THE GREEK HERITAGE

Although many details remain uncertain, we know that in the ancient world (1) melody was intimately linked with the rhythm and meter of words; (2) musicians relied on their memories and on knowledge of conventions and formulas, rather than reading from notation; and (3) philosophers conceived of music as an orderly system interlocked with the system of nature and as a force in human thought and conduct. To these elements the Greeks contributed two more: (4) an acoustical theory founded on science, and (5) a well-developed music theory.

Many of these characteristics continued in later Western music. Much vocal melody is shaped by the rhythm and meter of the words. Although notation became increasingly important in Western music from the ninth century on, many musical traditions still depend on memory and conventions. Notions of music as an orderly system and an influence on human behavior continue to this day. Plato’s concern that changes in musical conventions threaten anarchy in society has been voiced repeatedly by those who resist change, and it echoes today among those lamenting current tastes in popular music.

Despite the virtual disappearance of ancient Greek music until its recovery in recent centuries, aspects of Greek musical thought influenced medieval church music and music theory. Musicians in the Renaissance and Baroque periods revived Greek concepts and joined them to modern ones to create new approaches, procedures, or genres, including rhetorical devices, expression of mood, chromaticism, monody, and opera, while citing Plato and Aristotle in defense of their innovations. Opera composers such as Peri in the seventeenth century, Gluck in the eighteenth, and Wagner in the nineteenth looked back to Greek tragedies for models of how to use music to convey drama. Twentieth-century composers such as Olivier Messiaen and Harry Partch revived Greek rhythms and tuning systems. And although ancient music is still little known, current musical concepts continue those addressed by ancient Greek writers, from diatonic scales to the use of music in educating the young and debates about the ethical and moral effects of music. The Greeks are still very much with us, and we will encounter them again and again as we explore the Western musical tradition.

Further Reading is available at digital.wwnorton.com/hwm10