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Mesopotamian music, while quite different from our own modern music, has recognizable aspects to any musician. The scale used in Mesopotamian music is what modern musicians would call the Lydian scale. The horned instruments, which would evolve into today's brass instruments, worked on the harmonic series, the same notes that are used for many brass instruments by famous composers such as Beethoven and Mozart. Other types of instruments were used by the ancient Mesopotamians, such as the harp and a pan flute. Music has evolved; however, the music of the Ancient Mesopotamians can still be quite similar to music today.
Mesopotamian Music Theory[edit]
The ancient Mesopotamians seem to have utilized a cyclic theory of music, as seen through the numbering of their strings from the number one, through to the number five, then back down to one[1]. Through this, the pattern seems to arise that each string was used in separate parts of the music, the first string for the first part, the second string for the second part, and so on and so fourth. What makes the music cyclical is that the final string is tuned the same way as the first string, the second to last is the same as the second string, so the music will approach the fifth string then revert back through the previous strings.
The Mesopotamians seem to have utilized a heptatonic lydian scale, heptatonic meaning a scale with seven pitches instead of the modern 8. The lydian scale is the regular major scale but with a raised fourth. For example, the F-lydian scale would contain the same key signature as a C-major scale. The F-Major scale has a B-flat in the key signature, however with the raised fourth in the lydian scale, the B-flat becomes a B-natural. The drawback in modern music with the lydian scale is the use of what's known today as the "devil's tritone," however, the Mesopotamians don't seem to have a term for this interval, nor a term for the octave which we know they had a concept of[2]. The use of a heptatonic scale would have eliminated any practical need for a term for the octave, as it wouldn't have the importance that is has in today's music.
Mesopotamian music had a system that introduced rigidity in the music, preventing the melody from developing into chaos[3]. Until recently no form of musical notation had been known, however there is a cuneiform tablet containing a hymn and what has been translated as musical instructions for a performer, making this tablet the oldest known musical notation. There were strict instructions for how to perform music, similar to chord progression today[4]. These instructions also seem to point to a strong desire for musicians to play in tune, with steps in performing requiring frequent attempts to tune the instruments[5].
Instruments[edit]
In terms of wind instruments, the Mesopotamians seem to have had horn instruments, similar to today's French Horn and Trumpet[6]. Only few surviving examples remain, for example a silver Trumpet found in the tomb of the Pharaoh Tutankhamen. Most of the horns in ancient Mesopotamia were in fact horns from an animal, so would have decayed. These instruments would have worked like a bugle, using the harmonic series to get the notes needed for music. All tubes have a harmonic series, the image shown for the Harmonic Series shows what notes any tube can play. The blackened notes are out of tune, but are still recognizable as that particular pitch. The harmonic series makes a lydian scale, shown from the 8th pitch in the picture to the 16th pitch, the 14th pitch not being a note on the lydian scale.
Social aspect[edit]
Music for the ancient mesopotamians was both a religious and a social aspect to music[7][8]. There was a different expectation for each musician, particularly vocalists. Where the religious singers were supposed to swing harshly, ignoring beauty to emphasize and focus on the religious chants, the social singers were expected to sing beautiful melodies.
- ^ Kilmer, Anne Draffkorn (1971). "The Discovery of an Ancient Mesopotamian Theory of Music". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society. 115 (2): 131–149.
- ^ Kilmer, Anne; Tinney, Steve (1996). "Old Babylonian Music Instruction Texts". Journal of Cuneiform Studies. 48: 49–56. doi:10.2307/1359769.
- ^ Sachs, Curt (2008). The Rise of Music in the Ancient World, East and West. Courier Corporation. ISBN 9780486466613.
- ^ Duchesne-Guillemin, Marcelle (1981). "Music in Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt". World Archaeology. 12 (3): 287–297.
- ^ Kilmer, Anne; Tinney, Steve (1996). "Old Babylonian Music Instruction Texts". Journal of Cuneiform Studies. 48: 49–56. doi:10.2307/1359769.
- ^ Duchesne-Guillemin, Marcelle (1981). "Music in Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt". World Archaeology. 12 (3): 287–297.
- ^ "A Review of Early Dynastic III Music: Man's Animal Call on JSTOR" (PDF). doi:10.1086/613988.pdf.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ Duchesne-Guillemin, Marcelle (1981). "Music in Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt". World Archaeology. 12 (3): 287–297.