Ancient Egyptians employed numerous professional musicians who performed on a range of occasions. Given Egyptian society was structured into different social strata, this inevitably implied some musicians were limited to performing for events in keeping with their professional strata.
A musician enjoying high social status could perform during feats and religious ceremonies within the temple grounds, while a lower status musician might be limited to performing at community events and for local employers.
The highest rank an Egyptian musician could aspire to achieve was the station of ‘shemayet’. This rank imbued those musicians with the right to perform for the gods and goddesses. Shemayet status musicians were inevitably women.
The Royal Family
The pharaoh royal family retained groups of eminent musicians for their personal entertainment and to perform on formal occasions. These included both musicians who played instruments as well as singers and dancers to accompany the musicians.
The people of ancient Egypt used their music to express their emotions and feelings. Whether praising the pharaoh and his family, their gods or simply celebrating the joy of everyday life music was a vital part of ancient Egyptian culture.
Reflecting On The Past
As the ancient Egyptians didn’t write down musical scores, what would their music sound like if we could hear it again today?
Header image courtesy: British Museum [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
