Ancient Egyptian Music - Lotus on the Nile

From New England comes Douglas Irvine, a composer, sound artist and
instrument maker, the sounds that he creates are inspired on the musical
traditions of ancient Middle Eastern cultures, like ancient Egypt and
Mesopotamia. This record have a great aura, with different sensations,
its ritualistic, relaxed, deep, dark, ethereal and mystic. This are some
of the old instruments that you could ear on this great record that e
real advice: bass lyre, bells and miscellaneous percussions, shoulder
harp, clappers, pan pipes, double Oboe etc. Ambient Egypt is a varied
collection of musical soundscapes inspired by ancient Egyptian
traditions.

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).

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.

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.

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.