LISTENING
Listen to traditional pieces from each culture/civilization researched
Mesopotamia
Improvisation on a replica of the silver Sumerian lyre of Ur.
Ancient Mesopotamian music about Babylon, the most famous city of ancient Mesopotamia. During the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (605 BC – 562 BC), Babylon reached the height of its glory.
The Epic of Gilgamesh is the earliest great work of literature that we know of, and was first written down by the Sumerians around 2100 BC.
Ancient Egypt
A 3000-year-old song, sung in a dead language that no one speaks or understands, accompanied on an instrument called the "djedjet" that hasn't existed in several millennia.
The ancient words sung from the Egyptian Book of the Dead celebrate the coming of Ra as he rises in the eastern horizon, and also the coming of Osiris.
Old Egyptian Dance from the Pharaoh- Sound of Mystery album.
Indus Valley Civilization
A piece composed by Indian musicologist Shail Vyas based on years of research on Indus Valley music.
Amjad Ali Khan, one of Northern India's greatest living musicians, plays the sarod, one of the most important instruments of North Indian classical music.
Rakesh Chaurasia - one of the rising bansuri (flute) players of the world today, performs Raga Prabhateshwari.
Mayan Civilization
A piece inspired from ancient Maya musical styles and deciphered compositions.
The song is taken from a CD called "Ancient Mayan Music". The CD was published by an unknown studio SL Sound in 2001.
A Maya song that is inspired by old age classical music with original instruments of the time.
Ancient China
This piece includes piano and bamboo flute. The bamboo flute 簫 is played vertically, like the western recorder.
The guzheng, also known as the Chinese zither, is a Chinese plucked string instrument with a more than 2,500-year history. It has 16 (or more) strings and movable bridges.
Mō Lì Huā (Jasmine Flower) is a well-known song in China. It is originally from the Qing Dynasty.
Ancient Greece
Ancient Rome
The ancient Greek music fragment (Kolon Exasimon, Anonymi Bellermann 97), performed on a replica of an ancient Greek lyre, "The Lyre of Apollo III" - handmade in Greece.
One of the earliest examples yet found of a complete musical composition from the ancient world. Although other songs have been found that pre-date "The Song of Seikilos" by many centuries, they only survive in fragments.
Ancient Greek music about Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt, archery, and the Moon. Composed using instruments from ancient times.
Since Ancient Rome borrowed so much from the culture of Ancient Greece, in attempting to recreate an evocation of the lost music of ancient Rome, it is most likely that the Roman composers of antiquity also used the ancient Greek musical modes.
This piece demonstrates what Ancient Roman war music may have sounded like.
Synaulia is the other of the two main groups recreating Ancient Roman music, the other being Musica Romana. This group is far older, as it was formed in the early 90s in Italy.
Ancient Persia
Luri is one of the purest dialects of the ancient Persian language. The main musical instrument of Luri is the kamancheh.
On the October 23, 2012, the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory was illuminated with the voice of Nourshargh, from Farsi. He was accompanied by "Ghamar," a famous instrumental group.
Earn Enough for Us cover using ancient Persia instruments and language.
Aztec Civilization
Live percussion video demonstrating the sounds of the Aztec Huehuetl and Teponaztli drums. These instruments were handcrafted.
Music improvisation of Aztec percussion instruments, featuring ayoltl, huehuetl, cuechtli and "singing stones".
Ancient Aztec war music. This piece uses a variety of Aztec style drums to create different tones and sounds.
Inca Civilization
A classic pan flute song original by James Last with Gheorghe Zamfir. The song is called "El Pastor Solitario" (Einsamer Hirte) - The Lonely Shepherd.
Music from Equador, Peru and Bolivia. This compilation features music composed using different Incan instruments, such as panpipes and ocarinas.
This music video is about Qhapac ñan, or The Incas Trail . The group, Inka Gold, uses Quenacho flutes, Toyos bass flutes, and classical guitar.
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