Submitted by Vivienne D on
A letter dated May 11 1865 from Mrs Reeve to her adult grand-daughter Jane contains the following:
"You are indeed an enthusiast and to prove that you are not so singular in your inspirations, I will tell you the good effect music used to have on me when I attended as a young girl festivals in Westminster Abbey and St Margaret's church, notwithstanding the great pleasure I experienced it was attended with a sort of pain which bought tears in my eyes and for hours I could not descend from the clouds my mind and heart full of heavenly sounds I became so silent persons used to ask my mother if I had anything on my mind.
I do consider music a religion it takes your thoughts from earth to heaven and tears caused by music partake of divine emotion. You are new my dear Janet to such inspiring sounds you will be a little toned down by the next festival"
With music so readily available to us one forgets how very special it was to be able to listen to music back in the nineteenth century
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hgb3 replied on Permalink
Listening to music
Hello Vivienne – it’s a delightful letter and exactly the kind of thing we want. Can you tell me any more about who the letter belongs to? For example, presumably it’s unpublished, in a (your?) family collection? I need to be able to enter something about its ‘provenance’.
And optionally, it would be nice to add a bit more detail about Mrs Reeve (her dates, place of birth/death, social position) – can you supply any of this? (Not to worry if not.)
If you have any other letters and are struggling with the submission process, do take a look at our video tutorial (see ‘Videos’ on the website), and use the forum to report anything that’s really foxing you.
All the best,
Helen