ABSTRACT
'An exotic and Irrational entertainment.' Samuel Johnson's familiar dictum on the Italian opera of his day could be applied equally well to another Italian importation—the masque. The growing emphasis on public entertainment rather than private recreation no doubt helped to turn attention away from the introspective viols to the more outgoing violins. In the Unton painting the small consort of musicians comprises players on violin, viola da gamba, three plucked stringed instruments and a flute. Music for the masque may be loosely divided into two categories. In the first came the dances; these included the traditional country dances importations from France and Italy such as the pavan, galliard, almain, branle and volta. In the second category of music came the songs with which the masque was interspersed, specially written for each individual masque by professional composers, who also provided music for the final chorus or choral dance which sometimes concluded the masques.
