Download Ancient Origins of Music

ANCIENT ORIGINS OF MUSIC
IN THE BEGINNING…

People have been making music almost as long as
there have been people.

The first utterances of music were vocalizations
and body percussion such as clapping.

Musicians were making instruments that produced
different pitches in large quantities in 3100 BC,
but evidence of instruments came long before this.
PREHISTORIC MUSIC:

Before 36,000 BC: Whistles and flutes.

6000 BC: Turkish cave paintings show drummers
and dancers.

4000 BC: Bells, cymbals, and horns are found.

4000 BC: Stone carvings show string instruments
from West Asia.
OLDEST INSTRUMENT:
 The
Divje Babe Flute is
made of bone, a cave bear
femur, and is believed to be
an instrument played by
Neanderthals.

Visual images are seen in art work such as
petroglyphs.
ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA:

In Mesopotamian cities produced cuneiforms
(clay tablets) that mention music and show
earliest form of musical notation.

Pictures and other art work on temple walls
show musicians with instruments.
-This Babylonian
Cuneiform shows
musical notation
dating from
2000-1700 BC.
ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIAN INSTRUMENTS:

Surviving instruments include lyres, harps,
lutes, pipes, drums, bells, and other percussion
instruments.

The evidence we see comes from the
ruling/upper class of the Mesopotamian
societies.
LYRE:
HARP:
DRUM:
THE USES OF MUSIC IN MESOPOTAMIA:

Rituals such as weddings and funerals included
music.

It is seen in daily life in the form of lullabies,
work songs , and dance music.

It provided festival entertainment, aided in
religious ceremonies, and was a form of storytelling.
WRITTEN RECORDS FROM MESOPOTAMIA:

Written records described instruments, tuning
procedures, performers, techniques, and
genres (types of musical compositions).

Written records describe the earliest composer,
Enheduanna, the high Priestess of Ur.
 She
composed hymns to various Gods and
Goddesses. Only the text of her hymns survive.
BABYLONIA : 1800 BC

Evidence of instructions for tuning a string
instrument using a seven note scale is found.

The development of interval theory is used to
create the earliest known notation system, but is
very vague in its description. As a result most
music is performed from memory or simply
improvised (made up on the spot).

This description of musical notation would later
influence the Greeks.