Music In The Old Testament

This book explores the relationship between the Bible and the world of music, an association that is recorded from ancient times in the Old Testament, and one that has continued to characterize the cultural self-expression of Western Civilization ever since. The study surveys the emergence of this close relationship in the era following the end of the Roman Empire and through the Middle Ages, taking particular note of the role of Gregorian chant, folk music and the popularity of mystery, morality and passion plays in reflection of the Sacred Scripture and its themes during those times. With the emergence of polyphony and the advent of the Reformation in the sixteenth century, the interaction between the Bible and music increased dramatically, culminating in the evolution of opera and oratorio as specific genres during the Renaissance and the Early Baroque period. Both these genres have proved essential to the interplay between sacred revelation and the various types of music that have come to determine cultural expression in the history of Europe. The book initially provides an overview of how the various themes and types of Biblical literature have been explored in the story of Western music. It then looks closely at the role of oratorio and opera over four centuries, considering the most famous and striking examples and considering how the music has responded in different ages to the sacred text and narrative. The last chapter examines how biblical theology has been used to dramatic purpose in a particular operatic genre – that of French Grand Opera. The academic apparatus includes an iconography, a detailed bibliography and an index of biblical and musical references, themes and subjects.

An exploration of muscial expression in scripture and church hymnody. In this book Rev. Herbert Lockyer Jr. presents the songs, musical methods, and instruments employed by the people of God. His insights into biblical theology include musical analogies and cover the many functions of musical expression. The author also reviews the music of the church from the New Testament through the Reformation. Includes illustrations of the musical instruments mentioned in the Bible and descriptions of their sounds and uses in worship.

The Jewish Scriptures have been a profound source of musical creativity over the ages.They have inspired musical works ranging from the Passion plays of the Middle Ages to the folk and even rock music of today. The Scriptures themselves contain all forms of literature-poetry, epic, prayer, drama, philosophy and prophecy. The artists who have found the Scriptures to be a fountian of ideas of forty-four different nationalities and they form a long and immpressive list. "The Old Testament in Music", a major work by distingushed Israeli musicologist Moshe Gorali, is an extensive and beautifully designed anthology of more than 5,000 musical pieces spanning the last thousand years. The Old Testament in Music is an excellent reference book for professional musicans, institutions and libraries, and a perfect book for music and Bible students. In English.

This is a translation by Dennis Weber, edited by John Wheeler and jointly published with King David's Harp, in which a noted French musicologist argues that the accentual system preserved in the Masoretic Text was originally a method of recording hand signals (chironomy) by which temple musicians were directed in the performance of music. She explains her reconstruction of these notations which has allowed her to perform haunting and beautiful music around the worlds using only the Hebrew text as a score.

Excerpt from Music in the Old Testament Music belongs to the inalienable rights of man. is the effort to make one's self intelligible to his fellow men by means of the stimulation of sounds of all kinds. Music exists wherever men are found upon the earth and everywhere they show a genuine refinement in the discovery of means by which to originate sounds. There is hardly anything which can not be brought into use for its purposes. We do not intend to lose ourselves here in speculation upon the psychological reasons for this demoniac impulse; we will be content simply to establish the fact and will not enter into it with regard to humanity in general, but only in so far as the ancient people of Israel is concerned. Even with relation to the Old Testament we will limit ourselves to what the Old Testament itself can tell us about music and musical things. Many passages have proved very puzzling to Bible readers. For instance when we read in the heading of Psalm lxxx, "To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim-Eduth, A Psalm of Asaph"; or in the heading of Ps. lx., "To the chief Musician upon Shushan-eduth, Michtam of David, to teach"; or in the heading of Ps. lvi, "To the chief Musician upon Jonath-elem-rechokim, Michtam of David"; or when Psalms viii, lxxxi, and lxxxiv, bear the inscription. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

From the beginning of the first chapter. MUSIC belongs to the inalienable rights of man. It is the effort to make one's self intelligible to his fellow men by means of the stimulation of sounds of all kinds. Music exists wherever men are found upon the earth and everywhere they show a genuine refinement in the discovery of means by which to originate sounds. There is hardly anything which cannot be brought into use for its purposes. We do not intend to lose ourselves here in speculation upon the psychological reasons for this demoniac impulse; we will be content simply to establish the fact and will not enter into it with regard to humanity in general, but only in so far as the ancient people of Israel is concerned. Even with relation to the Old Testament we will limit ourselves to what the Old Testament itself can tell us about music and musical things. Many passages have proved very puzzling to Bible readers. For instance when we read in the heading of Psalm lxxx, "To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim-Eduth, A Psalm of Asaph"; or in the heading of Ps. lx, "To the chief Musician upon Shushan-eduth, Michtam of David, to teach"; or in the heading of Ps. lvi, "To the chief Musician upon Jonath-elem-rechokim, Michtam of David"; or when Psalms viii, lxxxi, and lxxxiv, bear the inscription, "To the chief Musician upon Gittith"; or the three, xxxix., lxii, and lxxvii "to Jeduthun"; we may certainly assume that we have an explanation for these hieroglyphics in considering that they possess some kind of a musical character." Accordingly it will be our task to gather together and to sift out the information given by the Old Testament itself upon music and musical matters and then to see whether we can unite and combine these scattered and isolated features into one comprehensive picture or at least into a comparatively clear idea. It is only scattered and isolated features which the Old Testament offers us and not very much of them nor very abundantly. Not perhaps because music had played a subordinate and inconspicuous part in the life of ancient Israel, - on the contrary they must have been a people of an unusually musical temperament whose daily nourishment was song and sound. On this point the Old Testament itself leaves little room for doubt. Everywhere and at all times were song and music to be found in Ancient Israel. Every festival occasion, every climax of public or private life was celebrated with music and song. Just as Homer called singing and string music "the consecration of the meal," so also in ancient Israel no ceremonial meal could be thought of without its accompaniment of either vocal or instrumental music. Marriage ceremonies took place amid festive choruses with music and dancing, and at the bier of the dead sounded the wail of dirge and flute. The sheep were sheared and the vintage gathered to songs of joy and dancing and tambourine playing. The same was true in public life. The election of a king or his coronation or betrothal were celebrated with music; the victorious warriors and generals were met upon their return home by choruses of matrons and maidens with dance and song. So Miriam spoke from among the chorus of women who after the successful passage through the Red Sea went out "with timbrels and with dances" (Ex. xv. 20); in the same way too, David was received by matrons and maidens after his successful battle with the Philistines (I Sam. xviii. 6); and upon this custom is founded the frightful tragedy of the story of Jephthah, whose daughter hastened in the joy of her heart to offer greeting and praise to her victorious father, only to be met by death as the fulfillment of his vow (Judges xi)....

Why do the books of Chronicles regard the performance of choral music as an integral part of the sacrificial ritual at the temple, despite the lack of sanction for it in the Pentateuch? And why do they stress that it must be synchronized with the presentation of the regular public burnt offering at the temple? These and other questions are answered in this challenging new volume. After an introductory chapter defining the scope of the study as an analysis of the ritual function and theological significance of sacred song, the author examines the divine institution and royal establishment of the Levitical choir in Jerusalem. This is followed by an examination of the components of the Lord's song in terms of its contents, location, times, instruments and performers. A chapter on the function of sacred song as determined by its place within the sacrificial ritual follows, and the fifth chapter deals with its theological significance as the proclamation of the Lord's presence with his people.