Music and creativity in Ancient Greece - Tim Hansen

Prevoditelj: Martina Valković Recezent: Ivan Stamenković

We live in a society

Živimo u društvu

obsessed with music.

opsjednutom glazbom.

We use music to worship,

Koristimo glazbu kako bi obožavali,

tell stories,

pričali priče,

to celebrate,

slavili,

to work,

radili,

exercise,

vježbali,

declare our love

izjavili ljubav

and sometimes our hatred,

i, ponekad, mržnju,

and, arguably most importantly,

i najvažnije,

to dance.

plesali.

And, of course, we play music ourselves

I naravno, sami stvaramo glazbu

because, well, it's a pleasant thing to do.

jer je to ugodno.

Thousands of years ago in Ancient Greece,

Tisućama godina ranije u antičkoj Grčkoj,

when it came to music,

što se glazbe tiče

things weren't much different.

stvari se nisu mnogo razlikovale.

They might have had lyres and tunics

Možda su imali lire i tunike

instead of MP3 players and jeans,

umjesto MP3 playera i traperica,

but the Ancient Greeks were just as obsessed

no stari Grci bili su jednako opsjednuti

with music as we are today.

glazbom poput nas danas.

In fact, music was such an important part

Zapravo, glazba je bila toliko važan dio

of Ancient Greek society

starogrčkog društva

that it makes us seem tame by comparison.

da u usporedbi s njim djelujemo dosadno.

To really understand just how integral music was

Kako bi zaista razumjeli koliko je glazba bila važna

to the Ancient Greeks,

starim Grcima,

let's begin by acquainting ourselves

upoznajmo se

with a bit of their mythology.

s malo njihove mitologije.

In Ancient Greek mythology,

U starogrčkoj mitologiji,

it was believed that human creativity

vjerovalo se da je ljudska kreativnost

was the result of divine inspiration

rezultat božanske inspiracije

from a group of goddesses known as the Muses.

grupe božica poznatih kao Muze.

While scholars have argued over the years

Dok su stručnjaci tijekom godina smatrali

that there are anything between 3 and 13 Muses,

da je broj Muza negdje između tri i trinaest,

the standard number accepted today is 9.

broj koji je standardno danas prihvaćen je 9.

Each Muse oversees her own specific area

Svaka Muza nadgleda svoje specifično područje

of artistic expertise,

umjetničke ekspertize,

ranging from song and dance

u rasponu od pjesme i plesa

to history and astronomy.

do povijesti i astronomije.

It might seem strange to categorize

Može djelovati čudnom kategorizacija

history and astronomy as creative pursuits,

povijesti i astronomije kao kreativnih radnji,

but the Ancient Greeks saw these disciplines

no stari Grci su te discipline vidjeli

as more than just school subjects.

kao više od pukih školskih predmeta.

These were the hallmarks of civilization

One su bile znaci civilizacije

in what, to their eyes,

u onome što se njima činilo

was a pretty barbaric world.

kao vrlo barbarski svijet.

An educated, civilized person

Za obrazovanu, civiliziranu osobu

was expected to be proficient

očekivalo se da bude vješta

in all aspects of creative thought

u svim aspektima kreativne misli

inspired by the Muses,

inspirirane Muzama,

and the common medium

a zajednički medij

through which these disciplines were taught,

kroz koji su te discipline

studied,

poučavane, učene

and disseminated

i rasprostranjivane

was music.

bila je glazba.

You see, it's no coincidence

Nije slučajnost

that the word Muse is very similar

što je riječ Muza jako slična

to the word music.

riječi muzika.

It's where the word originates.

To je podrijetlo te riječi.

Poetry, be it a love poem

Poezija, bilo ljubavna pjesma

or an epic poem about a dragon-slaying hero,

ili epska poema o junaku koji ubija zmaja,

was sung with a musical accompaniment.

bila je pjevana uz glazbenu pratnju.

Dancing and singing, obviously,

Plesanje i pjevanje, očito,

were accompanied by music.

bili su praćeni glazbom.

Theater was always a combination

Teatar je uvijek bio kombinacija

of spoken word and music.

govorene riječi i glazbe.

History was recounted through song.

Povijest je bila pripovijedana kroz pjesmu.

Even the study of astronomy

Čak je i proučavanje astronomije

was linked to the same physical principles

bilo vezano uz iste fizičke principe

as musical harmony,

kao i glazbena harmonija,

such as the belief held by many Greek thinkers

poput vjerovanja mnogih grčkih mislioca

that each of the planets and stars

da svaki od planeta i zvijezda stvara

created their own unique sound

svoj vlastiti jedinstveni zvuk

as they traveled through the cosmos,

dok putuje kroz kozmos,

thrumming like an enormous guitar string

odjekujući poput goleme, svjetlosnim godinama

light-years long.

dugačke gitarske žice.

However, music pervaded more aspects of their lives

No, osim u obrazovanju, glazba je bila prisutna i u

than just education.

drugim aspektima njihovih života.

Ancient Greeks considered music

Stari su Grci smatrali glazbu

to be the basis for understanding

temeljem razumijevanja

the fundamental interconnectedness

fundamentalne povezanosti

of all things in the universe.

svih stvari u univerzuumu.

This concept of connectivity

Ovaj koncept povezanosti

is known as harmonia,

poznat je kao harmonia,

and it's where we get the word harmony.

i odavdje dolazi riječ harmonija.

Music was used as a form of medicine

Glazba je korištena kao oblik liječenja

to treat illnesses and physical complaints,

za bolesti i tjelesne boljke,

as a vital accompaniment to sporting contests,

kao važna pratnja sportskim natjecanjima

and as a means to keep workers in time

i kao sredstvo za usklađivanje radnika

as they toiled away on monotonous or menial tasks.

dok su mukotrpno obavljali monotone ili mehaničke zadatke.

One of the most important applications

Jednu od najvažnijih primjena

of music in Ancient Greek society

glazbe u starogrčkom društvu

is found in the belief

nalazimo u uvjerenju

that music can affect a person's ethos.

da glazba može utjecati na ethos osobe.

A word we still use today,

Riječ koju i danas koristimo,

ethos is a person's guiding beliefs

ethos su uvjerenja kojima se vodimo

or personal ethics,

ili osobna etika,

the way that one behaves

način na koji se osoba ponaša

towards oneself and others.

prema sebi i drugima.

The Greek philosopher Plato,

Grčki filozof Platon,

one of the most famous

jedan od najpoznatijih i

and influential Greek thinkers of the time,

najutjecajnijih grčkih mislioca u to doba,

asserted that music had a direct effect

smatrao je da glazba ima direktan utjecaj

on a person's ethos.

na ethos osobe.

Certain kinds of music

Određene vrste glazbe

could incite a person to violence

mogu potaknuti osobu na nasilje,

while others could placate a person

dok druge mogu uljuljati osobu

into a benign, unthinking stupor.

u dobroćudnu, nepromišljenu uspavanost.

According to Plato,

Prema Platonu,

only very specific types of music

samo su vrlo specifični tipovi

were beneficial to a person's ethos.

glazbe blagotvorni za nečiji ethos.

One should only listen to music

Trebali bi slušati samo glazbu

that promotes intelligence,

koja promovira inteligenciju,

self-discipline,

samodisciplinu,

and courage,

i hrabrost,

and all other kinds of music must be avoided.

a sve druge vrste glazbe treba izbjegavati.

Furthermore, Plato fervently denounced

Nadalje, Platon gorljivo osuđuje

any music that deviated

svaku glazbu koja odstupa

from established musical conventions,

od ustaljenih glazbenih konvencija,

fearing that doing so

bojeći se da

would lead to the degradation

bi to vodilo do degradacije

of the standards of civilization,

civilizacijskih standarda,

the corruption of youth,

kvarenja mladeži,

and eventually complete and utter anarchy.

i konačno do potpune anarhije.

While Plato's fears can seem extreme,

Dok se Platonovi strahovi čine ekstremnima,

this argument has appeared in modern times

ovakav se argument javljao i u moderno doba

to condemn musical trends

kako bi se osudili

such as jazz or punk or rap.

glazbeni trendovi poput jazza, punka ili rapa.

What do you think Plato would say

Što mislite, što bi Platon rekao

about the music you listen to?

o glazbi koju slušate?

Is it beneficial to your ethos,

Je li blagotvorna za vaš ethos,

or will it degenerate you

ili će vas degenerirati

into a gibbering, amoral barbarian?

u frfljavog, nemoralnog barbarina?