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Definition
Pan Flute
The pan flute or panpipes (syrinx) was a musical wind instrument first used by the ancient Greeks. Most commonly played by shepherds, the earliest use was in the Cycladic islands in the third millennium BCE, and representations of the instrument...
Image
Terracotta Pelike Showing Flute Player and Boxers
This pelike, or wine jar, is a Greek piece, specifically Attic, displaying beautiful black-figure work customary of Athenian pottery. The scene shows a flute player and two boxers. It was dated to the Archaic period c. 510 BCE. The painter...
Definition
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) was an Austrian composer who wrote a wide range of works including piano concertos, string quartets, symphonies, operas, and sacred music. Regarded as one of or perhaps the greatest natural musical talent...
Definition
Hector Berlioz
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) was the leading French composer of Romantic music, best known for his innovative Symphonie fantastique and use of large-scale orchestras and choruses in works like The Trojans opera. Berlioz's innovative style brought...
Definition
Marsyas
Marsyas the satyr, or silen, was seen as a mythological founder of aulos playing or a divine judge of it by the ancient Greeks. The way in which his aulos playing enraptured his audience was likened to the way in which Socrates mesmerised...
Interview
Interview: Dragonfly Song by Wendy Orr
In this interview, Ancient History Encyclopedia is talking to Wendy Orr about her first historical fiction novel set in the Aegean Bronze Age, Dragonfly Song. Kelly Macquire (AHE): Wendy, thank you for joining me! Do you want to start...
Definition
Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) was an Italian violin virtuoso and composer of baroque music (c. 1600-1750). Best known for his violin concertos, notably The Four Seasons, Vivaldi made a significant contribution to the evolution of instrumental...
Definition
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso noted for his solo piano music. Chopin's work helped make the piano the most popular musical instrument of the 19th century. One of the great composers of Romantic music, Chopin's...
Definition
Hetaira
A hetaira (pl. hetairai) was an educated female prostitute in ancient Greece and a common participant in symposia or drinking parties in private homes. Sometimes referred to in English as a courtesan, the Greek term hetaira was a euphemism...
Definition
Parthian Culture
Stretching between China and India in the east to the Mediterranean in the west, Parthia ruled over one of the widest expanses of empire in its time and Parthian culture flourished for 500 years (247 BCE to 224 CE). While known for their...