INTRODUCTION TO MUSIC.
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and would have had quite a powerful and penetrating timbre.
This gave rise to a series of modal scales
that closely resemble those that became the basis for music from the Medieval period onwards.
Many people have defined music and most of them drafted their definitions based on their personal dealings with Music.
Music is older than man himself, and so, can only be defined the way we see it individually.
The study of music began in the ancients when men desired to give their voices shapes and craft other aids to vocals (instruments).
Ancient Music In Greek
Ancient Egyptian Music Makers.
The Greek God Apollo was believed to play the lyre which could account for its popularity. Another instrument named the Aulos
was widely used in ancient Greece. This was a double reed instrument similar to a double oboe
We are also aware that the ancient Greeks had their own theories that surrounded music, many developed by Pythagoras.
Apollo, The Greek God.
Even in the Bible, people sang:
Deborah sang,
Gideon sang,
Hannah sang,
Miriam sang,
David sang,
and so on.
We can't say for sure the type or nature of music they made but we can tell ourselves that, their music wasn't as professional as ours today.
Why?
No calculations.
There were three different sets of people who gave some of the most accepted idealogies and definitions of music.
They were:
THE POETS: These ones saw music as a poem with tune or melody. They defined music as the Universal Language Of The Soul.
To them, music is the only food that sinks into our souls. They sang mostly out of emotions and feelings like: anger, grief, pains, happiness, love, etc.
They believe that music is of no use if it doesn't fend for the soul.
The interplay and interaction between music and poetry were of great importance to the ancient Greeks. Many of the musicians of the time would have been a poet, player and singer. Music would have accompanied both secular and sacred occasions. There were music, dance and poetry competitions where excellence would be given to honour the Gods themselves.
Two Ancient Poets Who Were Musicians:
1. SAPPHO Of Lesbos. (c. 620-570 BCE) was a lyric poet whose work was so popular in ancient Greece, and beyond, that she was honored in statuary and praised by figures such as Solon and Plato. Very little is known of her life and of the nine volumes of her work which were widely read in antiquity only fragments survive. Contrary to popular opinion on the subject, her works were not destroyed by closed-minded Christians seeking to suppress lesbian love poetry but were lost simply through time and circumstance. Sappho wrote in the Aeolic Greek dialect which was difficult for Latin writers, well versed in Attic and Homeric Greek, to translate. They were aware that once there had existed a highly praised female poet from the works of others, and they preserved those poems of Sappho's which others had copied, but they did not copy others simply because they did not know her dialect. Some kind of written works were composed concerning her during her lifetime or shortly after because the outline of her life was known by later writers but, aside from inscriptions such as the Parian Marble (a history of certain events in Greece between 1582-299 BCE) it is not known what these works were. Her name has leant itself to `lesbian' and `Sapphic', both relating to homosexual women, because of her extant poetry which concerns itself with romantic love between women.
2. Aglais: She was the daughter of Megalokles or Megakles. Aglais was active as a professional musician (trumpeter) in Alexandria in Egypt. She was engaged for public processions and festivities and appear to have been a well-known musician of her time. During one of her assignments, she appeared in a procession dressed in a wig and a helmet, in the appearance of the goddess Athena.
She was also a well known poet and lyrist in her time.
THE PRIESTS: They were the people who argued that music was before man and so, wasn't made for man. They said that, the Angels sing, the animals sing and even the winds make melodious sounds too. Therefore, in their own idea, Music was meant by God, for Himself. If we're not singing to God, then, we'd have no reason to sing at all.
THE TEACHERS & SAGES: Music to them, is the study of organized sounds.
Just like the Concise Dictionary of 1992 would put it, they define music as: the art of combining vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) to produce beauty of form, harmony, and expression of emotion.
By 'art', they mean that, music is only Learn able. They claim that, people only practice music just to learn it better and make money, and so, there are no emotions attached to the art.
So, to you, what is Music?
Which of these people would you agree with and why?
Drop in comments.
#Grace2U. ✌🏾
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