, take care of our
ears, and pray for the life of Mr. Handel. I am, etc.
|