Life in ancient Greece was musical life. Soloists competed onstage for
popular accolades, becoming centrepieces for cultural conversation and
even leading Plato to recommend that certain forms of music be banned
from his ideal society. And the music didn't stop when the audience left
the theatre: melody and rhythm were woven into the whole fabric of daily
existence for the Greeks. Vocal and instrumental songs were part of
religious rituals, dramatic performances, dinner parties, and even
military campaigns. Like Detroit in the 1960s or Vienna in the 18th
century, Athens in the 400s BC was the hotspot where celebrated artists
collaborated and diverse strands of musical tradition converged. The
conversations and innovations that unfolded there would lay the
groundwork for musical theory and practice in Greece and Rome for
centuries to come. In this perfectly pitched introduction, Spencer
Klavan explores Greek music's origins, forms, and place in society.
In recent years, state-of-the-art research and digital technology have
enabled us to decipher and understand Greek music with unprecedented
precision. Yet many readers today cannot access the resources that would
enable them to grapple with this richly rewarding subject. Arcane
technical details and obscure jargon veil the subject - it is rarely
known, for instance, that authentic melodies still survive from
antiquity, helping us to imagine the vivid soundscapes of the Classical
and Hellenistic eras. Music in Ancient Greece distills the latest
discoveries into vivid prose so readers can come to grips with the
basics as never before. With the tools in this book, beginners and
specialists alike will learn to hear the ancient world afresh and come
away with a new, musical perspective on their favourite classical texts.
