Shaping Character: An Ancient Science of Musical Ethos?

Abstract

The idea that the effect of music on the human soul crucially affects matters of education and politics is first found in Plato, with reference to Damon of Athens (5th century BCE). On the basis of a late antique treatise by Aristides Quintilianus, which also refers to Damon, the latter has been ascribed a full-fledged theory of musical ethos. The present contribution critically evaluates the sources from Plato through Aristotle and up until Aristides, arguing for a reading of Plato’s Republic that does not consider opinions on musical details reflecting the authorial voice, as well as for the absence in the classical era of a musical ethos theory that was based on technical reasoning.

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