Ancient music of Egypt

Music has been an integral part of Egyptian culture since antiquity in Egypt. Egyptian music had a significant impact on the development of ancient Greek music, and via the Greeks it was important to early European music well into the Middle Ages. Due to the thousands of years long dominance of Egypt over its neighbors, Egyptian culture, including music and musical instruments, was very influential in the surrounding regions; for instance, the instruments claimed in the Bible to have been played by the ancient Hebrews are all Egyptian instruments as established by Egyptian archaeology. 

Egyptian modern music is considered as a main core of Middle Eastern and Oriental music as it has a huge influence on the region due to the popularity and huge influence of Egyptian cinema and music industries, owing to the political influence Egypt has on its neighboring countries, as well as Egypt producing the most accomplished musicians and composers in the region, specially in the 20th century, a lot of them are of international stature. The tonal structure music in the East is defined by the maqamat, loosely similar to the Western modes, while the rhythm in the East is governed by the iqa'at, standard rhythmic modes formed by combinations of accented and unaccented beats and rests.

Lute and double pipe players, and female dancers from a
mural found in the Theban tomb of Nebamun, a nobleman
of the 18th Dynasty of the New Kingdom, c. 1350 BC

History

The ancient Egyptians credited the goddess Bat with the invention of music. The cult of Bat was eventually syncretised into that of Hathor because both were depicted as cows. Hathor's music was believed to have been used by Osiris as part of his effort to civilise the world. The lion-goddess Bastet was also considered a goddess of music in ancient Egypt.

Neolithic period

In prehistoric Egypt, music and chanting were commonly used in magic and rituals. Rhythms during this time were unvaried and music served to create rhythm. Small shells were used as whistles.

Prehistoric Egypt

Predynastic period

During the predynastic period of Egyptian history, funerary chants continued to play an important role in Egyptian religion and were accompanied by clappers or a flute. Despite the lack of physical evidence in some cases, Egyptologists theorise that the development of certain instruments known of the Old Kingdom period, such as the end-blown flute, took place during this time.

Clappers

Old Kingdom

The evidence for instruments played is more securely attested in the Old Kingdom when harps, flutes and double clarinets were played. Percussion instruments and lutes were added to orchestras by the Middle Kingdom. Cymbals frequently accompanied music and dance, much as they still do in Egypt today.

Middle Kingdom of Egypt

Medieval music

Early Middle Eastern music was influenced by Byzantine and Roman forms, which were themselves heavily influenced by earlier Greek, Semitic, and Ancient Egyptian music.

Egyptians in Medieval Cairo believed that music exercised "too powerful an effect upon the passions, and leading men into gaiety, dissipation and vice." However, Egyptians generally were very fond of music. Though, according to E.W. Lane, no "man of sense" would ever become a musician, music was a key part of society. Tradesmen of every occupation used music during work and schools taught the Quran by chanting.

The music of Medieval Egypt was derived from Ancient Egyptian and Byzantine traditions. Lane said that "the most remarkable peculiarity of the Arabic system of music is the division of tones into thirds," although today Western musicologists prefer to say that Arabic music's tones are divided into quarters. The songs of this period were similar in sound and simple, within a small range of tones. Egyptian song, though simple in form, is embellished by the singer. Distinct enunciation and a quavering voice are also characteristics of Egyptian singing.

Male professional musicians during this period were called Alateeyeh (plural), or Alatee (singular), which means "a player upon an instrument". However, this name applies to both vocalists as well as instrumentalists. This position was considered disreputable and lowly. However, musicians found work singing or playing at parties to entertain the company. They generally made three shillings a night, but earned more by the guests' givings.

Female professional musicians were called Awalim (pl) or Al’meh, which means a learned female. These singers were often hired on the occasion of a celebration in the harem of a wealthy person. They were not with the harem, but in an elevated room that was concealed by a screen so as not to be seen by either the harem or the master of the house. The female Awalim were more highly paid than male performers and more highly regarded than the Alateeyeh as well. Lane relates an instance of a female performer who so enraptured her audience that she earned up to fifty guineas for one night's performance from the guests and host, themselves not considered wealthy.

Musical Instruments & Performances

The instruments played in ancient Egypt are all familiar to people today. There were percussion instruments (drums, the sistrum, rattles, tambourines and, later, bells and cymbals); stringed instruments (lyres, harps, and the lute which came from Mesopotamia); and wind instruments like the shepherd's pipe, double-pipe, clarinet, flute, oboe, and trumpet). Musicians played these either solo or in an ensemble, just as today.

The ancient Egyptians had no concept of musical notation. The tunes were passed down from one generation of musicians to the next. Exactly how Egyptian musical compositions sounded is, therefore, unknown, but it has been suggested that the modern-day Coptic liturgy may be a direct descendent. Coptic emerged as the dominant language of ancient Egypt in the 4th century CE, and the music the Copts used in their religious services is thought to have evolved from that of earlier Egyptian services just as their language evolved from ancient Egyptian and Greek.

Music is designated in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics as hst (heset) meaning "song", "singer", "musician", "conductor" and also "to play music" (Strudwick, 416). One would understand the precise meaning of the heset hieroglyph by where it was placed in a sentence. This hieroglyph includes a raised arm which symbolizes the role of the conductor in keeping time. Conductors, even of small ensembles, appear to have been quite important. Strudwick notes tomb paintings from Saqqara which show a conductor, "with a hand over one ear to aid hearing and to improve concentration as he faces the musicians and indicates the passage to be played". Conductors then, as now, used hand gestures to communicate with their musicians.

All the major categories of musical instruments (percussion, wind, stringed) were represented in pharaonic Egypt. Percussion instruments included hand-held drums, rattles, castanets, bells, and the sistrum--a highly important rattle used in religious worship. Hand clapping too was used as a rhythmic accompaniment. Wind instruments included flutes (double and single, with reeds and without) and trumpets. Stringed instruments included harps, lyres, and lutes--plucked rather than bowed. Instruments were frequently inscribed with the name of the owner and decorated with representations of the goddess (Hathor) or god (Bes) of music. Both male and female voices were also frequently used in Egyptian music.

Ancient Egyptian musical instruments were well-developed and varied. The ancient Egyptian period had all major kinds of musical instruments including wind instruments, percussion instruments, and stringed instruments. The percussion instruments covered hand-held drums, rattles, castanets, bells, and the sistrum-a highly important rattle used in religious worship. Hand clapping was also used as rhythmic accompaniment. Wind instruments, on the other hand, consisted of double and single flutes with reed and without reed flutes as well as trumpets.

Stringed instruments included harps, lyres, and lutes-plucked rather than played with a bow. Musical instruments in ancient Egypt were inscribed with the one who owned them and was often adorned with representations of the goddess Hathor and the god Bes who were deities of music. Also, both male and female singers formed a prominent part of musical performances in Egypt during this period.

 

For many centuries, ancient Egyptian music has been played on a minor pentatonic scale, with five full tones. As time went by however, Egyptian music began to change due to the foreign invasion that brought Egyptians into contact with the Asiatic culture. During the third century BCE, the Greeks settled in Delta, and had an even greater impact on Egyptian music than the Asiatic culture. One such example is, Pythagoras, who developed music theory based on mathematics.

Among the very first instruments used in ancient Egypt were the flutes. Originally, these flutes were made of two parallel pipes and were called double flutes. However later on, the pipes were separated and set at an acute angle. One of the other inventions in wind instruments occurred in the second century BCE, when Alexander Ctesibios invented the hydraulic organ. This was an instrument that delivered air to the organ pipes by water pressure.

Since the Old Kingdom, harps were triangle or arc-shaped and developed from the hunting bow. The harp players were of both sexes and usually played the instrument sitting or kneeling. At this point in time, harps had eight to ten strings and the wood that they were made from was often decorated. As time went by, the number of strings on a harp increased and the quality of the sound boxes improved. Although harps with columns were still rare at this time, they were played at various ceremonial events along with other instruments such as rattles and double pipes. Another string instrument promininet in ancient Egyptian music was the lute. This was made from a small flat-sided box with six or eight holes and a long neck. The lute had four strings and was classified as a guitar because of its curving sides and flat back.

Professional Musicians

Professional musicians existed on a number of social levels in ancient Egypt. Perhaps the highest status belonged to temple musicians; the office of "musician" (shemayet) to a particular god or goddess was a position of high status frequently held by women. Musicians connected with the royal household were held in high esteem, as were certain gifted singers and harp players. Somewhat lower on the social scale were musicians who acted as entertainers for parties and festivals, frequently accompanied by dancers. Informal singing is suggested by scenes of workers in action; captions to many of these pictures have been interpreted as words of songs. Otherwise there is little evidence for the amateur musician in pharaonic Egypt, and it is unlikely that musical achievement was seen as a desirable goal for individuals who were not professionals.

Professional musicians played and sang at many social events organized in ancient Egypt. The temple musicians were the ones who held the highest positions as well as women who performed on behalf of a particular god or goddess. Musicians who were associated with the royal family also enjoyed a high status in society. Also, there were some gifted singers and harp players. Meanwhile, musicians who acted as entertainers for celebrations and festivals were considered a little lower in social status and were frequently accompanied by dancers. The informal signing could be seen in the scenes of workers at the workers' tombs as well, showing how central music was to every part of ancient Egyptian life, although evidence of amateur musicians during this time is almost nonexistent and it’s doubtful that musical achievement was seen as a desirable goal for individuals who were not professionals.

The ancient Egyptians did not notate their music before the Graeco-Roman period, so attempts to reconstruct pharaonic music remain speculative. Representational evidence can give a general idea of the sound of Egyptian music. Ritual temple music was largely a matter of the rattling of the sistrum, accompanied by voice, sometimes with harp and/or percussion. Party/festival scenes show ensembles of instruments (lyres, lutes, double and single reed flutes, clappers, drums) and the presence (or absence) of singers in a variety of situations.

Music and dance

Although music existed in prehistoric Egypt, the evidence for it becomes secure only in the historical (or "dynastic" or "pharaonic") period-after 3100 BCE. Music formed an important part of Egyptian life, and musicians occupied a variety of positions in Egyptian society. Music found its way into many contexts in Egypt: temples, palaces, workshops, farms, battlefields and the tomb. Music was an integral part of religious worship in ancient Egypt, so it is not surprising that there were gods specifically associated with music, such as Hathor and Bes (both were also associated with dance, fertility and childbirth).

Music and dance were highly valued in ancient Egyptian culture, but they were more important than is generally thought: they were integral to creation and communion with the gods and, further, were the human response to the gift of life and all the experiences of the human condition. Egyptologist Helen Strudwick notes how, "music was everywhere in Ancient Egypt - at civil or funerary banquets, religious processions, military parades and even at work in the field". The Egyptians loved music and included scenes of musical performances in tomb paintings and on temple walls, but valued the dance equally and represented its importance as well.