INTRODUCTORY
 

IT is due to the providential establishment and endow¬
ment of the Parish of Trinity, two hundred years
ago, in the face of opposition, that the Episcopal Church
occupies so strong a position, without aid or countenance
now from the State, relying only upon itself and its
Catholic descent. The City of New York is its strong¬
hold, and the fourscore or more of Parishes are the chil¬
dren of Trinity, which has freely dispensed its resources
to found, endow, and support all of the older organiza¬
tions, from which the later ones have in turn sprung.

It is due to the support and influence of Trinity Parish,
directed by liberal and enlightened Rectors and Vestries,
that Church music in its best form has been cultivated to
such an extent, has developed so rapidly, and spread over
the whole country, from East to West. In Church music
Trinity Church has been the pioneer; in early days Trin¬
ity Church was the model, in later times the various
Churches of the Parish are the models followed from
Maine to California, The history of Trinity Church
music covers the history of Church music throughout the
country.

In attempting to draw up a complete account of its
gradual progress from the era of the parish clerk and
pitch pipe, one is met by the difficulty that no records were
kept on this subject before 1840, and that very little infor¬
mation can be gathered from outside sources.   The busi-