Did Ancient Music Utilize Harmony? Part 2

Did Ancient Music Utilize Harmony? Part 2   

II Chronicles 5:13 states, “It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD; So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.” The words “were as one” are of particular interest in this passage of Scripture.  They were derived from the word echad (259) which means, among other things, one or united.  It has generally been believed by writers that this connotes biblical evidence that the musical instruments and the human voices were performing in union.  Those who have come to this conclusion have done so because of the unfounded belief that any form of musical harmony was completely unknown in ancient Israel or in the music of Israel’s neighbors or in any ancient culture for that matter.

Modern musicology has proven that At least some of Israel’s neighbors did in fact utilize ancient forms of musical harmony (see the discussion of Ugaritic music in chapter eight of Music of the Bible in Christian Perspective, by Garen Wolf, p. 345).  We do not have written biblical music evidence (from the deciphering of the te’amim) or extra biblical evidence from ancient or modern musical writings that the ancient Hebrews understood or that they utilized harmony like that of the Occident.  However, it does seem plausible from modern knowledge of the te’amim that these melodies would have had some harmonic implications. 

Thought for the Day  

Both Ezra 2:65 and Nehemiah 7:67 stated that there were at least 200 or more singers (shiyr or shuwr 7891) at different times in the history of ancient Israel. Since this Hebrew word connoted a singer player, I wonder what all those musicians sang and played.  I can’t believe that they always sang and played in unison.