@rattinox I think that "Lament of Simonedes" dates back to this time - this piece of ancient Greek music is absolutely haunting, and I think it can possibly be attributed to Simonedes of Ceos - one of the 9 great Greek Lyric Poets of the 5th century BC! I arranged this piece for replica Kithara-style lyre in track 1 of my album "The Ancient Greek Lyre" (available from iTunes & Amazon - that's the "plug" out of the way with!). Petros Tabouris has also recorded a lovely arrangement if it...
@Klezfiddle1 Sold! As a download only on Amazon- I'd prefer the CD but it will do. I always wanted to hear even a small sample of Athenian lyre dating to the Peloponnesian War period, or at least what Plato would have called "the proper forms of music".......Thanks, David!
Yes indeed, it is a pity...and blame the christian church for this, particularly the Orthodoxy that made sure almost nothing survives as a reminiscent of this Golden Age of Greece.
Awesome job! Sounds great! You should check out Christodoulos Halaris, he has a CD with this and a bunch more, all reconstructed, even with classical Greek singing for some songs (Hymns from Pindar). I got it as a gift from my Great Uncle (a classical scholar, who has passed away) ... I still have it ,and have the MP3s on my iPod! If you guys can't find it online, I'll be happy to .zip up the MP3s and send it to people.
if I were a young man a couple of thousands years ago and all I knew was my farm,and comming to a temple and hearing this would defintently set me into trance...oh I am right now
@Rollinavonsh The lyre I am playing is virtually identical to the Kithara - it is actually a replica of the Biblical "Kinnor" (the lyre once played in the Temple of Jerusalem). The only difference between the 2 lyres, seems to be that the Kithara had 7 strings, whereas the Kinnor had 10 (maybe as a reminder of the 10 Commandments?). As the 2 lyres are so similar, there is certainly possible evidence here,of an anient cross-cultural excgange of musical ideas...
@Klezfiddle1 omg.! You're the one in the vedio..? Huh~ anyway, thanks for explaining, so Lyre is the one people play music to praise Apollo not Kithara right? And sometimes I feel so confused for the 2 instruments, cos sometimes they look different, but sometimes they look so similar..! Is it becuase there're different types of kitharas and lyres?
@fourplusseven If you Google image search for the Delphic Hymn, you can see the actual marble tablet on which it was inscribed! The Ancient Greeks notated their music, simply by putting alphabetical syymbols representing the required pitch, above the text of the song - the rhythm can easily be inferred from the syllables of the text...
@Egregore999 This lyre can be purchased from Mid East Ethnic Instruments...please see the blog on my ancientlyre website, entitled "How To Acquire a Lyre" ( my website details given on my Youtube Channel Page)
@Egregore999 This lyre can be purchased from Mid East Ethnic Instruments...please see the blog on my ancientlyre website, entitled "How To Acquire a Lyre" (URL for my website given on my Youtube Channel Page)
@PoseidonGRE The actual "performance" here was pretty lame! This was the very first time I tried the tune. My mercifully much more polished arrangement can be heard on my new album, "The Ancient Greek Lyre" - available now, from iTunes!
@yaretzuki1 The lyre I am playing is actually a replica (based on ancient illustrations on 2nd century coins) of the ancient Biblical "Kinnor" - the 10-string lyre played by the Levites in the Temple of Jerusalem. It is strikingly similar to the ancient Greek Kithara - the large wooden lyre favoured by the professional musicians of ancient Greece.Coincidence, or evidence of ancint cross-cultural connections? For all details, please see my "ancientlyre" website...
I tried tuning the lyre cyclically in 5ths & 4ths in order to try and get to some sort of authentic ancient Greek "just intonation"...but I don't have perfect pitch! I just couldn't quite get the 3rds to sound right :o(
@poolfur56 You're right! In my brave attempt at being totally "authentic", I attempted to tune the lyre the way the ancient Greeks did it - cyclically, using a cycle of 4ths & 5ths...I didn't quite get the hang of the 3rds! Mercifully, I now use a nice 21st century chromatic tuner...
@poolfur56 You're right! In my brave attempt at being totally "authentic", I attempted to tune the lyre the way the ancient Greeks did it - cyclically, using a cycle of 4ths & 5ths...I didn't quite get the hang of the 3rds! Mercifully, I now use a nice 21st century chromatic tuner...
I'm from the rainy UK! For full details about my lyre, where to buy one, and my series of "online lyre lessons", please visit my "ancientlyre" website (URL given on my Youtube Channel Page)
In ancient Greek musical notation, there was no "key signature" - the pitch was represented by alphabetical symbols above the text of the song, and the rhythm was inferred from the syllables of the text.
My lyre is a replica of the anciet Hebrew Kinnor - it is availble anywhere in the world, form Mid East Ethnic Instruments (all detals can be found on my "ancientlyre" website)
Check out the amazing series of videos here on Youtube by "Michael Atherton & Melismos" - in the 1st video, he plays an improvisation of just such an ancient Greek war paean on the aulos - awesome!
awesome ! i looked it up , i wonder what a spartan army looked like singing and advancing in unison to music along those lines ! i hope someday someone shows us how much music influenced the greeks , and how much it really influences us ........ :)
According to the writings of Plato & Aristotle, the ancient Greek Dorian mode, E-E on the white notes of the piano (not to be confused with the MEDIEVAL "Dorian" mode, D-D!), was meant to be the most manly mode, and inspired bravery in battle - as a surreal experiment, I had a go at seeing if this "manly" mode works on the contemporary VERY "manly" electric guitar...thrashing Mesomedes "Hymn To The Muse" in the ancient Greek Dorian mode on the Axe WORKS!! ;o)
This is awesome! I'm currently writing a story that takes place in Ancient Greece and this is perfect to listen to while writing! Thanks for posting these.
Glad you like it ! I have now thankfully recorded a studio quality version of this piece, which will soon be available on my new album, "An Ancient Lyre" - this will hopefully be ready in the next few months, and will be available from cdbaby & Apple iTunes...
In this rather nasty "Lo Fi" webcam recording, I experimented in attempting to tune the lyre cyclically in 4ths, 5ths etc to try and get to an "authentic" just-tuning, as used in ancient Greece - the problem is, I don't have perfect pitch, so the quarter tones you can hear are simply the result of my not-so-perfect hearing! I have done a studio recording of this piece - it will be on my new album, "An Ancient Lyre" - all details on my "ancientlyre" website (the URL is on my Youtube channel page)
Benjamin Britten included this music in his opera, `Death in Venice`, with the words: "He who praises beauty worships me; mine is the spell that binds his days", sung by Apollo.
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
ancient greece is different from modern greece... the slavic invasions, the turkish dominations have created something of completely different from the classical sterotypes of ellenc greece... i think it's impossible to make a distinction between albanians, greeks and macedonians people nowdays.... even turkish are not so different, as anatolia was part of the bizantine empire and its population simply converted to islam (turkish were a minority, a sort of elite)
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
. Even in the memories of prince Otto, Prince of Bavaria and first king of Greece, when he first time arrived in Athena and Peloponnesus, he said: "These are completely different people than we expected. We expected to find some ancient people, but we found only immigrants from Africa. "
If I am right, the pitch of ancient Greek music is fairly unambuguous, being noted by alphabetical symbols...it is just the rhythm which has to be inferred form the syllables of the text to which the melody accompanies - there are certainy no indications of tempo. I attempted to tune the lyre by ear, cylically using perfect 5ths etc to try & achieve "just" tuning - however, my obvious lack of perfect pitch may have led to this sounding just a bit off tune, as you describe!
I put a TINY bit of sparce inmprovisation around the beginning and end of this amazing ancient fragment of music, for a more mellow, meditative, musically interesting performance...I just hope almighty Zeus won't strike me down for this!!! ;o)
It certainly is - look up the "Delphic Hymn to Apollo" on Google! If you do a Google image search, you can actually see the text of the hymn, and the ancient Greek, totally unamibuous alphabetical musical notation written above the text, just as it was in inscribed in marble, in c.138BC! There is also a second Delphic Hymn to Apollo, which has been more precisely dated to 128 BC...
this song is in the modern phrygian (ancient dorian) mode which, if you sharp the third is identical to the mode often used in traditional jewish music
That is something I noticed to - the Jewish "Ahava Raba" scale (heard in 90% of Klezmer & in "Hava Nagila"),EFG#ABCDE is baisically the anicient Greek Dorian with a raised 3rd, Another fragment of ancient Greek music, "Tecmesa's Lament" uses EXACTLY the same mode heard in the beautiful Jewish Klezmer tune, "Odessa Bulgar", & in many of the slow Klezmer "Doina's" : EF#GAA#BC#DE...coincidence, or maybe an ancient cross-cultural exchange of musical ideas???
wow you play that so good, I like it the most out of your videos, you really can get into that mystical feel of it. How long did it take you to learn how to play the lyre? after hearing this i want one now! lol
Thank you so much for sharing your talent and this ancient history with us! I am studying a 36 chapter course on the history of the Greeks and Romans, and this helps add more life to the sounds they would have heard when egomaniac Nero dazzled the crowd with his lyre playing.
Glad you enjoy my "Musical Adventures in Time Travel"! I taught myself to play theis lyre 3 years ago, after hearing an incredible album, by the San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble, "Music from the Time of Jesus & Jersualem's Second Temple" - I found the replica Hebrew "Kinnor" lyre used in this CD, on Google! It is made by "Mid East Ethnic Instruments". My CD of debut mystical lyre music is out now - check out all the details on my Youtube Channel Page :o)
Unfortunately, there is nobody around from 138BC to give me any lessons! ;o) As there have been quite a few decent recording of the Delphic Hymn (eg on the amazing album "Musique de la Grece Antique", whch give a really lively interpretation of the melody, to provide a contrast, I chose here, to try a more mellow, mystical rubato approach...
I had a go at trying to tune the lyre cyclically in 4ths/5ths etc, in an attempt to get into ancient Greek "just" tuning (which is probably why the 3rds & 6ths sound a bit off!).Is Pythagorean tuning also known as divisive tuning - derived from dividing a string into set mathematical lengths/ratios?
thats pretty freakin awesome man! nice job! im doing a project on Apollo rite now so it kinda helps me concentrate listening to his favoritte instrument and a song for him. thnx for posting!
That was my intention - I wanted to try a more rubato approach to the rhythm, in an attempt to create a more ancient, "mystical" feel to the melody (in contrast to some of the other recordings I have heard of this piece)
I didn't think exist a way to play so ancient instrument... this is a very big emotion for me!!... I've studied for many years ancient greek and latin...wow...and I haven never seen a musician like this... really wonderful!
i would like to hear a song that has the lyre tuned to 'just intonation', or just key, exactly as it was played in the days of the ancients. thank you. keep playing
I actually tried playing this in "Just Tuning" - I avoided using a modern chromatic tuner, and instead, tuned as the ancient Greeks did; cyclically in perfect 5ths, 4ths and octaves. This is why some of the pitches of the notes sound slightly "odd". I do not have perfect pitch, though - can anyone out there who does have perfect pitch, tell me if I have achieved just tuning in this perfomance, or does it still sound like equal temperament?? Thanks!
My debut CD is almost ready! Check out my promotional videos for my album, here on Youtube:"KING DAVID'S LYRE; ECHOES OF ANCIENT ISRAEL".This CD will hopefully be ready for sale by about September - full details can be found on my Myspace site(URL given on my Youtube Channel Page).Would you be interested in placing an order for my CD? It will be £10(plus postage).I can process payments using Paypal :o)
I had a go at TRYING to tuning the lyre cyclically in perfect 5ths etc, as was the custom in ancient times, to achieve "Just Tuning" - the same way that lyres were tuned in antiquity. The result sound a bit odd to modern ears, which are more used to the sound of equal temperament. Mercifully, I have since decided to tune my lyre to modern equal temperament with the aid of a nice 21st century digital chromatic tuner!
well, i know you are just kidding, but i have to let you know that here in greece we also learned latin at school even if it's not our maternal language. i would also propose you to learn modern greek, at least at the beggining, because ancient greek are really really difficult. we learned them at school too, and they were very hard... even though i already know 3 languaged, i can certainly say ancient greek is the toughest of all.. good luck with your greek!
I think I tuned the lyre cyclically "by ear", using perfect 5ths, octaves and 4ths for this video and my earlier ones, and so I suppose the result is "just tuning"...which is what I believe the ancient Greeks used. Unfortunately, I cetainly do NOT have perfect pitch...and so for my most recent videos I have invested in a nice, 21st century digital chromatic tuner for my lyre!;o)
And lastly to Deathunder, MoonlMover answers you rightly. They are not taught in schools because we still follow the misguided Neoclassical tradition which misrepresents Greece. And I'm a Classicst, going for an MA, specializing in Greek language and literature. Where are they now? Read the Epic of Gilgamesh... and read the Iliad, how much Akhilleus and Patroklos are like Gilgamesh and Enkidu. And we still use 360 degrees in a circle, as per the Babylonians.
Furthermore, what do eastern things have to do with it? A lot. Apollon is Phrygian; Athene might well be Anat. Herodotos himself says that the Greeks get their gods from Egypt. And Deathunder, you years are off. Kekrops was not said to be 15,000. There are only a few generations from him to the Heroes, and the likes of Herakles, Herodotos says, were in about 1300 BC (he was remarkably accurate in placing the Trojan war, actually.)
Anyway, Leftist Seargent is perfectly right in saying what he does. Mesopotamia did have high culture when the Hellenic IE peoples were still migrating and, yes, barbarians (heck, even the Mycenaeans were very much so.) The Minoans have no ethnic connection to the later Greeks and, no, they did not speak Greek/Minoic or anything like that. They spoke what might be a Semitic language. No one knows it, just like Etruscan/Tyrhennian is unknown. Minoans were not Greeks.
JESUS CHRIST FIRST LANGUAGE WAS HEBREW
EeeKOMPOMBOOM 1 month ago
I wonder, are there words(translated, even?) that go with this hymn?
Emanizer 2 months ago
Thank you for posting your videos about the ancient Greek music.
You are playing the lyre very well.
Rxouzo12 5 months ago
Daemoia Nymphe~Ida's Dactyls :)
SanjArh1 6 months ago
There's something about the lyre...just the noise of it sounds good, it doesn't need a particular tune.
Copper9801 7 months ago
A pity nothing survives from the 5th century BC- the "Golden Age" of Athens
rattinox 7 months ago 3
@rattinox I think that "Lament of Simonedes" dates back to this time - this piece of ancient Greek music is absolutely haunting, and I think it can possibly be attributed to Simonedes of Ceos - one of the 9 great Greek Lyric Poets of the 5th century BC! I arranged this piece for replica Kithara-style lyre in track 1 of my album "The Ancient Greek Lyre" (available from iTunes & Amazon - that's the "plug" out of the way with!). Petros Tabouris has also recorded a lovely arrangement if it...
Klezfiddle1 7 months ago
@Klezfiddle1 Sold! As a download only on Amazon- I'd prefer the CD but it will do. I always wanted to hear even a small sample of Athenian lyre dating to the Peloponnesian War period, or at least what Plato would have called "the proper forms of music".......Thanks, David!
rattinox 7 months ago
@rattinox
Yes indeed, it is a pity...and blame the christian church for this, particularly the Orthodoxy that made sure almost nothing survives as a reminiscent of this Golden Age of Greece.
Watch the movie Agora: watch?v=RbuEhwselE0
Rxouzo12 5 months ago
it was 128bc actually
thesoundroomvibe 8 months ago
nice
anishraju2011 9 months ago in playlist ancient music
Searh on youtube, "First Delphic Hymn - Christodoulos Halaris (Music of Ancient Greece)" -- you can get one of the songs from the CD ....
mbdulka 9 months ago
Awesome job! Sounds great! You should check out Christodoulos Halaris, he has a CD with this and a bunch more, all reconstructed, even with classical Greek singing for some songs (Hymns from Pindar). I got it as a gift from my Great Uncle (a classical scholar, who has passed away) ... I still have it ,and have the MP3s on my iPod! If you guys can't find it online, I'll be happy to .zip up the MP3s and send it to people.
mbdulka 9 months ago
this song is in phrygian.even 2000 y ago that word existed.
91Tribual 9 months ago
if I were a young man a couple of thousands years ago and all I knew was my farm,and comming to a temple and hearing this would defintently set me into trance...oh I am right now
91Tribual 9 months ago
Can't we listen to music without neo-pagans or whatever always monopôlizing the comment section?
Lysandros 9 months ago
the instrument is called a lyre an ancient greek lyre to be exact
jackvalerocks 11 months ago
This is pretty o_o
UltimateTibu 11 months ago
Nice music - does the lyre have an acoustic chamber?
BeorhtFrognostic 1 year ago
is the musical instrument kithara?
Rollinavonsh 1 year ago
@Rollinavonsh The lyre I am playing is virtually identical to the Kithara - it is actually a replica of the Biblical "Kinnor" (the lyre once played in the Temple of Jerusalem). The only difference between the 2 lyres, seems to be that the Kithara had 7 strings, whereas the Kinnor had 10 (maybe as a reminder of the 10 Commandments?). As the 2 lyres are so similar, there is certainly possible evidence here,of an anient cross-cultural excgange of musical ideas...
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago 4
@Klezfiddle1 omg.! You're the one in the vedio..? Huh~ anyway, thanks for explaining, so Lyre is the one people play music to praise Apollo not Kithara right? And sometimes I feel so confused for the 2 instruments, cos sometimes they look different, but sometimes they look so similar..! Is it becuase there're different types of kitharas and lyres?
Rollinavonsh 1 year ago
@Klezfiddle1 you're doing an excellent job :)
ShiZi999 1 year ago
I would love to learn how to play, it's so beautiful.
idunsgarden 1 year ago
You're a genius! I would love to learn how to play the Lyre, where do you even obtain one these days? Beautiful!
idunsgarden 1 year ago
@fourplusseven If you Google image search for the Delphic Hymn, you can see the actual marble tablet on which it was inscribed! The Ancient Greeks notated their music, simply by putting alphabetical syymbols representing the required pitch, above the text of the song - the rhythm can easily be inferred from the syllables of the text...
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago 4
@Egregore999 This lyre can be purchased from Mid East Ethnic Instruments...please see the blog on my ancientlyre website, entitled "How To Acquire a Lyre" ( my website details given on my Youtube Channel Page)
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago
@Egregore999 This lyre can be purchased from Mid East Ethnic Instruments...please see the blog on my ancientlyre website, entitled "How To Acquire a Lyre" (URL for my website given on my Youtube Channel Page)
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago
where did you get the music for this? can i have the music sheet?
xfloraax 1 year ago
@xfloraax You can get the modern notation for the Delphic Hymn from Wikipedia!
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
I must know can some one tell me if they used fair maiden hair for strings please intertwined
Pateretfilius 1 year ago
I must know can some one tell me if they used fair maiden hair for strings please
Pateretfilius 1 year ago
cool I just studied this song for my music history class
clay10h 1 year ago
Excellent! Thanks for sharing these ancient sounds with modern listeners.
moondogjack1978 1 year ago
amazing melody
many thanks for the performance
PoseidonGRE 1 year ago
@PoseidonGRE The actual "performance" here was pretty lame! This was the very first time I tried the tune. My mercifully much more polished arrangement can be heard on my new album, "The Ancient Greek Lyre" - available now, from iTunes!
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago
Awesome dude keep it up
GeorgeofGondor2 1 year ago
but how can u know the notes of each string? :S
oibl88 1 year ago
whats the name of that Instrument?
yaretzuki1 1 year ago
@yaretzuki1 The lyre I am playing is actually a replica (based on ancient illustrations on 2nd century coins) of the ancient Biblical "Kinnor" - the 10-string lyre played by the Levites in the Temple of Jerusalem. It is strikingly similar to the ancient Greek Kithara - the large wooden lyre favoured by the professional musicians of ancient Greece.Coincidence, or evidence of ancint cross-cultural connections? For all details, please see my "ancientlyre" website...
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago
oh no!!! T bag si è dato all musica greca!!! sembra T Bag di prison break!!
MeroComa 1 year ago
Εξαιρετικό
1926Respect1963 1 year ago
its called a "lyre" duh like it says in the more info tab lol
omnigeddon 2 years ago 2
its called a phorminx duh
addictedtomusiq 1 year ago
Kithara? Am i mistaken, or what is this instrument called?
paddymoep 2 years ago
yes its the same family
addictedtomusiq 1 year ago
That's cool.
paddymoep 1 year ago
It sounds like qanun. Isn't it?
Macedonian20 2 years ago
Not sure if this an ancient Greek tuning thing, but your B natural sounds a little flat...
Otherwise, very interesting to hear. Thanks for keeping the tradition alive!
davekay85 2 years ago
I tried tuning the lyre cyclically in 5ths & 4ths in order to try and get to some sort of authentic ancient Greek "just intonation"...but I don't have perfect pitch! I just couldn't quite get the 3rds to sound right :o(
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
@davekay85 ya i thought some thing sounded a little off tune.
poolfur56 1 year ago
@poolfur56 You're right! In my brave attempt at being totally "authentic", I attempted to tune the lyre the way the ancient Greeks did it - cyclically, using a cycle of 4ths & 5ths...I didn't quite get the hang of the 3rds! Mercifully, I now use a nice 21st century chromatic tuner...
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago
@poolfur56 You're right! In my brave attempt at being totally "authentic", I attempted to tune the lyre the way the ancient Greeks did it - cyclically, using a cycle of 4ths & 5ths...I didn't quite get the hang of the 3rds! Mercifully, I now use a nice 21st century chromatic tuner...
Klezfiddle1 1 year ago
exei omoiothtes me to kanonaki telika
Macedonian20 2 years ago
this is fantastic! thank you for sharing
bunnyninjaofsuna 2 years ago
Hello .....are you greek???
Im just interested in the instrument you are playing its a kind of harp but seems ancient greek in mode!!!
Where could i possibly find one?
amfivolo 2 years ago
I'm from the rainy UK! For full details about my lyre, where to buy one, and my series of "online lyre lessons", please visit my "ancientlyre" website (URL given on my Youtube Channel Page)
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
What is the time signature?
paopaomanalansan 2 years ago
In ancient Greek musical notation, there was no "key signature" - the pitch was represented by alphabetical symbols above the text of the song, and the rhythm was inferred from the syllables of the text.
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
This is really great stuff, i always listen to this type of music while i'm writing my poems.
thingthing94 2 years ago 3
No, the United States does not teach Greek. If it does, it'd be a rare elective.
Garc1993 2 years ago
@Garc1993 so if i want to take up ancient greek in college, I'd have to leave the country?
Distpg7 2 years ago
Ah. I apologize, I meant in a High School level.
Garc1993 2 years ago
@Garc1993 gotcha
Distpg7 2 years ago
he's playing Lyr
tuintu 2 years ago
I recognize this from the Civilization 3 soundtrack. I was not aware that musical works had survived from those times, this is neat
Agonotheta 2 years ago 3
THE SECRET OF ATLANTIS AND ANCIENT GREECE.
/watch?v=g1cG8X3vBEE
Enjoy!!!
EasyMeditation 2 years ago
φυσικά, όπως κι όλα άλλωστε... αχ, ελληνάρες...
theportatif 2 years ago
WEIRD!
musiclove1001 2 years ago
so this is what they listen to back then...hmmm really puts you back in time...
idkyoo 2 years ago 2
I'm not sure, but I just decided to learn Greek myself.
lalegra3 2 years ago 4
@lalegra3 moden or anchent
Alucardthedeadone 2 years ago
I really find the tuning system of the Greeks charming.
Lukecash12 2 years ago 3
Η μουσική ξεκίνησε από την Ελλάδα.
PROSTATHS 2 years ago 21
...και συνεχίζεται στο εξωτερικό...
manuelk33 2 years ago
ναι, φυσικά, όπως όλα άλλωστε... αχ, ελληνάρες...
theportatif 2 years ago
What a ridiculous comment. Completely false.
nojyt 2 years ago
@PROSTATHS
Και τώρα έχουμε άξιους συνεχιστές όπως ο Μιχάλης Χατζηγιάννης και ο Μηδενιστής.
TheiosXaris 1 year ago
@TheiosXaris χαχαχα
ImperiusGR 9 months ago
αυτό είναι εκπληκτικό, μπορείτε να παίξετε με το πνεύμα!
AlexanderZographos 2 years ago 3
I listened to this while I did my Greek homework.........so great!
lalegra3 2 years ago
hey i am too
Niko5410 2 years ago
cool!!
lalegra3 2 years ago
does anyone know where to get a lyre?
thingthing94 2 years ago
My lyre is a replica of the anciet Hebrew Kinnor - it is availble anywhere in the world, form Mid East Ethnic Instruments (all detals can be found on my "ancientlyre" website)
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
you're awesome!
RussiaSerbia 2 years ago 2
You see his chariot every day, I would think... He's got to be around somewhere if the sun hasn't stopped rising.
davitogrubba 2 years ago 4
what? where is Apollo?? fear not! neo-pagans will make sure his image stands again at Delphi !
acerb45666555 2 years ago 12
@acerb45666555
the hellenics don't need neo pagans, they follow the ancients, who are reconstructing hellenism
jin54363 10 months ago
@acerb45666555 apollon is never alone.we all carry him within,the same with dionysus
91Tribual 8 months ago
@91Tribual
Very well said.
The Gods are for those who have unique souls...............
Rxouzo12 5 months ago
@acerb45666555
Don't worry, Delphi and Apollo NEVER have anything to do with paganism.
Paganism is part of West and Northern European culture. Learn to differentiate before you post false information.
Rxouzo12 5 months ago
I really liked this. The piece is exactly how I thought that ancient Greek music would sound like. Hauntingly beautiful
ambrosius 2 years ago
VeRy NiCe! Do you know if the Greeks had a conventional scale, or used their own? :))
rorinator101 2 years ago
I like the tuning
mrlaa1 2 years ago
wow , have any versions of a greek war paean survived ? i've always wanted ta hear what one sounds like :)
hourofthewolf1 2 years ago
Check out the amazing series of videos here on Youtube by "Michael Atherton & Melismos" - in the 1st video, he plays an improvisation of just such an ancient Greek war paean on the aulos - awesome!
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
awesome ! i looked it up , i wonder what a spartan army looked like singing and advancing in unison to music along those lines ! i hope someday someone shows us how much music influenced the greeks , and how much it really influences us ........ :)
hourofthewolf1 2 years ago
According to the writings of Plato & Aristotle, the ancient Greek Dorian mode, E-E on the white notes of the piano (not to be confused with the MEDIEVAL "Dorian" mode, D-D!), was meant to be the most manly mode, and inspired bravery in battle - as a surreal experiment, I had a go at seeing if this "manly" mode works on the contemporary VERY "manly" electric guitar...thrashing Mesomedes "Hymn To The Muse" in the ancient Greek Dorian mode on the Axe WORKS!! ;o)
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
your doing a great job man and i know that your going to get better and better !
hourofthewolf1 2 years ago
are you greek?
szicho 2 years ago
No...I'm a GEEK! ;o)
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
This is awesome! I'm currently writing a story that takes place in Ancient Greece and this is perfect to listen to while writing! Thanks for posting these.
faradaysconstant4 2 years ago
Glad you like it ! I have now thankfully recorded a studio quality version of this piece, which will soon be available on my new album, "An Ancient Lyre" - this will hopefully be ready in the next few months, and will be available from cdbaby & Apple iTunes...
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
Thank you for the interesting music! Is this written using the quarter tone system?
unoriginalson 2 years ago
In this rather nasty "Lo Fi" webcam recording, I experimented in attempting to tune the lyre cyclically in 4ths, 5ths etc to try and get to an "authentic" just-tuning, as used in ancient Greece - the problem is, I don't have perfect pitch, so the quarter tones you can hear are simply the result of my not-so-perfect hearing! I have done a studio recording of this piece - it will be on my new album, "An Ancient Lyre" - all details on my "ancientlyre" website (the URL is on my Youtube channel page)
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
I like the imperfections, it makes it sound more authentic. I'll have to check out your website and new album.
unoriginalson 2 years ago
Klezfiddle you are GREAT!!! Keep on giving us these wonderfuls samples of ancient music of ancient civilizations,PLEASE!
Iafé meod,meod!
Gwynsek 2 years ago
Benjamin Britten included this music in his opera, `Death in Venice`, with the words: "He who praises beauty worships me; mine is the spell that binds his days", sung by Apollo.
Flockton77 2 years ago
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the greek race will be lost with the end of the world
2009argonaut 2 years ago
ΠΑΣ ΜΗ ΕΛΛΗΝ ΒΑΡΒΑΡΟΣ!!ΟΙ ΗΡΩΕΣ ΠΟΛΕΜΟΥΝ ΣΑΝ ΕΛΛΗΝΕΣ!!!!
mitsosde 2 years ago 3
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ancient greece is different from modern greece... the slavic invasions, the turkish dominations have created something of completely different from the classical sterotypes of ellenc greece... i think it's impossible to make a distinction between albanians, greeks and macedonians people nowdays.... even turkish are not so different, as anatolia was part of the bizantine empire and its population simply converted to islam (turkish were a minority, a sort of elite)
kurtvonschleicher 2 years ago
Excalente trabajo musicológico: Felicidades.
57402695 2 years ago
nice hellenic music,
Vardaria 2 years ago
otan oi ellines eftiaxnan politismo eseis isastan kremasmenoi apo ta dentra.....pame parakatw
mpampous007 2 years ago
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. Even in the memories of prince Otto, Prince of Bavaria and first king of Greece, when he first time arrived in Athena and Peloponnesus, he said: "These are completely different people than we expected. We expected to find some ancient people, but we found only immigrants from Africa. "
dekomakedon 2 years ago
This music's so peaceful!! and completly different from Modern Greek musics :-)
Modern Greek musics are so loud and makes people dance (like Rempediko) but this music makes me calm down. What a good music to meditation!
-Hello from Korea-
polyonomata 2 years ago 3
As a musicologist, I must say there's no proof whatsoever that this is how such a hymn would have to be played.
Nor is it clear what how the several scales actually sounded and if half or quarter tones were part of it.
If I'm correct just hear a plain minor scale here, a bit out of tune here and there...
Uruguruh 2 years ago
If I am right, the pitch of ancient Greek music is fairly unambuguous, being noted by alphabetical symbols...it is just the rhythm which has to be inferred form the syllables of the text to which the melody accompanies - there are certainy no indications of tempo. I attempted to tune the lyre by ear, cylically using perfect 5ths etc to try & achieve "just" tuning - however, my obvious lack of perfect pitch may have led to this sounding just a bit off tune, as you describe!
Klezfiddle1 2 years ago
Great job, I have the sheet music for this also, did you make that intro? Because it sounds awesome but isnt on mine....
gsbreath2 3 years ago
I put a TINY bit of sparce inmprovisation around the beginning and end of this amazing ancient fragment of music, for a more mellow, meditative, musically interesting performance...I just hope almighty Zeus won't strike me down for this!!! ;o)
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
Beautiful... thank you, well done!!!
gossamerhall 3 years ago
This piece is really from the BC era?
Theonedue 3 years ago
It certainly is - look up the "Delphic Hymn to Apollo" on Google! If you do a Google image search, you can actually see the text of the hymn, and the ancient Greek, totally unamibuous alphabetical musical notation written above the text, just as it was in inscribed in marble, in c.138BC! There is also a second Delphic Hymn to Apollo, which has been more precisely dated to 128 BC...
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
Gives me the chills.
In a good way. Very mystical indeed. Good work.
Alcaon 3 years ago
Thank you!
volida 3 years ago
this song is in the modern phrygian (ancient dorian) mode which, if you sharp the third is identical to the mode often used in traditional jewish music
itsgud2bdking 3 years ago
That is something I noticed to - the Jewish "Ahava Raba" scale (heard in 90% of Klezmer & in "Hava Nagila"),EFG#ABCDE is baisically the anicient Greek Dorian with a raised 3rd, Another fragment of ancient Greek music, "Tecmesa's Lament" uses EXACTLY the same mode heard in the beautiful Jewish Klezmer tune, "Odessa Bulgar", & in many of the slow Klezmer "Doina's" : EF#GAA#BC#DE...coincidence, or maybe an ancient cross-cultural exchange of musical ideas???
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
wow you play that so good, I like it the most out of your videos, you really can get into that mystical feel of it. How long did it take you to learn how to play the lyre? after hearing this i want one now! lol
Thank you so much for sharing your talent and this ancient history with us! I am studying a 36 chapter course on the history of the Greeks and Romans, and this helps add more life to the sounds they would have heard when egomaniac Nero dazzled the crowd with his lyre playing.
AmazonHerbGirl 3 years ago
lol dazzled. Kinda forced to sit and watch, clap, etc.
ddrumsman549 3 years ago
Glad you enjoy my "Musical Adventures in Time Travel"! I taught myself to play theis lyre 3 years ago, after hearing an incredible album, by the San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble, "Music from the Time of Jesus & Jersualem's Second Temple" - I found the replica Hebrew "Kinnor" lyre used in this CD, on Google! It is made by "Mid East Ethnic Instruments". My CD of debut mystical lyre music is out now - check out all the details on my Youtube Channel Page :o)
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
is this how it was played originally? should be more lively i think. almost Persian in style.
acerb45666555 3 years ago
Unfortunately, there is nobody around from 138BC to give me any lessons! ;o) As there have been quite a few decent recording of the Delphic Hymn (eg on the amazing album "Musique de la Grece Antique", whch give a really lively interpretation of the melody, to provide a contrast, I chose here, to try a more mellow, mystical rubato approach...
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
That's really cool
Did you played with the Pythagorean Tuning
zigsauer 3 years ago
I had a go at trying to tune the lyre cyclically in 4ths/5ths etc, in an attempt to get into ancient Greek "just" tuning (which is probably why the 3rds & 6ths sound a bit off!).Is Pythagorean tuning also known as divisive tuning - derived from dividing a string into set mathematical lengths/ratios?
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
ΕΛΑ ΠΑΙΑΝΑ ΜΑΚΑΡΙΕ,ΦΟΙΒΕ,ΛΥΚΩΡΕΑ,
ΜΕΜΦΙΤΗ,ΛΑΜΠΡΟΤΙΜΗΜΕΝΕ ΙΗΙΕ,ΧΟΡΗΓΕ ΕΥΤΥΧΙΑΣ,
ΧΡΥΣΟΛΥΡΗ,ΣΠΟΡΙΚΕ,ΑΡΟΤΡΙΕ,ΠΥΘΙΕ,ΤΙΤΑΝΑ
sisman 3 years ago
thats pretty freakin awesome man! nice job! im doing a project on Apollo rite now so it kinda helps me concentrate listening to his favoritte instrument and a song for him. thnx for posting!
bubblytar 3 years ago
That was my intention - I wanted to try a more rubato approach to the rhythm, in an attempt to create a more ancient, "mystical" feel to the melody (in contrast to some of the other recordings I have heard of this piece)
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
Congratulations
periklispGR 3 years ago
I didn't think exist a way to play so ancient instrument... this is a very big emotion for me!!... I've studied for many years ancient greek and latin...wow...and I haven never seen a musician like this... really wonderful!
pinguino1414 3 years ago
optimus.
bemjamin 3 years ago
good stuff...i never could imagine what kind of music the lyric poets recited to
odietarceo 3 years ago
i would like to hear a song that has the lyre tuned to 'just intonation', or just key, exactly as it was played in the days of the ancients. thank you. keep playing
ophuichus2012 3 years ago
I actually tried playing this in "Just Tuning" - I avoided using a modern chromatic tuner, and instead, tuned as the ancient Greeks did; cyclically in perfect 5ths, 4ths and octaves. This is why some of the pitches of the notes sound slightly "odd". I do not have perfect pitch, though - can anyone out there who does have perfect pitch, tell me if I have achieved just tuning in this perfomance, or does it still sound like equal temperament?? Thanks!
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
please put out a cd. the music is SO relaxing, its other worldly.
ophuichus2012 3 years ago
My debut CD is almost ready! Check out my promotional videos for my album, here on Youtube:"KING DAVID'S LYRE; ECHOES OF ANCIENT ISRAEL".This CD will hopefully be ready for sale by about September - full details can be found on my Myspace site(URL given on my Youtube Channel Page).Would you be interested in placing an order for my CD? It will be £10(plus postage).I can process payments using Paypal :o)
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
stunningly beautiful, distant, and otherwordly all at the same time. wow.
drunkensilenus 3 years ago
Very good job. Congratulations and thank u for sharing!!
liviapj 3 years ago
Bene cantas. Musicam Graecam non scio tamen hoc bellus audiendi etiam videndi est. Certe Apollo ducebat te.
valete omnes!
Sgtpepperslonelyband 3 years ago
that is amazing! Some of the oldest music known in the western tradition....cool!
janeym 3 years ago
Most of the notes were flat, was this purposeful?
zanyzann 3 years ago
I had a go at TRYING to tuning the lyre cyclically in perfect 5ths etc, as was the custom in ancient times, to achieve "Just Tuning" - the same way that lyres were tuned in antiquity. The result sound a bit odd to modern ears, which are more used to the sound of equal temperament. Mercifully, I have since decided to tune my lyre to modern equal temperament with the aid of a nice 21st century digital chromatic tuner!
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
Haha- who ever left the Latin comment above has a good sense of humour and I highly commen him/her! Not that I agree with their language preference.
I have an exam in Ancient Greek two days away but here I am on You Tube. *sigh* Isn't that the way.
Iphigenia86 3 years ago
I just like Latin, and I'm going to learn any form of Greek too someday, whether modern or ancient, doesn't matter.
MaBu888 3 years ago
Non circum copuli.
joeyjojo4 3 years ago
Quisque est barbarus alio. Ego non possum Graece dicere, sed Latine possum. Vos Graeci sine Latinitatem estis barbari! I'm Kidding!
MaBu888 3 years ago
I know what you mean, those people from the midwest are very barbaric
gibbonsarms 3 years ago
well, i know you are just kidding, but i have to let you know that here in greece we also learned latin at school even if it's not our maternal language. i would also propose you to learn modern greek, at least at the beggining, because ancient greek are really really difficult. we learned them at school too, and they were very hard... even though i already know 3 languaged, i can certainly say ancient greek is the toughest of all.. good luck with your greek!
ProphetCassandra 3 years ago
Delirant isti romani!
(Obelix)
;-)
Timrath 3 years ago
Vae! Proh pudor! ;-)
MaBu888 3 years ago
θα παρακαλουσα να μας πεις πως εφτιαξες αυτο το οργανο,μεσα απο γραπτες πηγες(περιγραφη?)αρχαιες ζωγραφιες?οι χορδες?το κουρδισμα?
ευχαριστω πολυ,νομιζω ειναι μια ερωτηση που θα ηθελαν να κανουν πολλοι!
onyxMOP 3 years ago
Klezfiddle1
απο που εισαι?ολα τα βιντεο σου ειναι θαυμασια!
onyxMOP 3 years ago
Ευχαριστίες! Είμαι ευτυχής ότι συμπαθείτε τη μουσική μου.
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
This is fascinating. Thanks for recovering this wonderful music.
- Phoebe
nyundergroundmuseum 3 years ago 2
do you use pure tuning?
fiveling 3 years ago
I think I tuned the lyre cyclically "by ear", using perfect 5ths, octaves and 4ths for this video and my earlier ones, and so I suppose the result is "just tuning"...which is what I believe the ancient Greeks used. Unfortunately, I cetainly do NOT have perfect pitch...and so for my most recent videos I have invested in a nice, 21st century digital chromatic tuner for my lyre!;o)
Klezfiddle1 3 years ago
However, the playing is very nicely done. Kudos (heh) to the player.
dkrispin 3 years ago
And lastly to Deathunder, MoonlMover answers you rightly. They are not taught in schools because we still follow the misguided Neoclassical tradition which misrepresents Greece. And I'm a Classicst, going for an MA, specializing in Greek language and literature. Where are they now? Read the Epic of Gilgamesh... and read the Iliad, how much Akhilleus and Patroklos are like Gilgamesh and Enkidu. And we still use 360 degrees in a circle, as per the Babylonians.
dkrispin 3 years ago
Furthermore, what do eastern things have to do with it? A lot. Apollon is Phrygian; Athene might well be Anat. Herodotos himself says that the Greeks get their gods from Egypt. And Deathunder, you years are off. Kekrops was not said to be 15,000. There are only a few generations from him to the Heroes, and the likes of Herakles, Herodotos says, were in about 1300 BC (he was remarkably accurate in placing the Trojan war, actually.)
dkrispin 3 years ago
And consider the myth of Persephone and of Adonis (whose name appears to derive from "Adenois") and that of Inana and Damuzi.
Coincidence? I think not.
leftysergeant 3 years ago
Anyway, Leftist Seargent is perfectly right in saying what he does. Mesopotamia did have high culture when the Hellenic IE peoples were still migrating and, yes, barbarians (heck, even the Mycenaeans were very much so.) The Minoans have no ethnic connection to the later Greeks and, no, they did not speak Greek/Minoic or anything like that. They spoke what might be a Semitic language. No one knows it, just like Etruscan/Tyrhennian is unknown. Minoans were not Greeks.
dkrispin 3 years ago