Shake, Rattle, and Blow
by Shannon Pederson
“Begin the music, strike the tambourine, play the melodious harp and lyre.” Psalm 81:2
Humans need food and shelter first and foremost. But once the basic necessities are met, a person needs to find a way to share and communicate. Before languages were developed, one thing a human could do alone or with others was to make music, using either the voice or simple percussion devices.
Archaeologists have uncovered ancient Sumerian flutes, cymbals, lyres and harps that were determined to be 4500 years old. Metalworking did not exist at that time, so the instruments were carved from stone, bone, shells, or wood. Even more amazing are the cuneiforms (symbols carved into tablets) found along with the instruments. Historians believe that the symbols were an ancient method of written musical notation, like today‘s sheet music.
For centuries, musical instruments were important communication tools for armies. Well into the 20th century, many military forces used drums and bugles to pass information.
Are today’s brass horns so named because they were based on instruments once made out of animal horns? Indeed they are. The earliest horns were used primarily for basic communication and signaling purposes. Certain horns allowed players to change the tone by flexing and pursing their lips in different positions, which led to their eventual adoption as musical instruments.
Flutes have been found earlier than 4,000 B.C. They were made of bones, hooves, horns, reeds, wood, and other natural substances. A gourd thousands of years old with two holes and a notch for blowing into was found in North Africa. Scientists believe primitive flutes were not made specifically for music, but rather for signaling and hunting.
What would our church services be without the piano and organ? They are truly a form of ministry just like the spoken word. When God created the world, “the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy” (Job 38:7). God created man in His own image, to be an instrument of praise. He gave humans the ability to sing and to make music with musical instruments to complement their voices.
“It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to the Most High. It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning, your faithfulness in the evening, accompanied by the ten-stringed harp and the melody of the lyre.” Psalm 92:1-3
Copyright © 2014. Slaypres.org.
by Shannon Pederson
“Begin the music, strike the tambourine, play the melodious harp and lyre.” Psalm 81:2
Humans need food and shelter first and foremost. But once the basic necessities are met, a person needs to find a way to share and communicate. Before languages were developed, one thing a human could do alone or with others was to make music, using either the voice or simple percussion devices.
Archaeologists have uncovered ancient Sumerian flutes, cymbals, lyres and harps that were determined to be 4500 years old. Metalworking did not exist at that time, so the instruments were carved from stone, bone, shells, or wood. Even more amazing are the cuneiforms (symbols carved into tablets) found along with the instruments. Historians believe that the symbols were an ancient method of written musical notation, like today‘s sheet music.
For centuries, musical instruments were important communication tools for armies. Well into the 20th century, many military forces used drums and bugles to pass information.
Are today’s brass horns so named because they were based on instruments once made out of animal horns? Indeed they are. The earliest horns were used primarily for basic communication and signaling purposes. Certain horns allowed players to change the tone by flexing and pursing their lips in different positions, which led to their eventual adoption as musical instruments.
Flutes have been found earlier than 4,000 B.C. They were made of bones, hooves, horns, reeds, wood, and other natural substances. A gourd thousands of years old with two holes and a notch for blowing into was found in North Africa. Scientists believe primitive flutes were not made specifically for music, but rather for signaling and hunting.
What would our church services be without the piano and organ? They are truly a form of ministry just like the spoken word. When God created the world, “the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy” (Job 38:7). God created man in His own image, to be an instrument of praise. He gave humans the ability to sing and to make music with musical instruments to complement their voices.
“It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to the Most High. It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning, your faithfulness in the evening, accompanied by the ten-stringed harp and the melody of the lyre.” Psalm 92:1-3
Copyright © 2014. Slaypres.org.