Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-09-19
Ancient Greek Music.

The nature of ancient Greek musid
has long been subject on which pre-.
else information has been wanting. T.
was known that certain antique chants
had been transported, with modifca.
tions, into the ritual of the Greek
Church, but our knowledge Of the sub.
ject was SO vague that we could not an.
preciate the importance of the role
which Plato and Aristotle and Plutarcb
attributed to music in their educational
systems. The labors of Gevaert, West.
phal and Bourgault-Ducoudray have
now thrown considerable light on the
matter, and at recent meeting of the
French Academy of Moral and Political
Sciences, M. Leveque showed us M.
Bourgault. Ducoudray travelling from
one end OF Greece to the other, and col
Letting the popular airs which he be.
ieved to be of ancient origin, CARVING
his investigations into the ecclesiastical
music Of the Greeks, and finally having
executed at the Trocsdero last year mel.
tdies with he attributed to the epochs
OF Socrates and Phidias. Not content
with having recovered this lost art, NJ.
Bourgault-D ucoudray wishes to intro.
duce it into our modern art with q view
of rejuvenating it. The idea of the re.
generation of modern musical art by the
Infusion of Greek art has already been
glanced at by Gevaert. NJ. Bourgault.
Ducoudray is more affirmative, and de.
clares himself convinced that return
to simple processes has become neces.
sary for modern music, fatigued as it
is, he says, BY IN excessive development
OF its major and minor. More than
once, he adds, modern masters have
had recourse to the employment of
Greek modes, particularly the Dorian. \.
hypodorian and hypolydian, as we'll g.
of the ancient chromatic scale.
According to M. Leveque, Greek mu.
sic had superiorities of expression
which are wanting in our own. 1t de.
rived its power from melodic simplicity
by which it acted with great force on
the soul. Its first merit was not to fall
into confusion by pretending to give
more various and diverse interpreta-
tions of the sentiments of the soul than
the means at its disposal permitted. It
was at first only the auxiliary of poetry
the human voice was its first instru-
ment and maintained that legitimate
supremacy which the abuse OF instru-
mentation with us tends to abolish.
The center of gravity OF Greek music
was chanted poetry. This melody, NJ.
Leveque went on to show, possessed the
same number of tones as our own ; it
had seven modes instead of two, and its
modes changed according AS they we're
put in the diatonic, chromatic or en-
harmonic melody (genoS or meios). 1t
was, therefore, very rich in tones or
modes it was still more so from the
point of view of rhymes. To the power
of rhythm it joined that of meter,
which allowed it to keep the charm of
simplicity; with rhythm and meter,
simple epeech Is at once chant such as
is still found among the Italians and
modern Greeks. To sum up, M. Lee
vogue thinks that it would be advisable
to borrow from the ancient Greeks the
simplicity of the melody, the abundant
diversity of the rhythms, the multi
plicity Of the modes and perhaps e
holder and more frequent employ msnf
of the chromatic mode.-Homs Journal.