Music

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The parts of the collection are samples from the CD release "Music of Greek Antiquity" by Petros Tabouris.  The purpose of these files is just to get a small idea about the music of ancient Hellas

Click the links to download the ZIP file and after unzip use an mp3 player to play the file

The music of ancient Hellenes was a combination of melody and rhythm.  The first beat formed the basis of the rhythm.  
This added to a combination of short and long beats, formed famous basic rhythms.
The latter included the iambus U-, the trochee -U, the dactyl -UU, the anapaest UU-, the spondee -- and the paeon --U.  
The metres were formed by uniting the basic rhythms.
By uniting various metres, part of a phrase was formed, the kolon.  A phrase usually had two of these.
The phrases comprised periods, the latter formed strophes (verses), which were often repeated and then followed by the refrain.  Hellenic lyrics were linguistic and musical realities and the relation between language and music was the rhythm.
Melos consists of three elements, words, melody and rhythm.  In so far as the words of a poem have been set to music, 
the poem is a Melos.  Hellenic Melic may be regarded as either sacred of profane.
Almost all of the lyrics of the Hellenes arose in connection with the cult of the Gods and in the course of time, as the artistic instict was developed they were to a greater or less degree divorced from their primitive
ritualistic function.

Hellenic Melic divisions

To the Gods
Hymn, Nome, Prosodion, Adonidion, Paean, Iovacchos, Jubilation, Hyporcheme

To Men
Engomion, Hymenaios, Victory hymn, Sillos, Festive song, Threnos, Love song, Epikedeion, Epithalamion

To Gods and Men
Partheneion, Oschophorikon, Daphnephorikon, Votive songs



 

Sikkinis Dance from the Satyrical drama

Ithyphallic Song The Ithyphalloi entered the theatre in silence, but when they reached the middle of the orchestra they turned round and addressed the spectators, they wore female garments and chitons

Epithalamion Oh bridegroom! Builders, 
make the entrance door high
A bridegroom like Ares is on his way in, 
bigger than the biggest man
                        

Engomion Originally it may have been in honor of the banquet in celebration of some happy event

Maktrismos Dance of the Amazons

Hymn to Muse Sing, Muse, dear to me, and prelude my own song,
let a breeze, come forth from your groves,
make my soul tremble
Oh wise Calliope who directs the gracious muses
and you whose wisdom initiates the mysteries,
Son of Latona, Delian, Paean,
help me with your favor

Agios o Theos (God is Holy) The Priests chanted to Zeus around the altar, in the same way that these days priests chant God is Holy to the Holy trinity around the christian altar

Hymn to Nemesis by Mesomedes of Crete


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


First Delphic Hymn to Apollon

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The two hymns in honor of Apollon, carved on an outside wall of the treasure of the Athenians at Delphi. One is for voice and the other is instrumental

Hear me, you who posses deep-wooded Helicon,
fair-armed daughters of Zeus the magnificent!
Fly to beguile with your accents your brother,
golden-tressed Phoebus who, on the twin peak of this rock of Parnassus,
escorted by illustrius maidens of Delphi,
sets out for the limpid strams of Castalia, traversing,
on the Delphic promontory, the prophetic pinnacle.
Behold glorious Attica, nation of the great city which,
thanks to the prayers of the Tritonid warrior,
occupies a hillside sheltered from all harm.
On the holy alters Hephaestos cosumes the thighs of young bullocks,
mingled with the flames, the Arabian vapor rises towards Olympos.
The shrill rustling lotus murmurs its swelling song, and the golden kithara,
the sweet-sounding kithara, answers the voice of men.
And all the host of poets, dwellers in Attica, sing your glory, God,
famed for playing the kithara, son of great Zeus,
beside this snow-crowned peak, oh you who reveal to all mortals
the eternal and infallible oracles.
They sing how you conquered the prophetic tripod
guarded by a fierce dragon when, with your darts
you pierced the gaudy, tortuously coiling monster,
so that, uttering many fearful hisses, the beast expired.
They sing too,  . . . . . .


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