Ancient music is music that developed in literate cultures, replacing prehistoric music. In the history of music, prehistoric music (previously called primitive music) is all music produced in preliterate cultures (prehistory), beginning somewhere in very late geological history. ... Early music is commonly defined as European classical music from the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the Baroque. ... In music the common practice period is a long period in western musical history spanning from before the classical era proper to today, dated, on the outside, as 1600-1900. ... 20th century classical music, the classical music of the 20th century, was extremely diverse, beginning with the late Romantic style of Sergei Rachmaninoff, Impressionism of Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel, and continuing through the Neoclassicism of middle-period Igor Stravinsky, and ranging to such distant sound-worlds as the complete... In the broadest sense, contemporary music is any music being written in the present day. ... For other uses, see Music (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Culture (disambiguation). ... In the history of music, prehistoric music (previously called primitive music) is all music produced in preliterate cultures (prehistory), beginning somewhere in very late geological history. ...

The development of writing took place in different time periods in different geographic areas. A number of inscriptions (collectively termed "Old European Script") appearing on portable artifacts recovered from the lower Danube Valley dated to ca. 5000 BCE have been claimed as examples of early linear writing; however, it is far from clear whether these marks constitute proto-writing at all. The first uncontested examples of a writing system are attributed to the Sumerian culture in Mesopotamia, and date from around 4000 BCE. So this is when the era of ancient music began. In Europe it ended in 476 CE ^{[citation needed]}, and was followed by the Early music era of European classical music. For Arab music, ancient history ended in 622 CE. “Write” redirects here. ... A clay vessel unearthed in Vinča, found at depth of 8. ... This article is about the Danube River. ... (6th millennium BC – 5th millennium BC – 4th millennium BC – other millennia) Events 4713 BC – The epoch (origin) of the Julian Period described by Joseph Justus Scaliger occurred on January 1, the astronomical Julian day number zero. ... Linear writing is writing which uses symbols made up out of lines. ... Writing systems of the world today. ... Sumer (or Å umer) was the earliest known civilization of the ancient Near East, located in lower Mesopotamia (modern Iraq), from the time of the earliest records in the mid 4th millennium BC until the rise of Babylonia in the late 3rd millennium BC. The term Sumerian applies to all speakers... For other uses, see Mesopotamia (disambiguation). ... (5th millennium BC – 4th millennium BC – 3rd millennium BC - other millennia) Events City of Ur in Mesopotamia (40th century BC). ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... Events August - The usurper Basiliscus is deposed and Zeno is restored as Eastern Roman Emperor. ... Early music is commonly defined as European classical music from the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the Baroque. ... Classical music is a broad, somewhat imprecise term, referring to music produced in, or rooted in the traditions of, European art, ecclesiastical and concert music, encompassing a broad period from roughly 1000 to the present day. ... Arab music is the music of Arabic-speaking people or countries, especially those centered around the Arabian Peninsula. ... “Ancient” redirects here. ... Events Hegira - Muhammad and his followers withdraw from Mecca to Medina - starting year of the Islamic calendar. ...

Samaveda, one of the four vedas describes music at length. ^{[citation needed]} The Samaveda (Sanskrit: सामवेद, sāmaveda, a tatpurusha compound of ritual chant + knowledge ), is third in the usual order of enumeration of the four Vedas, the ancient core Hindu scriptures. ...

Anne Draffkorn Kilmer from the University of California at Berkeley published in 1986 her decipherment of cuneiform tablet from Nippur dated to about 2000 B.C., demonstrating that it represents fragmentary instructions for performing music and that the music was composed in harmonies of thirds, and that it was also written using a diatonic scale (Kilmer 1986) The notation in that tablet was not as developed as the notation in the later cuneiform tablet dated to about 1250 B.C. (Kilmer 1965) Although the interpretation of the notation system is still controversial, it is clear that the notation indicates the names of strings on a lyre, the tuning of which is described in other tablets (West 1994). These tablets represent the earliest recorded melodies, though fragmentary, from anywhere in the world. (West 1994) In music theory, a diatonic scale (from the Greek diatonikos, to stretch out; also known as the heptatonia prima; set form 7-35) is a seven-note musical scale comprising five whole-tone and two half-tone steps, in which the half tones are maximally separated. ...

Ancient Greek musicians developed their own robust system of musical notation. The system was not widely used among Greek musicians, but nonetheless a modest corpus of notated music remains from Ancient Greece and Rome. The epics of Homer were originally sung with instrumental accompaniment, but no notated melodies from Homer are known. Several complete songs exist in ancient Greek musical notation. The Seikilos epitaph is the oldest surviving complete musical composition from the Greek tradition or from any tradition. Three complete hymns by Mesomedes of Crete (2nd century CE) exist in manuscript. In addition, many fragments of Greek music are extant, including fragments from tragedy, among them a choral song by Euripides for his Orestes and an instrumental intermezzo from Sophocles' Ajax. Romans did not have their own system of musical notation, but a few Romans apparently learned the Greek system. A line from Terence's Hecyra was set to music and possibly notated by his composer Flaccus. The Music of Ancient Greece is almost completely lost. ... Detail of a mosaic found in Pompeii. ... The epic is a broadly defined genre of narrative poetry, characterized by great length, multiple settings, large numbers of characters, or long span of time involved. ... For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... The Seikilos epitaph is famed as the oldest surviving example of a complete musical composition, including musical notation, from anywhere in the western world. ... A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a god or other religiously significant figure. ... Mesomedes of Crete was a Greek lyric poet and composer of the early 2nd century. ... For other uses, see Crete (disambiguation). ... The 2nd century is the period from 101 - 200 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... For other uses, see Tragedy (disambiguation). ... In tragic plays of ancient Greece, the chorus (choros) is believed to have grown out of the Greek dithyrambs and tragikon drama. ... A statue of Euripides. ... Orestes (408 BCE) is an Ancient Greek play by Euripides that follows the events of Orestes after he had murdered his mother. ... An instrumental is, in contrast to a song, a musical composition or recording without lyrics or any other sort of vocal music; all of the music is produced by musical instruments. ... InterMezzo is a distributed file system written for Linux, distributed with a GPL licence. ... This article is about the Greek tragedian. ... Publius Terentius Afer, better known as Terence, was a comic playwright of the Roman Republic. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... Flaccus is a composer from the second century BC, of whom little is known. ...

It has always been known that some ancient music was not strictly monophonic. Some fragments of Greek music, such as the Orestes fragment, clearly call for more than one note to be sounded at the same time. Greek sources occasionally refer to the technique of playing more than one note at the same time. In addition, double pipes, such as used by the Greeks and Persians, and ancient bagpipes, as well as a review of ancient drawings on vases and walls, etc., and ancient writings (such as in Aristotle, Problems, Book XIX.12) which described musical techniques of the time, all indicate harmony existed. One pipe in the aulos pairs (double flutes) may have served as a drone or "keynote," while the other played melodic passages. Kilmer's decipherment of the cuneiform tablets indicate that the simultaneous sounding of different pitches was practiced very early, perhaps by 2000 B.C. In music, a drone is a harmonic or monophonic effect or accompaniment where a note or chord is continuously sounded throughout much or all of a piece, sustained or repeated, and most often establishing a tonality upon which the rest of the piece is built. ...

The term "ancient music" may also refer to contemporary, but traditional or folk, music which is considered to continue its "ancient" style and includes much Persian music, Asian music, Jewish music, Greek music, Roman music, the music of Mesopotamia, the music of Egypt, and Muslim music. See also: authentic performance. Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including: Traditional music: The original meaning of the term folk music was synonymous with the term Traditional music, also often including World Music and Roots music; the term Traditional music was given its more specific meaning to distinguish it from the... Moosiqi Asil or Persian music is the traditional and indigenous music of Persia and Persian-speaking countries: musiqi, the science and art of music, and moosiqi, the sound and performance of music (Sakata 1983). ... Asian music actually is a vague, loose term that encompasses numerous different musical styles originating from just as numerous Asian cultures. ... Jewish music, the music of Jews, is quite diverse and dates back thousands of years. ... Greek music is a mixture of influences from its own indigenous culture with Western and Middle Eastern cultures. ... Detail of a mosaic found in Pompeii. ... This article treats the music of Ancient Mesopotamia (see music and Ancient Mesopotamia). ... Musicians of Amun, Tomb of Nakht, 18th Dyn, Western Thebes. ... Islamic music is Muslim religious music, as sung or played in public services or private devotions. ... The authentic performance movement is an effort on the part of musicians and scholars to perform works of classical music in ways similar to how they were performed when they were originally written. ...

The Harps of Ur

In 1929 Leonard Woolley discovered pieces of at least three harps while excavating in the ruins of the ancient city of Ur located in what was Ancient Mesopotamia and is contemporary Iraq. Some fragments are in Pennsylvania, some in the British Museum in London, and some in Baghdad. They have been dated to 2,750 BCE. Various reconstructions have been attempted, but none were totally satisfactory. Depending on various definitions, they could be classed as lyres rather than harps. The most famous is the bull-headed harp, held in Baghdad. It survived both Iraqi wars, and attempts are being made to play a replica of it as part of a touring orchestra. Year 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Sir Charles Leonard Woolley (17 April 1880–20 February 1960) was a British archaeologist, best known for his excavations at Ur in Sumerancient Mesopotamia. ... For other uses, see Harp (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Ur (disambiguation). ... This is an article about the ancient middle eastern region. ... Capital Harrisburg Largest city Philadelphia Area  Ranked 33rd  - Total 46,055 sq mi (119,283 km²)  - Width 280 miles (455 km)  - Length 160 miles (255 km)  - % water 2. ... The British Museum in London, England is one of the worlds greatest museums of human history and culture. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Baghdad (Arabic: ) is the capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate. ... (Redirected from 27th century BCE) (28th century BC - 27th century BC - 26th century BC - other centuries) (4th millennium BC - 3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC) Events 2900 - 2334 BC -- Mesopotamian wars of the Early Dynastic period 2775 - 2650 BC -- Second Dynasty wars in Egypt Germination of the Bristlecone pine tree... “Lyres” redirects here. ... C Company, 1st Battalion, The Staffordshire Regiment, 1st UK Armoured Division The 1991 Persian Gulf War was a conflict between Iraq and a coalition force of 34 nations mandated by the United Nations and led by the United States. ... For the song titled Orchestra, see The Servant (band). ...

Harps from Syria and Egypt

Assurbanipal (705 - 681 BCE) was king of Assyria. At his capital at Nineveh is a bas-relief showing the fall of the Judean city of Lachish. In the procession is the Elamite court orchestra, containing seven lyre-players and possibly a hammer-dulcimer player. The lyres appear to have seven strings. True harps are shown in murals from the time Ramesses III of Egypt, about 1200 BCE. "The Tomb of the Harpists" contains a bas-relief with two blind musicians. James Bruce described it in 1768 and it sometimes known as Bruce's Tomb. Assurbanipal in a relief from the north palace at Nineveh There were several Assyrian kings named Assur-bani-pal, also spelled Asurbanipal, Assurbanipal (most commonly), Ashurbanipal and Ashshurbanipal, but the best known was Assurbanipal IV.  Ashurbanipal, or Assurbanipal, (reigned 668 - 627 BCE), the son of Esarhaddon and Naqia-Zakutu... Centuries: 9th century BC - 8th century BC - 7th century BC Decades: 750s BC 740s BC 730s BC 720s BC 710s BC - 700s BC - 690s BC 680s BC 670s BC 660s BC 650s BC Events and trends 708 BC - Spartan immigrants found Taras (Tarentum, the modern Taranto) colony in southern Italy. ... Centuries: 8th century BC - 7th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 730s BC 720s BC 710s BC 700s BC 690s BC - 680s BC - 670s BC 660s BC 650s BC 640s BC 630s BC Events and trends 689 BC - King Sennacherib of Assyria sacks Babylon 687 BC - Gyges becomes king of... For other uses, see Assyria (disambiguation). ... , For other uses, see Nineveh (disambiguation). ... Bas relief is a method of sculpting which entails carving or etching away the surface of a flat piece of stone or metal. ... Map of the southern Levant, c. ... Lachish was a town located in the Shephelah, or maritime plain of Palestine (Joshua 10:3, 5; 12:11). ... Elamite is an extinct language, which was spoken in the ancient Elamite Empire. ... Hammered dulcimers have two or sometimes three bridges, and are played by striking the strings with small hammers. The hammers are sometimes covered with leather to create a softer sound. ... Salle des illustres, ceiling painting, by Jean André Rixens. ... Usermaatre Meryamun Powerful one of Maat and Ra, Beloved of Amun Nomen Ramesse Hekaiunu Ra bore him, Ruler of Heliopolis Consort(s) Iset Ta-Hemdjert, Tiye Issue Ramesses IV, Ramesses VI, Ramesses VIII, Amun-her-khepeshef, Khaemwaset, Meryamun, Meryatum, Montuherkhopshef, Pareherwenemef, Pentawer, Duatentopet (?) Father Setnakht Mother Tiye-Mereniset Died... (Redirected from 1200 BCE) Centuries: 14th century BC - 13th century BC - 12th century BC Decades: 1250s BC 1240s BC 1230s BC 1220s BC 1210s BC - 1200s BC - 1190s BC 1180s BC 1170s BC 1160s BC 1150s BC Events and Trends 1204 BC - Theseus, legendary King of Athens is deposed after... James Bruce (December 14, 1730 – April 27, 1794) was a Scottish traveller and travel writer who spent more than a dozen years in North Africa and Abyssinia (Ethiopia) where he traced the Blue Nile. ... 1768 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

Hurrian Music

Among the Hurrian texts from Ugarit are the oldest known instances of written music, dating from c.1800 BC. A reconstructed hymn is replayed at the Urkesh webpage. The word Hurrian may refer to: An ancient people of the Near East, the Hurrians. ... Entrance to the Palace of Ugarit Ugarit (modern site Ras Shamra رأس شمرة; meaning top/head/cape of the wild fennel in Arabic) was an ancient cosmopolitan port city, sited on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria a few kilometers north of the modern city of Latakia. ...

See also

• History of music
• Persian music

Music is found in every known culture, past and present, varying wildly between times and places. ... Moosiqi Asil or Persian music is the traditional and indigenous music of Persia and Persian-speaking countries: musiqi, the science and art of music, and moosiqi, the sound and performance of music (Sakata 1983). ...

References

• Kilmer, Anne Draffkorn, 'The Strings of Musical Instruments: their Names, Numbers, and Significance', Studies in Honor of Benno Landsberger = Assyriological Studies, xvi (1965), 261-8
• Kilmer, Anne Draffkorn, Journal of Cuneiform Studies, xxxviii (1986), 94-98
• West, M. L., 'The Babylonian Musical Notation and the Hurrian Melodic Texts', Music & Letters, Vol. 75, No. 2. (May, 1994), pp. 161-179

External links

• Nay-Nava the encyclopedia of persian music instruments
• Reconstructed bone flutes, sound sample and playing instructions.
• International Study Group on Music Archaeology
• Musica Romana: Ensemble for ancient music
• Ancient Greek music on original instruments : Daimonia Nymphe