Hurrian Hymn To Nikkal / No. 6 (1400 BCE)

D O W N L O A D: The cuneiform tablet (pictured above) on which this hymn was written dates from approximately 1200-50 , although some now date them as early as 1400 . There have been at least five major attempts to render the notation on this tablet into modern musical notation, each with different results. I chose Richard J. Dumbrill’s version due to its musical appeal rather than the likelihood of its correctness. “A Quick Word on Copyright“ (11/12/20): I have received several questions about the copyright of this piece over the years. Although the cuneiform tablets themselves do not fall under copyright for obvious reasons, Dumbrill’s transcription does; furthermore, although I used this score as a foundation, this particular audio recording is covered under “automatic copyright.“ Put simply, “I, myself, created the work and committed it to a form of media; therefore, I have de facto copyright.“ That being said, I am happy to allow people to use this recording for whatever purposes they choose. A credit would be nice, but it’s not something I’m too picky about; I’m just flattered that people enjoy it! Additionally, I’m interested to see what people do with it, so please send me a copy of your finished product if you can. Score: Further Readings: Crickmore, L. “New Light on the Babylonian Tonal System,” in ICONEA 2008: Proceedings of the International Conference of Near Eastern Archaeomusicology Held at the British Museum, December 4, 5 and 6, 2008, ed. Dumbrill R. J. and Finkel I. J. (London: ICONEA, 2010), 11–22. Crocker, Richard L. “Mesopotamian Tonal Systems.” Iraq 59 (1997): 189-202. Crocker R., and Kilmer A. D., “The Fragmentary Music Text from Nippur,” Iraq 46 (1984) 83–85. Dumbrill R., The Archaeomusicology of the Ancient Near East (Victoria, BC: Trafford, 2005), 75. Dumbrill R., “Evidence and Inference in Texts of Theory in the Ancient Near East,” in Dumbrill and Finkel, ICONEA 2008: Proceedings of the International Conference of Near Eastern Archaeomusicology, 105–15. Gurney, O. R. “An Old Babylonian Treatise on the Tuning of the Harp,” Iraq 30 (1968) 229–33. Gurney, O. R., and M. L. West. “Mesopotamian Tonal Systems: A Reply.” Iraq 60 (1998): 223-27. Kilmer, Anne Draffkorn. “The Discovery of an Ancient Mesopotamian Theory of Music.” Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 115, no. 2 (1971): 131-49. Kilmer, Anne Draffkorn. “THE CULT SONG WITH MUSIC FROM ANCIENT UGARIT : ANOTHER INTERPRETATION.” Revue D’Assyriologie Et D’archéologie Orientale 68, no. 1 (1974): 69-82. Kilmer, Anne, and Jeremie Peterson. “More Old Babylonian Music-Instruction Fragments from Nippur.” Journal of Cuneiform Studies 61 (2009): 93-96. Kilmer, A. D., and M. Civil. “Old Babylonian Musical Instructions Relating to Hymnody.” Journal of Cuneiform Studies 38, no. 1 (1986): 94-98. Kilmer, Anne, and Steve Tinney. “Old Babylonian Music Instruction Texts.” Journal of Cuneiform Studies 48 (1996): 49-56. Kilmer A. D. and Steve Tinney. “Correction to Kilmer/Tinney: Old Babylonian Music Instruction Texts,” JCS 49 (1997) 118. Krispijn, Th. J. H. “Musical ensembles in Ancient Mesopotamia.” in Richard Dumbrill, Irving Finkel (ed.): Proceedings of the International Conference of Near Eastern Archaeomusicology Held at the British Museum, December 4, 5 and 6, 2008. ICONEA Publications, London 2010, pp. 135–150 Mirelman, Sam. “A New Fragment of Music Theory from Ancient Iraq.” Archiv Für Musikwissenschaft 67, no. 1 (2010): 45-51. Shaffer A., “A New Musical Term in Ancient Mesopotamian Music,” Iraq 43 (1981) 79–83. West, M. L. “The Babylonian Musical Notation and the Hurrian Melodic Texts.” Music & Letters 75, no. 2 (1994): 161-79. Wulstan, David. “The Earliest Musical Notation.” Music & Letters 52, no. 4 (1971): 365-82.