"Ancient Greek Music: A Concert and Discussion,” featuring Ensemble De Organographia

Co-sponsor: Department of Classics

Reception to follow.

Ensemble De Organographia - Gayle and Philip Neuman

Music of the Ancient Greeks

 
 
Program to be selected from the following:
 
Dramatic Dialogue on Achilles………………………………..........................................................Anonymous, 3rd c. C.E.
 
Invocation of the Muse………………………….............................................................................Anonymous, 2nd c. C.E. “Sing for me, my beloved Muse, intone my musical verse; send a breeze from your groves to move my soul.”
 
Invocation of Calliope and Apollo………………………….................................................….…..Mesomedes,  2nd c. C.E.
“Sage Calliope, who guides the charming muses, and wise teacher, son of Leto, Delian Paean, shine your favor upon me.”
 
Hymn to the Sun………………………………..............................................................................Mesomedes,  2nd c. C.E.
“Father of dawn with gleaming white eye, you drive your rosy chariot through the heavens in your winged steeds’ steps, radiant with golden hair, weaving your eternal beam in the limitless heavens, twisting the filaments of light around the whole world.  Your streams of immortal flame give birth to the charming daylight. The peaceful choir of stars dances for you on Olympus, singing a joyous song to Phoebus’ lyra, and the pale moon in her place before draws time and season forward with her white calves.  Your compassionate spirit is joyful as it turns the lavishly clad firmament.”
 
Seikilos Song………………………...........................................…….....……………............................Seikilos, 1st c. C.E.
“As long as you live, be cheerful, do not grieve at all.  For life is short and time collects its tribute.”
 
Delphic Paean………………………………....................................................................................Athenaeus, 127 B.C.E.
“Come forth, ye (Muses) that were given deep-forested Helicon, loud-booming Zeus’ fair-armed daughters: come to praise your brother  in song, golden haired Phoebus, that over the twin peaks of this pinnacle of  Parnassus, accompanied by the renowned Delphian maidens, comes to the waters of the clear-flowing Castilian spring as he attends to the mountain oracle.  Lo, famous Attica of the great city is at prayer here, whose home is the invincible ground of Athena: and on the sacred altars Hephaestus is burning the thighs of  young bulls.  At the same time Arabian incense smoke wafts heavenward, and the clear braying aulos weaves shimmering tunes into the singing, while the sweet-voiced golden kithara takes its part in the song of praise.  The whole company of Artists of Attica praises you, son of the mighty  Zeus, who gave you this snow-topped crag, where you show forth immortal oracles for all men.  We sing how you took  possession of the prophetic tripod  that a terrifying serpent watched over, when you removed the earth-born, glistening, coiling creature, and with charmless hissings it expired.  hus, the warlike Barbarian Gauls, who impiously attacked this land, were destroyed by the soaking fall of snow.  But come, let us praise you, Leto, who bore Apollo, and celebrate the birth of that blooming lovely warrior, your son, who drove that bloody plague away from this land, armed protector against enemy attack.  Come in favorable mood to the servants of Bacchus, O Phoebus; we listen to your beautiful oracle, you who came to aid in glorious Thebes, come quickly down to earth.” 
 
Piece from a satyr play………………………................................................................................Anonymous, 2nd c. C.E.
 
Choral Ode from “Orestes”………………............................................................………….............Euripides, 408 B.C.E.
“I lament, I lament; because of your mother’s blood that drives you mad. Great fortune among mortals does not en- dure: a god upsets it like a fast boat's sail overwhelmed in the rough frightful waves of dreadful calamity, as in the sea.”
                                                                                  
 
Salpinx call…………………………….......................................................................The ‘Sappho Painter’, 5th c. B.C.E. 
 
Dramatic lament on Ajax's suicide…….........................................................................................Anonymous, 2nd c. C.E.. 
 
Two instrumental pieces from Contrapollinopolis…………….……..................………………......Anonymous, 2nd c. C.E.
 
Christian Hymn………………………………..........................................................................Anonymous, late 3rd c. C.E.
“Father of the worlds, Father of the ages, let us and the remarkable bondmaids of God celebrate you.  As many things as the cosmos holds at the holy command of the heavenly lights, let them be silent, and let the light-bringing stars dim, let the wind and the rushing rivers together recede; and while we sing of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, may all the forces in nature sing ‘Amen, amen.’  Power, eternal praise, and glory to God, from whom alone comes all goodness.  Amen, amen.”
 
Musical excerpts from Oxyrhynchus 4461.…………………..........................................................Anonymous, 2nd c. C.E.
 
Fragment 3 of a lament from Oxyrhynchus 3161.……….................................……………………Anonymous, 3rd c. C.E.
 
Hymn to Nemesis……………………………….............................................................................Mesomedes, 2nd c. C.E.
“Nemesis, winged one that tips the scales of life, dark-eyed goddess, daughter of Justice, you restrain the futile pride of mortals with your unyielding bridle and, hating hurtful vanity, destroy black envy; below your wheel, always moving but leaving no trace, the fortune of man turns.  Unseen you come at once to defeat arrogance; by your hand you gauge the span of life, and, frowning, you scrutinize the thoughts of men; you always hold the balance.  Be merciful, hallowed judge, winged Nemesis, life’s force.  We honor you, Nemesis, immortal goddess, victory incarnate with wings unfurled, faultless, sharing the throne of Justice; you resent human vanity and banish men to Tartarus below.”
 
 
   Ensemble De Organographia
Gayle Neuman: trichordon (3 stringed lute), kithara, lyra, psithyra (ladder-shaped rattle), kymbala (cymbals), tympanon (frame drum), voice
Philip Neuman: kithara, syrinx monokalamos (vertical flute), salpinx (military trumpet), aulos (double reed pipe), bagpipe, kroupezon (foot clapper)
 
Ancient music recordings on CD by Ensemble De Organographia:
“Music of the Ancient Greeks”
“Music of the Ancient Sumerians, Egyptians and Greeks”
 
Ensemble De Organographia has presented numerous concerts, lecture-demonstrations in the U.S., Germany, Norway, Japan, Turkey, Greece, Israel, and Jordan. They have performed at the Getty Center, the Getty Villa, the Smithsonian Institution, the Cleveland Museum of Art, Oberlin Conservatory, Case Western Reserve University, the Bodrum Knights of St. John Museum in Turkey, the Amman Music Conservatory in Jordan, and the Regensburg Old Town Hall in Germany.  They have been featured on numerous radio and television programs including NPR's Millennium of Music, Performance Today, and the all-Russian Kultura's Novosti Kulturi.  They are also instrument builders whose early woodwinds are played by Piffaro, Ciaramella, and other ensembles worldwide.  Their recordings on the Pandourion label include  "Music of the Ancient Greeks" and "Music of the Ancient Sumerians, Egyptians and Greeks" (available at www.northpacificmusic.com), excerpts of which were used in a TED Talk by Michael Tilson Thomas on the history of musical notation.  They appeared in the recent movie "Buddymoon" released by Orion Pictures, and recorded music on ancient instruments for the recent remake of "Ben-Hur."
 
Gayle Stuwe Neuman is a vocalist and performer on a wide variety of string, woodwind and brass instruments, co-directs the Oregon Renaissance Band, is a member of The Trail Band, and has played under the baton of Monica Huggett and Ton Koopman.  She teaches early music performance classes at the Community Music Center in Portland, and has built with her husband Philip over 400 early wind and stringed instruments, including krummhorns, cornamusen, racketts, and vielles.
 
Philip Neuman, a performer on recorder, sackbutt, and numerous other wind and string instruments, co-directs the Oregon Renaissance Band.  He has written and recorded for television productions by Oregon Public Broadcasting.  He has teaches early music performance classes at the Community Music Center in Portland.  He is a member of The Trail Band, has performed under the baton of Christopher Hogwood and Nicolas McGeegan,  recorded with the American Bach Soloists, and has played in the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, The Chicago Chorale, and the Handel & Haydn Society Orchestra. 
 
See www.philandgayleneuman.com for more early music concerts, workshops, and information.