Timeline of European Art and Music - The Sixth Century BC

Music timestamps

0:00 - 6th century BC - Sappho (Greek) - Sappho's Ode to Aphrodite

Aphrodite, subtle of soul and deathless,
Daughter of God, weaver of wiles, I pray thee
Neither with care, dread Mistress, nor with anguish,
Slay thou my spirit!

But in pity hasten, come now if ever
From afar of old when my voice implored thee,
Thou hast deigned to listen, leaving the golden
House of thy father

With thy chariot yoked; and with doves that drew thee,
Fair and fleet around the dark earth from heaven,
Dipping vibrant wings down he azure distance,
Through the mid-ether;

Very swift they came; and thou, gracious Vision,
Leaned with face that smiled in immortal beauty,
Leaned to me and asked, "What misfortune threatened?
Why I had called thee?"

"What my frenzied heart craved in utter yearning,
Whom its wild desire would persuade to passion?
What disdainful charms, madly worshipped, slight thee?
Who wrongs thee, Sappho?"

"She that fain would fly, she shall quickly follow,
She that now rejects, yet with gifts shall woo thee,
She that heeds thee not, soon shall love to madness,
Love thee, the loth one!"

Come to me now thus, Goddess, and release me
From distress and pain; and all my distracted
Heart would seek, do thou, once again fulfilling,
Still be my ally!

3:27 - 6th century BC - Sappho (Greek) - Fragment 44 (A Wedding at Troy) set to music - Surviving fragment of Sappho's work, "A Wedding at Troy". The tune that it is performed to is the tune that would have accompanied the poem when it was sung in ancient Greece. Sappho's poem is a prequel to the Trojan War, recalling the time that Trojan Prince Hector arrived home with his new wife, Andromache.

7:03 - 6th century BC - Sappho (Greek) - Sappho's Wedding Hymn (Epithalamion)

Oh the roof on high,
sing hymnaios,
raise up, craftsmen,
sing hymnaios.
The bridegroom comes just like Ares,
a man much bigger than a big man.
Sing hymnaios.

8:19 - 6th century BC - Sappho (Greek) - Songs of Sappho, Painetai

He seems a god, that man
who sits beside you
listens to your sweet voice

your laughter I desire
it shakes the heart tin my breast
so when i glance at you
i cannot speak

my tongue breaks
my body burns
i cannot see
my ears ring

sweat pours from me, I shake
i am greener than grass
close to death

10:20 - 6th century BC - The Ancient Barbitos Lyre of Sappho (improvisation by Micheal Levy) - The music from this instrument was also said to be the lyre for drinking parties and is considered an invention of Terpander. The Barbitos, an ancient Greek bass register lyre, was associated with the poet Sappho. It is also closely associated with the poet Alcaeus and the island of Lesbos, the birthplace of Sappho.

11:48 - 6th century BC - Anacreon (Greek) - Music Anacreon's To The Lyre

I, too, wish to sing of heroic deeds
(about the Atreides, and about Kadmus),
but the lyre's strings
can only produce sounds of love.
Recently, I changed the strings,
and then the lyre itself,
and tried to sing of the feats of Hercules,
but still the lyre kept singing songs of love.
So, fare well, you heroes!
because my lyre sings only songs of love.

14:00 - 6th century BC - Sappho (Greek) - Sappho's Ode to a Loved One, sung in ancient Greek (Fragment 31) - Sung in a different style than the previous version. in this series. The singer has attempted to bring out the vowel-lengths and pitch-accents, and to make phrases and ideas as intelligible as possible by separating them with pauses.

17:04 - 6th century BC - Ibycus (Greek) - Praise of Ibycus

Euryalus,
offshoot of the blue-eyed Graces,
darling of the lovely-hair,
cared for by Cyprian while the soft-lidded Persuasion
nurses you among rose-blossoms

18:19 - 6th century BC - Anacreon (Greek) - Mélomai (lyrics by Anacreon) - Features an aulos, soprano, barbitos, altus, kymbala, tympanon, krotala, and salpinx.

For I am minded to sing
graceful Eros luxuriating
in garlands rich in flowers.
He is both the master of gods

20:42 - 6th century BC - Anacreon (Greek) - Gaia (lyrics in the style of Anacreon)