Item Info

Creation Date: 6/1/1819
Scripts/Text: Fraktur; German script
Language: German
Weiser Number: 854
Physical Description: 184 p; 18mo; oblong format
Material: Leather; pressed paper; wove paper; watercolor; ink; thread
Category: Tune Booklet (Notenbüchlein)
Media Type: Manuscripts
Source: Rare Book Department
Notes:

Binding:

Quarter bound with decorated pressed boards

Biographical Note:

The decorator/scrivener of Borneman Ms. 45 remains unknown to us. However, it is worthwhile noting that unlike Johann Adam Eyer, the writer includes no rudimentary musical instruction in this tune booklet. Titles and melodies to hymn tunes are taken from Die kleine geistliche Harfe, the Marburg Hymnal, Neu=vermehrt=und vollständiges Gesang=Buch and Johann Friedrich Eyer’s and Isaac Gerhart’s Choral=Harmonie. Johann Friedrich Eyer is best known for his Fraktur, but was also an organist, and, after he moved to Selinsgrove, in Snyder County, along with the Reformed minister Isaac Gerhart, composed and compiled music for Choral Harmonie, a book intended to provide basic musical instruction, as well as hymns appropriate for all church denominations.

Die kleine geistliche Harfe was the first Mennonite hymnbook produced in America, prepared by a committee of the Franconia Mennonite Conference in Eastern Pennsylvania, and used in that conference district as the official hymnbook for over a century. It was printed at Germantown in 1803 by Michael Billmeyer. The German Lutherans of Pennsylvania imported their first hymnals from Europe. The most common were the Marburg Hymnal of 1711 and the Halle Hymnal of 1703. Christoph Saur printed six American editions of the Marburg Hymnal from 1757 to 1777, which was used by many other Pietistic groups including the Mennonites.

The Reformed Church Hymnal Neu=vermehrt=und vollständiges Gesang=Buch, 4th edition, 1774 was advertised as available at Ernst Ludwig Baisch’s Philadelphia shop. Ernst Ludwig Baisch was not a printer; he acted as an agent between German immigrants in Pennsylvania and their business and legal matters in Europe. In 1774 and 1775, he expanded into selling German-language books in Philadelphia. He is thought to have ordered this and several other titles in 1774 from printers in Germany, to be produced with new title pages giving Philadelphia as the place of publication with Baisch listed as bookseller, i.e. zu finden bey...

Full Title Translation:

This Harmonious Tune Booklet Belongs to Catharina Lädermann Singing Scholar in the Deep Run School Written 1st of June in the Zear of Our Lord 1819

N. B. See also FLP B-21.

Physical Description:

1 [2-4] 5 [6-8] 9 [10] 11 [12] 13 [14] 15 [16] 17 [18] 19 [20] 21 [22] 23 [24] 25 [26] 27 [28] 29 [30] 31 [32] 33 [34] 35 [36] 37 [38] 39 [40] 41 [42] 43 [44] 45 [46] 47 [48] 49 [50] 51 [52-106] 107 [108-184]
 

Notes:

Scope and Content:

The Notenbüchlein was made for Catharina Lädermann by her school teacher June 1, 1819 when she was a student and singing scholar in Deep Run School, Bedminster Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Catarina Lädermann is inscribed is inscribed in German script in black gall ink to the right at the head of page [1].

Beginning on page [8] hymn titles with incipits are numbered and formatted 4 to a page on the recto side of the leaf, the verso side being left blank. This continues up to page [21] where after No. 23, the numbering discontinues. An additional 63 hymns with their music incipits continue in the 4 to a page format up to page 51. All of the music incipits are notated in soprano clef on one stave except for No. 22 on page [19] where an Alsatian folk song Brüder thut euch wohl besinnen... is notated for Tenor, Alto, and Baß.

Key signatures are given, and time signatures are sporadically indicated. The g-clef is used for Sag was hilft alle Welt, M., Nun sieh der Tag geendet hat on page [29] and for Andere Melod: Sag was hilft alle Welt [47]. There are a total of 86 hymn titles with their music incipits.

Title Page:

Hand-drawn; hand-colored; hand-lettered. The title page is in the style of one of David Kulp’s title page designs. It is, however, a very childlike rendering. The main text in Fraktur and German script is enclosed within a circle and in the center of the document. The circle is flanked on each side by a stylized symmetrical leafy long stem ending in two flowers. Two flower buds extending in opposite directions and connected by a tendril fill the space above the circle at the head and below the circle at the tail of the page. It is colored green inside the upper part of the circle above the text, and decorated with wavy red lines. A green burrlike decorative element follows the outlines of the circle, terminating where the flower buds begin. The entire document is framed by a highly decorative border.

Tunebooks in General:

The idea of creating such a booklet to teach children the rudiments of musical notation so that they could learn to sing the melodies used in the hymns at church service seems to have been Johann Adam Eyer’s (1755-1837), David Kulp’s teacher. The hymnals used by their parents contained no music, but only the hymn verses with the indication “Mel.” and the title of the hymn tune to which the congregation would sing the text. The metrics, and topic of the poetry usually determined which melodies were chosen.

Eyer’s concept was a practical and useful one, and inspired many other teachers to create tune booklets for their students in which only the melody line of frequently used hymn tunes was written out. Each scholar had a booklet, usually 10.2 x 16.5 cm in size. The teacher created a title page describing the purpose of the booklet, and containing the name of the student, the school attended, and the date of the title’s creation. The empty spaces on the title page were filled in with flowers, birds, and other elements common to Pennsylvania German decorated Fraktur. These titles are absolutely beautiful, and probably inspired the singing scholar to greater endeavors as he learned how to read music and sing the tunes that either the instructor or he would copy into the booklet.

The “singing schools” or singing classes flourished in Bucks, Lehigh, Montgomery, Chester and Berks Counties, Pennsylvania from about 1787 to 1845. Singing became a part of the school curriculum, and “singing schools” became popular.
 

Associated Names: Lädermann, Catharina
Provenance: Borneman, Henry S., 1870-1955
Lädermann, Catharina

Bibliography:

Elsässische Volkslieder gesammelt und herausgegeben von Curt Mündel. Straßburg: Verlag von Karl J. Trübner, 1884, No. 161, 167.

Charles Evans, Roger P. Bristol et al. Early American Imprints. Series I, Evans (1639-1800). [New Canaan, CT]: American Antiquarian Society, 2002- , 13565.

Johann F. Eyer and Isaac Gerhart. Choral Harmonie Enthaltend Kirchen=Melodien, Die bey allen religions-Verfassungen gebräuchlich, auf vier Stimmen gesezt, und mit einigen musikalischen Stücken nebst hinreichenden Unterricht versehen, eingerichtet zur Übung der Jugend und zum Gebruch des öffentlichen Gottesdienstes, welches ohne und mit der Orgel kann gebraucht werden, wann ein Organist die Regeln der Musick beobachtet. Harrisburg: John Wyeth, 1818, 39.

Die kleine geistliche Harfe der Kinder Zions, oder auserlesene geistreiche Gesänge allen wahren heilsbegierigen Säuglingen der Weisheit, insonderheit aber allen Christlichen Gemeinden des Herrn zum Dienst und Gebrauch mit Fleiss zusammen getragen, und in gegenwärtiger Form und Ordnung gestellt, nebst einm dreyfachen Register. Erste Auflage. Auf Verordnung der Mennonisten Gemeinde. Germantaun: Gedruckt bey Michael Billmeyer, 1803.

H. Harbaugh, D. D., and D. Y. Heisler, A. M. The Fathers of the German Reformed Church in Europe and America. Lancaster: J. M. Westhaeffer, 1872, vol. 4, 94-106.

Mary Jane Lederach Hershey. “The Notenbüchlein Tradition in Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Community Schools” in Cory M. Amsler, ed., Bucks County Fraktur. Kutztown, Pa.: Pennsylvania German Society, 1999, 143.

Charles R. Hildeburn. A Century of Printing: the Issues of the Press in Pennsylvania, 1685-1784. Philadelphia: Press of Matlack and Harvey, 1885-1886, 3023.

Marburger Gesang=Buch zur Uebung der Gottseligkeit in 649 Christlichen und Trostreichen Psalmen und Gesängen Hrn. D. Martin Luthers. und anderer Gottseliger Lehrer, Ordentlich in XII. Theile verfasset, Und mit nöthigen Registern auch einer Verzeichniß versehen, unter welche Titul die im Anhang befindlichen Lieder gehörig: Auch zur Beförderung des so Kirchen= als Privat= Gottesdienstes, Mit erbaulichen Morgen= Abend = Buß= Beicht= und Communion=Gebätlein vermehret. Germanton, Gedruckt und zu finden bey Christoph Saur, 1762.

Neu=vermehrt=und vollständiges Gesang=Buch Worinnen sowohl die Psalmen Davids, nach D. Ambrosii Lobwassers Uebersetzung hin und wieder verbessert, Al auch 750. auserlesener alter und neuer Geistreichen Liedern begriffen sind, Welche anjetzo sämtlich in denen Reformirten Kirchen der Hessisch=Hanauisch=Pfältzisch=Pensylvanischen und mehreren anderen angränzenden Landen zu singen gebräuchlich in nützlicher Ordnung eingetheilt, Auch Mit dem Heydelbergischen Catechismo und erbaulichen Gebätern versehen. Vierte Auflage. Philadelphia: zu finden bey Ernst Ludwig Baisch, in der zweyten Strasse, nahe bey der Rees=Strasse, 1774.
 

Creation Place Town/Township: Creation Place Note:Per title page inscription
Region/County:Bucks
City/Town/Township:Deep Run School, Bedminster Township
State/Province:Pennsylvania

Image Dimensions Width: 9.8 cm
ShelfMark: FLP Borneman Ms. 45
Creator Name: Anonymous - Decorator
Anonymous - Scrivener