Some of the earliest records of music indicate that music existed in ancient Egypt. However, not much is known about the music in ancient Egypt. The next ancient civilization that enjoyed music was ancient Greece. While ancient Rome did have music, music appears to have been more popular with the ancient Greeks. Music played two different roles in ancient Greece: the life and thought of the ancient Greeks.

Music was essential to the mind and bodies of the ancient Greeks. Because music was believed to have been given to the Greeks by the god Apollo, music was in almost every religious rite. In addition, in the religious life of the ancient Greeks, different types of instruments were used for different gods. String instruments were used in playing music in the temples of Apollo while wind instruments were used in the temples of Dionysus. Moreover, music was thought to be capable of healing both the body and soul. By listening to music, it was believed that one's mind and body would be refreshed and renewed. Besides religion, music was also an integral part of the social life of the ancient Greeks. In the king's courts, it was almost guaranteed that one would hear the lyre or kithara being played and accompanied by the voice of one or two individuals. Beyond the king's courts, others also enjoyed music using dramas, ballets, and annual festivals. Both wind and string instruments were used in the social life of the Greeks.

As mentioned, the ancient Greeks thought that music had the power to heal and restore both the body and the soul. However, ancient philosophers such as Pythagoras also thought that by listening to music, one's body could be brought in harmony with the soul, and therefore in harmony with the divine. Indeed, the ancient philosophers believed that by studying music they would come very close to understanding the universe. Plato believed that music could profoundly influence the human body and the body politic as well. He wanted to outlaw sorrowful or raucous music, which he considered disturbing to society.

It must be stated that the music of ancient Greece was not complex nor would be it very interesting to us who live in the present. The ancient music was monophonic, that is, made up of one harmonized line. Beyond that, the number of instruments and voices used at one time did not exceed three or four. However, for its time, the ancient Greek music was vital to the life and thought of the Greeks.