...The Oldest Known Melody c.1400BC!

This unique video, features my arrangement for solo lyre, of the 3400 year old "Hurrian Hymn no.6", which was discovered in Ugarit in Syria in the early 1950s, and was preserved for 3400 years on a clay tablet, written in the Cuniform text of the ancient Hurrian language - it is THE oldest written song yet known! Respect, to the amazing ancient culture of Syria...السلام عليكم

Although about 29 musical texts were discovered at Ugarit, only this text, (text H6), was in a sufficient state of preservation to allow for modern academic musical reconstruction.

In short, the Cuneiform text clearly indicated specific names for lyre strings, and their respective musical intervals -- a sort of "Guitar tablature", for lyre!

Although discovered in modern day Syria, the Hurrians were not Syrian -- they came from modern day Anatolia. The Hurrian Hymn actually dates to the very end of the Hurrian civilisation (c.1400BCE) . The Hurrian civilization dates back to at least 3000 BCE. It is an incredible thought, that just maybe, the musical texts found at Ugarit, preserved precious sacred Hurrian music which may have already been thousands of years old, prior to their inscription for posterity, on the clay tablets found at Ugarit!

My arrangement here, is based on the that the original transcription of the melody, as interpreted by Prof. Richard Dumbrill. Here is a link to his book, "The Archeomusicology of the Near East": http://bit.ly/d3aovp

It is played here, on a replica of the ancient Kinnor Lyre from neighbouring Israel; an instrument almost tonally identical to the wooden asymmetric-shaped lyres played throughout the Middle East at this amazingly distant time...when the Pharaoh's still ruled ancient Egypt.

A photograph of the actual clay tablet on which the Hurrian Hymn was inscribed, can be seen here:

http://www.phoenicia.org/music.html

The melody is one of several academic interpretations, derived from the ambiguous Cuneiform text of the Hurrian language in which it was written. Although many of the meanings of the Hurrian language are now lost in the mists of time, it can be established that the fragmentary Hurrian Hymn which has been found on these precious clay tablets are dedicated to Nikkal; the wife of the moon goddess.

There are several such interpretations of this melody, but to me, the fabulous interpretation just somehow sounds the most "authentic". Below is a link to the sheet music, as arranged by Clint Goss:

http://www.flutekey.com/pdf/HurrianTabLtd.pdf

In my arrangement of the Hurrian Hymn, I have attempted to illustrate an interesting diversity of ancient lyre playing techniques, ranging from the use of "block and strum" improvisation at the end, glissando's, trills & tremolos, and alternating between harp-like tones in the left hand produced by finger-plucked strings, and guitar-like tones in the right hand, produced by use of the plectrum.

I have arranged the melody in the style of a "Theme and Variations" - I first quote the unadorned melody in the first section, followed by the different lyre techniques described above in the repeat, & also featuring improvisatory passages at the end of the performance. My arrangement of the melody is much slower than this actual specific academic interpretation of the melody- I wanted the improvisations in the variations on the theme to stand out, and to better illustrate the use of lyre techniques by a more rubato approach to the melody.

All of my 9 albums of mystical, ancient lyre music are now available from iTunes...

1)"An Ancient Lyre": http://bit.ly/dhCozi

2)"King David's Lyre; Echoes of Ancient Israel":
http://bit.ly/9PCIua




3)"The Ancient Biblical Lyre": http://bit.ly/9hTDje

4)"Lyre of the Levites": http://bit.ly/9baWuM

5)"Apollo's Lyre": http://bit.ly/dhCozi

6)"Ancient Times -- Music of The Ancient World": http://bit.ly/aRF5PD

7)"The Ancient Greek Modes": http://bit.ly/cZks0o

8)"The Ancient Greek Lyre": http://bit.ly/bxO7Ra

9)"Ancient Visions -- New Compositions for an Ancient Lyre": http://bit.ly/dCPmRN

Physical CDs are also available anywhere in the world from CD Baby, for 3 of my best selling albums:

"An Ancient Lyre": http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mlevy4

"King David's Lyre; Echoes of Ancient Israel":
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mlevy

"Lyre of the Levites": http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mlevy2

For full details about my albums of lyre music, and the fascinating ancient historical background, please visit my official website:

http://www.ancientlyre.com

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[skytheinfinite]

It's an honor to hear you and to read the various forms of research in all the songs you preform. Bless you and Thank You for Being.

[Klezfiddle1]

@skytheinfinite Glad you appreciate my "Musical Adventures in Time Travel"!

[Teduis489]

This is the oldest piece of NOTATED music we have. NOT the oldest piece of music ever found. :P

[Klezfiddle1]

@Teduis489 There has been music for as long as modern humans have been around, but unless the music is actually notated, and can be deciphered from that notation, the music is lost - the oldest piece of notated music so far discovered, is therefore the oldest piece of music ever found :P

[you042355]

Do you have a piece of music that expresses, "Praise the Lord with harp and lyre?" from Psalm 150? We are having a tent revival on October 22, 2011 and Psalm 150 is being performed as a song with the instruments mentioned there.

[Klezfiddle1]

@you042355 Check out John Wheeler's Youtube channel, "teamim" - you can hear Suzanne Haik Vantoura's reconstruction of the original 3000 year old melody to Psalm 150!

[nordicpower88]

I am very much in love with this song. It speaks to my heart as no other music can...

[XxMoonLightFightxX]

quite fascinating... being a guitar major this fascinates me. Hearing all the old style notes being played is pretty cool. Although they are modern notes hearing them being played from so long ago its almost unrealistic to think that something so advanced could come from so long ago.

[bartje11]

@blackwingangel04 Why would I go there, you are there.

[blackwingangel04]

@bartje11 Why don't you go to hell?

[bartje11]

@blackwingangel04 No, no not at all. There is a pattern, hahaha why don't you don't you try to listen?

[blackwingangel04]

It sounds like the composer just threw random notes together...

[TheJb1rd]

@IDV82atl ok

[IDV82atl]

@TheJb1rd 9,000 years ago is a blink of an eye in relation to the actual scale of the universe. By then the last ice age had been over for 1,000 years and people were farming

[IDV82atl]

The Cuneiform text to which you are referring is the first known writing system and it was created by the people of Sumer who are the first known civilization. They also created the first judicial system, laws, formal education, and we still have yet to catch up to their degree of understanding and knowledge of astronomy.

[cbohar84]

This is from before even Ramses