Thread: Oldest songs ever

HURRIAN HYMN

http://www.amaranthpublishing.com/hurrian.htm

In 1972, after 15 years of research Prof. Anne Kilmer (professor of Assyriology, University of California, and a curator at the Lowie Museum of Anthropology at Berkeley) transcribed one of the oldest known pieces of music notation in the world.
Clay tablets relating to music, containing the cuneiform signs of the "Hurrian" language, had been excavated in the early 1950s at the Syrian city of ancient Ugarit in what is now modern Ras Shamra. One text contained a complete hymn, both words and music and is the oldest known preserved music notation in the world.
Prof. Kilmer transcribed this piece of music into modern music notation. Other individuals have also attempted to transcribe this music, with differing interpretations.

The tablets date back to approximately 1400 B.C. and contain a hymn to the moon god's wife, Nikal. Remarkably, the tablets also contain detailed performance instructions for a singer accompanied by a harpist as well as instructions on how to tune the harp. From this evidence, Prof. Kilmer and other musicologists have created realizations of the
hymn .









LISTEN TO THE SONG:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=viMbnj_Ei2A

The song of Seikilos is one of the few preserved compositions of ancient Greek music. It is engraved into a grave pillar that was found 1883 in Aydin in Turkey and is dated between 200 BC and 100 AD.

On the tombstone is an indication that the music composition and poem were composed and written by one Seikilos, for his wife, who presumably is buried there. The opening epitaph states:

I am a portrait in stone.
I was put here by Seikilos,
where I remain forever, the
symbol of timeless remembrance.


MORE:
http://www.amaranthpublishing.com/SongOfSeikilos.htm







Youtube:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KRnAKzFMhk

¿Como vos nadie?

Sip. Como yo nadie. but that's my signature. It is not part of the topic.

I heard an early Christian hymn on the radio some time ago, for solo voice with some kind of a fiddle. They didn't say who reconstructed it, only that it was from the 5th century AD.

I liked it a lot. Reminds me of the 'Gladiator' soundtrack. Are there any recordings featuring this ancient music?

This lyre piece was really pretty nice. Good stuff.

Originally Posted by Lisztfreak

I heard an early Christian hymn on the radio some time ago, for solo voice with some kind of a fiddle. They didn't say who reconstructed it, only that it was from the 5th century AD.
Are there any recordings featuring this ancient music?

If the 5th century A.D is considered ancient, then what's the 1500 B.C called?

@ Lisztfreak........................................ The guy playing those ancient songs at youtube has a cd on sale.

I like what I hear. It kind of goes with the era and the geographical area. If this is a faithful reproduction of this ancient music then it don't sound a lot different to what's around now..the tunes seem logical and comprehensible. I'm glued to youtube at the moment finding similar music..

Would it really have sounded this close to common practice scales and harmonies? When I hear medieval music it is nearly incomprehensible and that is much closer in time to us. Very nice mood evoked either way.

Along similar lines I recently watched a documentary (using the Netflix instant view option) called Michael Wood: In Search of Myths and Heroes. The episode about Jason and the Argonauts includes a recreation of an ancient Greek or Minoan hymn, the kind of music the voyagers may have heard in their travels of the Mediterranean. I don't know how authentic it is, but it sends chills up my spine.

That entire series is well worth watching if you enjoy archeology and connecting with ancient history.