The Sonata from the Ballad
During the time of the classical era, the greatest and most enduring and influential of all musical forms was the sonata and sonata forms. This musical form enjoyed "great balance, contrasts, development of themes, elegance and restraint," and it continues to be one of the most influential musical forms of all. It was not until Mozart and Haydn had brought the sonata and its forms to peaks of perfection that theorists did really write about it. Virtually all the important musical masters composed something of the sonata forms.
The sonata form still dominates the Western (Classical) music of the 18th and 19th centuries. It has been said, "virtually every instrument has a solo sonata repertoire, and the sonata is a staple of instrumental duets, trios, quartets and other small ensembles" (Margery Halford). Besides these uses of the sonata forms, in their own right, we should think also of a concerto as a sonata form for the solo instrument and orchestra; a symphony is a sonata for the orchestra itself. Its most famous use of three movements has brought the sonata form to its impressive influence as observed above. It does not have to have three movements, but that is its general pattern, with a commencement in a tonic key, then the second movement may involve a relative minor key, or some modulation of the tonic major key; but then, in the third movement there is a return to the first movement, but in a different time style and dynamic. It should be also remembered that the "ballad" had been the oldest continuing song form for thousands of years. This song form after centuries became a stable form in a very definite way. It consisted of 32 measures: theme one coming to a cadence; theme two, a modification of theme one, which resolved back to the tonic chord. Each of the two themes consisted of eight measures of music. After the two varied themes, with the second theme possessing a completely different theme from the first, there was what was called the "bridge." This was a striking departure from either of the first two themes as well as the note-time difference. There were eight measures for the bridge ending in a cadence, and then a return to theme one to the tonic resolve chord, ending the eight measures of that first theme again.
However, the ballad took off in history with an elevated, classical form in the sonata of the seventeenth century. Johann Kuhnau (1660-1722) was an organist at St. Thomas church in Leipzig before the days of Johann Sebastian Bach, and he has been called the "father of the sonata." His sonatas are in baroque style and contain several different movements (complete sections) that contrast with each other. The sonata became a sophisticated form of the ballad. Many more musical measures would be employed with a theme one in a major key at a tempo slowly rendered, such as an andante. The second theme might be rendered in the relative minor key or different key with still another tempo. Finally, there was a return to the first theme in a faster or different tempo, such as the adagio. The variations of these two themes with the second movement so diverse reminds us of the earlier ballad, but instead of only 32 measures of music, the sonata may proceed through several hundred measures, or even more.
Rome
History declares the Romans to be the most practical people in history. They were people of action more than a people of imagination. Some historians have imputed to their hunger as a nation an appetite of manliness (virtus). We would need a definite limitation to the definition of manliness, but here is some truth to the concept. Law and order prevails throughout their philosophy of life: what they received of it, they received from the Greeks. They were a people of high military gifts and they conquered the known world of their time.
We would acknowledge, however, that there was a rather low state of music existing in the heart of the Roman empire. Some have mentioned the "pipes" of their instruments being little better than those we now offer as playthings for children. However, there was indeed one type of music that was most practical and which the Romans encouraged—martial music. This military emphasis provided a sound of strength in the making of excellent soldiers. There is evidence that the Romans, for their martial music, possessed an unusually large number of wind instruments, the chief of this kind being the Tuba and Buccina. The former was somewhat like a trumpet, though much larger and longer than the modern trumpet. The latter was somewhat like our horn, though again, much larger.
It is obvious that Roman music was to energize the body, give it health and a robust attitude, extend courage and male-virility. This brought out their virtus, their manliness, that certain quality which the Romans magnified. This was quite different from the Greeks who sought perfection of physical beauty, but the distinction between Greece and Rome was that the first was aesthetic, the other was practical. It may well be that both of these did lie in the physical, but only Greece measured music from a more noble understanding of the art form. This caused Rome to deteriorate in composition and performance. Yea, even "decadence," a word that years later Chopin would emphasize, resulted in the decline and fall of Rome.
Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment
The Renaissance period of history (1400-1600?) brought back a partial revival of the classical hope established by Greece. A little later a complete format of musical notation was addressed. This was actually called the neo-classical period, and therefore there never was a full return to the Greek presence of thought. However, there followed a series of outstanding musical models and masters who flooded the world with a tremendous amount of music while the nobility of art, in a large array, was managed rather well. The entire acquisition of art, from Sumer, India, Egypt, and Babylon, had finally passed (to A.D. 500), with Hinduism and Buddhism surviving in their respective religions, flute and lyre. The Early Medieval Period of music (A.D. 300-1000) suffered the general effects of all of the possessions of the Dark Ages. The Medieval Period, proper (A.D. 540-1450), advanced Romanesque (1000-1150); Arts Antiqua (1150-1300); and Ars Nova (1300-1450). The Renaissance, in both the Early (1450-1500) and High (1500-1600), yielded to the Baroque Period (1750-1827) and Classical Period (1750-1827), in both the Rococo (1750-1775) and Classicism (1750-1827). The Romanticism in music (1815-1900) ended the nineteenth century; as both Contemporary Impressionism (1880-1920) and Twentieth Century extensions into the modern and postmodern came down upon us.
The Three Theories
The "T" Theory (tone, tune, time, tonic, timbre, theme, theory, etc.) gave way to the "C" Theory (chord, concord, consonance, cadence, concerto, chromatic, contrapuntal, counterpoint, etc.), with the "D" Theory (dissonance, diapason, demotic, decadence, deva, etc.) proceeding headlong with certain freedoms which have all but destroyed form in overwhelming proportions. Impersonal forces, plus time, plus chance have caused the search for chaos to become the companion of chance, and cosmos less important to the ways of men. Law, order, design, beauty, and purpose are slipping away from our modern, modern society with great acceleration.
However, it is obvious that having reached something of a zenith in homophony, binary, and polyphony music, the precipice of decline is underlined by the giving over of the emotional and the physical nature of man to the slough of drugs and fear and despair. Transcendental Meditation (TM) remains; Egyptian Occult thrives; and the New Age Music, at the present time, has become therapy to the very people who were damaged in Rock and Roll; and all of these named came upon us from satanic forces. Both are involved in sorcery (drugs) and divination (black and white magic). The Billy Graham Crusades and the Charismatic Conventions all share Rock music, from "sweet" to "acid" and "hard" rock. The law, order, design, purpose, and beauty vouchsafed to us from the Greek Classical is more and more being made into a synthesis with the contemporary sounds, which is the usual dump-heap for all existential things in our time.
The Enlightenment of the 17th and 18th centuries, claimed by free-thinkers and "Men of Reason," so-called, gave way to the voices of their cavaliers, lampooners, atheists, infidels, deists, and agnostics, at such a wholesale proportion that it became the sub-gravel for our own times. With the coming of the hippies and the advent of Rock and Roll, we could easily declare 1963-1970 as America's own "Seven-year Tribulation Period."
Even the models and the masters begin to fall into a quagmire of the "Enlightenment" and "postmodern" times, as we review the music of Richard Wagner, Cesar Franck, Edvard Grieg, Peter I. Tschaikowsky, Frederick Delius; and quickly dropping first names, Debussy, Ravel, Scriabin, Moussorgsky, and Cage; they all file by as sorrow and grief are increased in our hearts.
Ezekiel's Tabrets and Pipes; Daniel's Flute and Harp
The prophet Ezekiel gave the origin of music linked with Lucifer; Jubal gave us the first history of music; and the prophet Daniel gave the final prophecy of music.
Many Christian scholars believe that the passage dealing with the king of Tyre (Ezekiel 28:11-19) also reveals Satan as the source of the pride of Tyrus, king of Tyre. Therefore, the context is applicable to both the king of Tyre and something of the background and history of Satan leading up to his apostasy against the Most High God. There are superhuman references here that apparently describe someone other than the human ruler of Tyre, namely, Satan. If so, Satan's unique privileges before his fall are described (vv. 12-15), and the judgment upon his fall (vv. 16-19). Satan was the consummation of perfection in his original wisdom and beauty ("Thou sealest up the sum…"). His "covering" or robe was studded with precious gems. Satan had occupied a special place of prominence in guarding the throne of God. He was particularly gifted in the "workmanship" (production and performance) of the "tabrets" (toph; timbre; "to play with") and the "pipes" (neqeb; a tool for making a musical instrument; or, the instrument itself; emphasis on the workmanship of the instrument). Whereas we think of Jubal (Genesis 4:21) as the first human creature to lead in the production and performance of the "harp and organ," yet Satan was the original producer and performer of musical instruments prior to that time. It should be noted concerning Jubal that the harp and organ are better rendered from the original Hebrew words to be the "lyre and flute." We have already mentioned these instruments as being a part of the religious impetus of India and Egypt later on in history. If we knew all the labyrinths of paganism and heathenism after the days of the Way of Cain through his offspring, through Lamech, we no doubt would follow another confirmation of the extension of satanic influences and directions in satanic literature, poetry, and music.
In the case of the prophecy of Daniel we can see evidence, through a study of the musical instruments mentioned, the final flourishing of the great influence of Egypt and Babylon in the lives and history of the Children of Israel.
All the way back to the days of Jacob and Joseph, through the exodus of Israel under the leadership of Moses, Egypt has had influence upon the music of Israel and the Jews. The evidence indicates that Israel entered Egypt musically impotent. Their pastoral melodies were primitive and shapeless; their instruments were few and undeveloped. They had much inspiration to the art but very little means of expressing it in developed musical forms. However, Israel left Egypt with song vibrating on their lips. The Song of their crossing of the Red Sea was the first full song to be found in the Bible, the first song in the history of Hebrew music, and, some authorities indicate this to be the first great song in all of music, as set forth or having been found by historical research. The mentioning of Jubal as the father of music in the Bible does not reveal any song from him. Lamech composed a poem that might have been set to some kind of music, but it is only a fragment compared to the Song of Moses (cf. Genesis 4:23-24 & Exodus 15). Nevertheless, it is the first ballad in history.
From the Egyptians to the Hebrews
From the Egyptians, the Hebrews learned to give form and shape to their melodies by molding them into the narrow form of a scale. The Egyptian pentatonic scale, using the third-tone, gave way to what is identified as a musical tool of the Hebrews which they changed. Some Christians have assumed that the "eight-stringed" instrument was our diatonic scale of eight notes, using semitones. That is an assumption; that is not true. However, there is evidence of another scale which was used by the time of the days of King David.
The history of Hebrew musical instruments is presented something like this in the Bible. Jubal was the father of the harp and the pipe (lyre and flute). The tabret (a small drum) was later used to accompany the music of the pipe and mentioned in connection with Laban and Jacob. The "shofar" (believed to be made of a ram's horn), which is mentioned so frequently in the later pages of the Bible, was also a prominent feature of the synagogue, especially during High Holy Days. This substantially completes the list of the instruments of the Hebrews.
The other instruments of the Hebrews were patterned after those of the Egyptians. They are: the toph, timbrel, kinoir (lyre, harp), flute, horn, etc. These all were highly developed during the reign of King David. According to Rabbi Hanane, in his Schilti Haggiborim, as many as 36 different instruments were used for the Psalms. But this is controversial, there being no mention of instruments other than the following: the lute, the harp, cymbal, psaltery, organ, flute, cithara, cornet, sackbut, dulcimer, sistrum, bells, and trumpets; thirteen in all in the Old Testament. Also, there were certain wooden instruments which faintly foreshadowed the birth of the violin. The Davidic Period left us David's Psalms, some of the most genuinely beautiful things in ancient music. This music has pathos, sincerity, religious joys; and all expressed with remarkable felicity. We get this information from various descriptions in some of the writings of the times. But the music is actually gone; the words remain. Also, a knowledge of how they were conducted musically. Most of the Psalms in the days of David were sung antiphonally; that is, one choir sang one stanza and received as an answer the second stanza sung by the congregation. The modern synagogue claims this pattern today. The more festive Psalms abandoned the antiphonal; the congregation sang the refrain; and an orchestra of instruments performed, with the cantor as leader.
We should mention the time of Solomon when music found a new, great champion. Solomon, following in the footsteps of his father, devoted considerable energy towards musical activities. The 4,000 musical Levites swelled in number; Solomon himself composed new music, and music became more and more associated with religious service and worship.
King David established musical compositions both by the lyrics of the Psalm as well as compositions by the Psaltery. In the former, the words of the music became the catalyst for the creativity of the music by David; in the latter, the musical instrument, itself, stirred the words. Therefore, we see the distinction between the Psalm and the Psaltery.
From the Egyptians to the Babylonians
By the time of Daniel and the Three Hebrew Children, we see the burden of the Babylonian Captivity with the Hebrew people as slaves under Babylon. They have hung their harps on willow trees and responded to their enemy that they could not sing their songs in a strange land. Of course, most of their songs were of that land, a land in and around Jerusalem. So, God's people are brought back under an enemy like Egypt. Six musical instruments are mentioned and "all kinds of music," in the time of Daniel. Three of the six instruments bear Greek names, but that does not indicate the Greeks originated the instruments; they simply perfected it. All of these instruments can be found among the Egyptians, the Assyrians, some from India. Inscription stones identify them. The phrase, "all kinds of music" carries with it the meaning that the musical instruments were accompanied with "songs." The two oldest of the instruments are present: the flute and the harp; India and Egypt. The music on this occasion marked the religion, environment, peoples, lyrics, and instrumentational performers, and all of them in the context of a state religion. The Law has set the compulsion; the music has set the inducement. Such is our own time.
The Old Testament concludes with a Jewish remnant returning from Babylon back to Jerusalem. They have lost their songs and instruments: they must rebuild the architecture of their Temple; they have lost even the scholarly meaning of all of the superscriptions written to identify the musical rendition of their Psalms. They must start architecture and art again. Such is our own time; we must do the very same thing for the glory of the Lord Jesus in our churches.
This chapter has taken the necessary responsibility of setting forth the unholy spirit of the ancient pagan concepts of music. In view of the fact that we believe the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit, through Creation and sustaining Providence, continues to give birth, life, gifts, energies, talents, and a blueprint of privileges and responsibilities to each individual soul, we must avail ourselves of the leading and the anointing of the Holy Spirit upon our churches, through revival, and our musicians, through holiness. The entire constitutional nature of not only the individual but also the cultural and religious influences of their families brings all into a life as Hindu, Buddhist, Egyptian, Greek, European, or American with one major part of their nature given over to an environment which produces the historical tendency through which they must come to the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. Therefore, it is imperative that the Word of God be preached and applied and reaffirmed in each succeeding generation in such a way, by the Holy Spirit, that the Gospel will be revealed to that same constitutional nature of the individual soul that God intended through Creation. The Holy Spirit also does His work against the unholy spirit and spirits of each generation, too. Thus, we mark in another way the work of the Holy Spirit in heaven and earth.