See also:

• MEISTERSINGER (Ger. for " master-singer ")

MEISTERSINGER (Ger. for " See also:

• MASTER (Lat. magister, related to tnagis, more, as the corresponding minister is to minus, less; the English form is due partly to the O. Eng. maegister, and partly to O. Fr. maistre, mod. maitre; cf. Du. meester, Ger. Meister, Ital. maestro)

master-See also:

• SINGER, SIMEON (1846-1906)

singer ")  , the name given to the See also:

• GERMAN
• GERMAN, DUTCH AND SCANDINAVIAN

German lyric poets of the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, who carried on and See also:

• DEVELOPED

developed the traditions of the See also:

• MEDIEVAL

medieval See also:

• MINNESINGERS (Ger. Minnesinger from Minne, love)

Minnesingers (q.v.) . These singers, who, for the most See also:

• PART

part, belonged to the See also:

• ARTISAN, or ARTIZAN

artisan and trading classes of the German towns, regarded as their masters and the founders of their gild twelve poets of the See also:

• MIDDLE

Middle High German See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period, among whom were Wolfram von Eschenbach, Konrad von See also:

• WURZBURG

Wurzburg, Reinmar von Zweter and See also:

• FRAUENLOB

Frauenlob . The last mentioned of these, Frauenlob, is said to have established the earliest See also:

• MEISTERSINGER (Ger. for " master-singer ")

Meistersinger school at See also:

• MAINZ (Fr. Mayence)

Mainz, See also:

• EARLY
• EARLY, JUBAL ANDERSON (1816-1894)

early in 'the 14th See also:

• CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century . This is only a tradition, but the institution of such See also:

• SCHOOLS

schools originated undoubtedly in the upper See also:

• RHINE (Lat. Rhenus, Ger. Rhein, Fr. Rhin, Dutch Rhyn, or Rijn)

Rhine See also:

• DISTRICT

district . In the 14th century there were schools at Mainz, See also:

• STRASSBURG, or STRASBURG (French Strasbourg)

Strassburg, See also:

• FRANKFORT

Frankfort, W%rzburg, See also:

• ZURICH
• ZURICH (Fr. Zurich; Ital. Zurigo)

Zurich and See also:

• PRAGUE (Ger. Prag; Bohemian Praha)

Prague; in the 15th at See also:

• AUGSBURG
• AUGSBURG, CONFESSION OF
• AUGSBURG, WAR OF THE LEAGUE OF

Augsburg and See also:

• NUREMBERG (Ger. Nurnberg)

Nuremberg, the last becoming in the following century, under Hans See also:

• SACHS, HANS (1494-1576)
• SACHS, JULIUS VON (1832-1897)
• SACHS, MICHAEL (1808–1864)

Sachs, the most famous of all . By this See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time the Meistersinger schools had spread all over See also:

• SOUTH
• SOUTH, ROBERT (1634–1716)

south and central See also:

• GERMANY
• GERMANY (Ger. Deutschland)

Germany; and isolated See also:

• GILDS, or GUILDS

gilds were to be found farther See also:

• NORTH
• NORTH, BARONS
• NORTH, MARIANNE (1830—1890)
• NORTH, ROGER (1653-1734)
• NORTH, SIR THOMAS (1535?-16o1?)

north, at See also:

• MAGDEBURG

Magdeburg, See also:

• BRESLAU (Polish Wraclaw)

Breslau, See also:

• GORLITZ

Gorlitz and See also:

• DANZIG, or DANTSIC (Polish Gdansk)

Danzig . Each gild numbered various classes of members, ranging from beginners, or Schuler (corresponding to See also:

• TRADE (O. Eng. trod, footstep, from tredan, to tread; in M. Eng. the forms teed, trod and trade appear, the last in the sense of a beaten track)
• TRADE, BOARD OF

trade-apprentices), and Schulfreunde (who were See also:

• EQUIVALENT

equivalent to Gesellen or See also:

• JOURNEY (through O. Fr. jornee or journee, mod. Fr. journee, from med. Lat. diurnata, Lat. diurnus, of or belonging to dies, day)

journey-men), to Meister, a Meister being a poet who was not merely able to write new verses to existing melodies but had himself invented a new See also:

• MELODY (Gr. ,ueXw3ia, a choral song, from name, tune, and gi6i, song)

melody . The poem was technically known as a See also:

• BAR
• BAR (0. Fr. barre, Late Lat. barra, origin unknown)
• BAR, CONFEDERATION OF
• BAR, FRANCOIS DE (1538-1606)
• BAR, THE

Bar or Gesetz, the melody as a Ton or Weis . The songs were all sung in the schools without See also:

• ACCOMPANIMENT (i.e. that which " accompanies ")

accompaniment . The rules of the See also:

• ART

art were- set down in the so-called Tabulatur or See also:

• LAW
• LAW (0. Eng. lagu, M. Eng. lawe; from an old Teutonic root lag, " lie," what lies fixed or evenly; cf. Lat. lex, Fr. loi)
• LAW, JOHN (1671—1729)
• LAW, WILLIAM (1686-1761)

law-See also:

• BOOK

book of the gild . The meetings took See also:

• PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place either in the Rathaus, or See also:

• TOWN

town See also:

• HALL
• HALL (generally known as SCHWABISCH-HALL, tc distinguish it from the small town of Hall in Tirol and Bad-Hall, a health resort in Upper Austria)
• HALL (O.E. heall, a common Teutonic word, cf. Ger. Halle)
• HALL, BASIL (1788-1844)
• HALL, CARL CHRISTIAN (1812–1888)
• HALL, CHARLES FRANCIS (1821-1871)
• HALL, CHRISTOPHER NEWMAN (1816—19oz)
• HALL, EDWARD (c. 1498-1547)
• HALL, FITZEDWARD (1825-1901)
• HALL, ISAAC HOLLISTER (1837-1896)
• HALL, JAMES (1793–1868)
• HALL, JAMES (1811–1898)
• HALL, JOSEPH (1574-1656)
• HALL, MARSHALL (1790-1857)
• HALL, ROBERT (1764-1831)
• HALL, SAMUEL CARTER (5800-5889)
• HALL, SIR JAMES (1761-1832)
• HALL, WILLIAM EDWARD (1835-1894)

hall, or, when they were held—as was usually the See also:

• CASE
• CASE, JOHN (d. 1600)

case—on See also:

• SUNDAY

Sunday, in the See also:

• CHURCH
• CHURCH (according to most authorities derived from the Gr. Kvpcaxov [&wµa], " the Lord's [house]," and common to many Teutonic, Slavonic and other languages under various forms—Scottish kirk, Ger. Kirche, Swed. kirka, Dan. kirke, Russ. tserkov, Buig. cerk
• CHURCH, FREDERICK EDWIN (1826-1900)
• CHURCH, GEORGE EARL (1835–1910)
• CHURCH, RICHARD WILLIAM (1815–189o)
• CHURCH, SIR RICHARD (1784–1873)

church; and three times a See also:

• YEAR

year, at See also:

• EASTER

Easter, Whitsuntide and See also:

• CHRISTMAS (i.e. the Mass of Christ)

Christmas, See also:

• SPECIAL

special festivals and singing competitions were instituted . At such competitions or Schulsingen See also:

• JUDGES, THE BOOK OF

judges were appointed, the so-called Merker, whose See also:

• DUTY (from " due," that which is owing, O. Fr. deu, dil, past participle of devoir; Lat. debere, debitum; cf. " debt ")

duty it was to criticize the competitors and See also:

• NOTE
• NOTE (Lat. nota, mark, sign, from noscere, to know)

note their offences against the rules of the Tabulatur .

The See also:

• LITERARY

literary value of the Meistersinger See also:

• POETRY

poetry was hardly in proportion to the large part it played in the See also:

• LIFE

life of the German towns of the 15th and 16th centuries . As the medieval lyric decayed, more and more See also:

• ATTENTION (from Lat. ad-tendo, await, expect; the condition of being " stretched " or " tense ")

attention was given to the externals of poetic See also:

• COMPOSITION
• COMPOSITION (Lat. compositio, from componere, to put together)

composition, the See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form, the number of syllables, the melody; and it was such externals that attracted the See also:

• INTEREST

interest of these burgher-poets . Poetry was to them a See also:

• MECHANICAL

mechanical art that ' could be learned by diligent application, and the prizes they had to bestow were the rewards of ingenuity, not of See also:

• GENIUS (from Lat. genere, gignere)

genius or See also:

• INSPIRATION (Lat. inspirare, breathe upon or into)

inspiration . Consequently we find an extraordinary development of strophic forms corresponding to the many new " tones " which every Meistersinger regarded it as his duty to invent—tones which See also:

• BORE

bore the most remarkable and often ridiculous names, such as Gestreiftsafranblumleinweis, Fettdachsweis, Vielfrassweis, geblumte Paradiesweis, &c . The verses were adapted to the musical strophes by a merely mechanical counting of syllables, regardless of See also:

• RHYTHM (Greek pvBµds, from bap, to flow)

rhythm or sense . The meaning, the sentiment, the thought, were the last things to which the Meistersingers gave heed . At the same time there was a certain healthy aspect in the cultivation of the Meistergesang among the German middle classes of the 15th and 16th centuries; the Meistersinger poetry, if not See also:

• GREAT

great or even real poetry, had —especially in the hands of a poet like Hans Sachs—many germs of promise for the future . It reflected without exaggeration or literary See also:

• VENEER

veneer the faith of the German burgher, his See also:

• BLUNT, JOHN HENRY (1823–1884)
• BLUNT, JOHN JAMES (1794–1855)
• BLUNT, WILFRID SCAWEN (184o— )

blunt See also:

• GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good sense and honesty of purpose . In this respect it was an important See also:

• FACTOR (from Lat. facere, to make or do)

factor in the rise of that middle-class literature which found its most virile expression in the period of the See also:

• REFORMATION
• REFORMATION, THE

Reformation . The Meistergesang reached its highest point in the 16th century; and it can hardly be said to have outlived that See also:

• EPOCH (Gr. E7roxij, holding in suspense, a pause, from E1rxav, to hold up, to stop)

epoch, although the traditions of the Meistersinger schools lingered in south German towns even as See also:

• LATE

late as the 19th century . Specimens of Meistersinger poetry will be found in various collections, such as J . J .

See also:

• GORRES, JOHANN JOSEPH VON (1776-1848)

Gorres, Altdeutsche Volks- and Meisterlieder (1817); K . Bartsch, Meisterlieder der Kolmarer Handschrift (Publ. of the See also:

• STUTTGART

Stuttgart Literarischer Verein, vol. lxviii . ;'1862) . Of the older See also:

• SOURCES

sources of See also:

• INFORMATION (from Lat. informare, to give shape or form to, to represent, describe)

information about the Meistersinger the most important are See also:

• ADAM
• ADAM (or ADAN) DE LE HALE (died c. 1288)
• ADAM, ALEXANDER (1741–1809)
• ADAM, JULIETTE (1836– )
• ADAM, LAMBERT SIGISBERT (1700-1759)
• ADAM, MELCHIOR (d. 1622)
• ADAM, PAUL (1862– )
• ADAM, ROBERT (1728—1792)
• ADAM, SIR FREDERICK (1781-1853)
• ADAM, WILLIAM (1751-1839)

Adam Puschmann, Grundlicher Bericht See also:

• DES

des deutschen Meistergesangs zusamt der Tabulatur (1571; reprinted in W . Braune's Neudrucke deutscher Literaturwerke des r6. and 17 . Jahrh., 73, 1888), and J . C . Wagenseil, De civitate Noribergensi 1697) . See further J . See also:

• GRIMM, FRIEDRICH MELCHIOR, I
• GRIMM, JACOB LUDWIG CARL (1785-1863)
• GRIMM, WILHELM CARL (1786-1859)

Grimm, Uber den altdeutschsn Meistergesang (1811); F . Schnorr von Carolsfeld, Zur Geschichte des deutschen Meistergesangs (1872); R. von See also:

• LILIENCRON, DETLEV VON (1844-1909)

Liliencron, Ober denInhalt der allgemeinen Bildung in der Zeit der Scholastik (1876) ; G . Jacobsthal, " See also:

• DIE
• DIE (Fr. de, from Lat. datum, given)

Die musikalische Bildung der Meistersinger " (Zeitschrift See also:

• FUR (connected with O. Fr. forre, a sheath or case; so " an outer covering ")

fur deut .

Altertum, xx., 1876) ; O . See also:

• LYON, MARY MASON (1797-1849)
• LYON, NATHANIEL (1818-1861)

Lyon, Minne- and Meistergesang (1882); K . Mey, Der Meistergesang–i4 Geschichte and Kunst (1892) . The art of the Meistersingers has been immortalized by See also:

• RICHARD
• RICHARD (d. 1184)
• RICHARD, FRANCOIS MARIE BENJAMIN (18,9-1908)
• RICHARD, HENRY (1812-1888)
• RICHARD, ST

Richard See also:

• WAGNER, ADOLF (1835- )
• WAGNER, RUDOLPH (1805-1864)
• WAGNER, WILHELM RICHARD (1813-1883)

Wagner in his See also:

• MUSIC

music See also:

• DRAMA (literally "action," from Gr. Snail, act or do)

drama, Die Meister-See also:

• SINGER, SIMEON (1846-1906)

singer (1868) . (J . G .