Music

Historians studying the Ancient Greek culture have learned that music was a very important part of the Greek culture. Music was performed at religious ceremonies and social occasions. This is known through the literary references. Only a few fragments of music have survived. Most of this music was monophonic which sounded like speech inflections.

One of the first writings that mentions music is Homer's Iliad. Homer described songs and hymns of praise to Apollo, the sun god. Homer recited the music as having a great power over human beings.

Some Ancient Greek Instruments

• kithara - plucked string instrument (This instrument was associated with Apollo.)

• aulos - a loud double-reed instrument (This instrument was associated with Dionysus, the god of wine.)

• lyre - instrument similar to a harp (The Greeks thought that Apollo played the lyre for the gods on Mount Olympus.) We made this lyre from a coat hanger and rubber bands.

Music in Greece became a form of mathematics as well as art. Pythagoras discovered many mathematical principles in music by listening to the hammers used by smiths.

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