Olympus (musician)

Olympus (or Olympos, Greek: Ὄλυμπος) is the name of two ancient Greek musicians, one mythical who lived before the Trojan war, and one apparently real, who lived in the 7th century BC. Both musicians were connected with the auletic music, which had its origin in Phrygia. It is possible that the elder and mythical Olympus was invented through some mistake respecting the younger and historical Olympus.

Instrumental music was apparently introduced into Greece by Olympus.

The elder Olympus belongs to the mythical genealogy of Mysian and Phrygian flute-players - Hyagnis, Marsyas, Olympus — to each of whom the invention of the flute was ascribed, and under whose names we have the mythical representation of the contest between the Phrygian auletic and the Greek citharoedic music: some writers made him the father (instead of son, or disciple, and favourite of Marsyas), but the genealogy given above was that more generally received. Olympus was said to have been a native of Mysia, and to have lived before the Trojan war. The compositions ascribed to him were old melodies appropriated to the worship of particular gods, the origin of which was so ancient as to be unknown, like those attributed to Olen and Philammon. Olympus not infrequently appears on works of art, as a boy, sometimes instructed by Marsyas, and sometimes as witnessing and lamenting his fate. He was also said to be a student of the mythological god Pan in the playing of the flute, and numerous ancient works of art still exist depicting them wrestling.

The historical Olympus was a Phrygian, and perhaps belonged to a family of native musicians, since he was said to be descended from the first Olympus. He is placed by Plutarch at the head of auletic music, as Terpander stood at the head of the citharoedic: and on account of his inventions in the art, Plutarch even assigns to him, rather than to Terpander, the honour of being the father of Greek music. With respect to his age, the Suda places him under a king Midas, son of Gordius; but this tells us nothing, for these were alternately the names of all the Phrygian kings to the time of Croesus. He may have lived after Terpander and before Thaletas, that is, between the 30th and 40th Olympiads, 660-620 BC. Though a Phrygian by origin, Olympus must be reckoned among the Greek musicians; for all the accounts make Greece the scene of his artistic activity, and his subjects Greek; and he had Greek disciples, such as Crates and Hierax. He may, in fact, be considered as having naturalized in Greece the music of the flute, which had previously been almost peculiar to Phrygia. This species of music admitted of much greater variations than that of the lyre; and, accordingly, several new inventions are ascribed to Olympus. The greatest of his inventions was that of the third system, or genus, of music, the Enharmonic.

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