William Byrd published his famous eight ‘Reasons briefely set down by th’auctor, to perswade every one to learne to sing’ in his 1588 Psalmes, sonets and songs. The most important reason to learn to sing, according to Byrd, is that ‘it is a knowledge easely taught, and quickly learned, wher there is a good Master, and an apt Scoler’. The ‘knowledge’ of which Byrd speaks is not only the mechanics of singing but also, or perhaps chiefly, the musical knowledge necessary to sing: the rudiments of musical literacy. This article unpacks Byrd’s claims about music education in Tudor England, placing them in the context of print culture and educational practices. It first considers the options for music education available to different social classes and genders, then turns to close study of music theory treatises and other music educational texts printed in 16th-century England. I examine how these printed materials discussed their own role in the process of educating readers, and interrogate their prevailing claims that gaining musical literacy is ‘plain’ and ‘easie’, and possible ‘without any other help saving this booke’.

中文翻译：

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“一种容易传授、快速学习的知识”：在伯德的英格兰学习唱歌

威廉·伯德 (William Byrd) 在他 1588 年的诗篇、十四行诗和歌曲中发表了著名的八个“作者简要列出的说服每个人学习唱歌的理由”。伯德认为，学习唱歌最重要的原因是“这是一门容易教授、很快就能学会的知识，只要有一位好的大师和一位恰当的斯科勒”。伯德所说的“知识”不仅是歌唱的技巧，而且也许主要是歌唱所必需的音乐知识：音乐素养的基础。本文阐述了伯德关于都铎王朝时期英国音乐教育的主张，并将其置于印刷文化和教育实践的背景下。它首先考虑不同社会阶层和性别的音乐教育选择，然后转而仔细研究 16 世纪英国出版的音乐理论论文和其他音乐教育文本。我研究了这些印刷材料如何讨论他们自己在教育读者过程中的作用，并质疑他们普遍的主张，即获得音乐素养是“简单的”和“容易的”，并且“不需要任何其他帮助来拯救这本书”。