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May 24, 2019 · While it is not certain how or when the first musical instrument was invented, most historians point to early flutes made from animal bones that are at least 37,000 years old. The oldest known written song dates back 4,000 years and was written in ancient cuneiform.
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- Piano
- The Neanderthal Flute
- Bullroarer
- Jiahu Gǔdí
- Tutankhamun’s Trumpets
- Xun
- Lithophone
- Lyres of Ur
- Auloi
- Bow Harp
- Shofar
Up first on our list of very old musical instruments is the Neanderthal flute. However, this isn’t the modern concert flute we recognize today; it’s theNeanderthal flute discovered in 1995 in a cave in Slovenia. It’s thought to be around 60,000 years old. It’s literally the oldest instrument in the world! It is made from the bone of a cave bear and...
Up next is the bullroarer, an ancient musical instrument that dates back to 18,000 BC. It can be found all over the globe. It’s usually a flat elliptical-shaped plank of wood with a long string attached to it. The wood ranges in size from four to 14 inches, some even as long as 28 inches. To use a bullroarer, a person holds the string and whirls th...
Our next instrument is one that can be traced back to roughly 6,000 BCE in China. This makes the Jiahu gǔdíthe oldest musical instrument from this country. To give you a little bit of context, the burial grounds of Jiahu in the Henan Province of central China contained artistic remains, including bone flutes. Six complete bone flutes and fragments ...
Another very old instrument is Tutankhamun’s trumpets, which were discovered in Pharaoh Tutankhamun’s burial chamber. They originated around 5,000 BC. Archaeologist Howard Carter was credited with having discovered the trumpets in 1922. One trumpet was about 19 inches in length and made of bronze. The other was silver and 22.5 inches long. The trum...
Another Chinese instrument makes an appearance on our list. The xunwas a famous instrument in ancient China. The one discovered in Zhejiang was 7,000 years old and is considered the oldest xun artifact. Other xun instruments were also discovered in other places, such as Henan. Xun is an egg-shaped clay sculpture with no more than ten holes on the e...
If it’s called a prehistoric instrument, then you know it’s really old. The lithophone, also known as the “rock gong,” is a percussion instrument made of rocks. It’s believed to have been invented between 8,000 and 2,500 BC. The oldest lithophone was discovered in Vietnam in 1949, consisting of 11 slabs of stones. Lithophones were also found in oth...
Four lyres were discovered in the Royal Cemetery of Ur, which was once part of ancient Mesopotamia. As they are over 4,500 years old, the Lyres of Urare the oldest stringed instruments. Each lyre had an animal head on the front of the sound box to identify its pitch. All these are box lyres, meaning they have a boxlike body. The performer plays by ...
Our next entry is an ancient Greek wind instrument. The auloiwere invented around 2,450 BC. It has two separate pipes, each double-reed, and played at the same time. That is why some would call them a double flute. Later, people would perform using only one pipe. The early auloi were made from wood or bone. Later on, other materials were used, such...
The bow harp, also known as benet, is a type of harp that originated in ancient Egypt. Throughout pharaonic history, it was one of the most popular musical instruments. Bow harps were said to originate in the first dynasty, making them a very old instrument. Harps were already in existence around 2,500 BC. By then, they were the kind of harp consis...
Up next is the shofar, a Jewish instrument traditionally made from the ram’s horn. The shapes and sizes differ depending on the animal and construction. It is blown like a trumpet. Notably, it has no pitch-altering mechanisms. The pitch control is done by modulating the player’s breath control using the lips, tongue, and teeth. In Biblical times, t...
‘Britain’s brass bands older than thought and invented Napoleonic War soldiers’
Britain’s brass bands are older than previously thought and were invented by soldiers from the Napoleonic Wars, a new study has found. A University of Cambridge historian ...
Shropshire Star
4 days ago
Fulham and Nigeria's Alex Iwobi on inspiring with his music as well as football
Iwobi's debut offering was Don't Shoot in June, which has been streamed almost 60,000 times on Spotify. The 28-year-old, who goes by the name '17', collaborated with his former ...
BBC News
1 day ago
Dec 21, 2023 · The earliest musical instruments were often derived from natural sources, such as rocks, bones, and hollow logs. These natural materials were transformed into basic percussion instruments, with their distinct tones and rhythms providing the foundation for early music-making.
The exact date and specific origin of the first device considered a musical instrument, is widely disputed. The oldest object identified by scholars as a musical instrument, is a simple flute, dated back 50,000–60,000 years. Many scholars date early flutes to about 40,000 years ago.
- Geisenklösterle Flutes. Age: 42,000 – 43,000 years old. Country of Origin: Geisenklösterle Cave, Blaubeuren, Germany. Material(s) Used: Mute Swan bone and Mammoth Ivory.
- Divje Babe Flute. Age: 43,100 years old. Country of Origin: Cerkno, Slovenia. Material(s) Used: Cave Bear Femur. photo source: Wikimedia Commons. Prior to the discovery of older bone flutes, the Divje Babe Flute was considered the oldest example of a musical instrument ever found in the world.
- Hohle Fels Flute. Age: 35,000 – 40,000 years old. Country of Origin: Hohle Fels Cave, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Material(s) Used: Griffon Vulture Bone. photo source: Wikimedia Commons.
- Isturitz Flutes. Age: 20,000 – 35,000 years old. Country of Origin: Isturitz Cave, France. Material(s) Used: Vulture Wing Bones. photo source: Flutopedia. The flutes found at the Isturitz archaeological site in southwestern France range in age from about 20,000 to 35,000 years old.
Timeline. 41000 BCE - 32768 BCE. First known musical instrument, a bone flute (found in modern-day Germany). c. 5000 BCE. The first aulos musical instruments are carved from bone. 2700 BCE - 2300 BCE. The first depiction in art of the aulos musical instrument appears in Cycladic sculpture. 2000 BCE.
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Oct 25, 2024 · The origins of musical instruments date back to prehistoric times. Archaeological discoveries suggest that early humans used natural objects such as stones, bones, and shells to create sound. These primitive instruments were likely used in rituals and for communication.
