Music at Social Meals in Greek and Roman Antiquity: From the Archaic Period to the Age of Augustine [Paperback]

Comprehensive history of one of the greatest pleasures of ancient life, recreational music, and the various purposes it served.The first comprehensive history of music at social recreations in antiquity, from private parties to festivals, demonstrating not only its diverse pleasures but also the various personal and social purposes it served.The first comprehensive history of music at social recreations in antiquity, from private parties to festivals, demonstrating not only its diverse pleasures but also the various personal and social purposes it served.This is a captivating story of music-making at social recreations from Homeric times to the age of Augustine. It tells about the music itself and its purposes, as well as the ways in which people talked about it, telling anecdotes, picturing musical scenes, sometimes debating what kind of music was right at a party or a festival. In straightforward and engaging prose, the author covers a remarkably broad history, providing the big picture yet with vivid and nuanced descriptions of concrete practices and events. We hear of music at aristocratic parties, club music, people's music-making at festivals, political uses of music at the court of Alexander the Great and in the public banquets of Roman emperors in the Colosseum, opinions of music-making at social meals from Plato to Clement of Alexandria, and much more, making the book a treasure-trove of information and a fascinating journey through ancient times and places.Glossary of Musical Instruments; Introduction: The Topic and the Sources; 1. Sympotic Scenes and Songs; 2. The Gentleman's Lyre; 3. Hellenistic Evolutions; 4. Poets and Musicians at Upper-Class Greek Banquets; 5. Music and Elite Dining in the Roman Age; 6. Music at the Social Recreations of the Lower Classes; 7. Music at the Suppers and Feasts of the Jewish People; 8. Music at Christian Social Meals; 9. Purposes and Pleasures.