The People of Israel sings 10 Part II The musical officials in the Temple are Greek inspired

In the past we pointed to the important family element found in the temple's musical system. This phenomenon was common in neighboring Egypt and Mesopotamia. So much so that it took shape towards the establishment of musical guilds with a family foundation. Turns out there were a lot of musical roles

Am Yisrael Sher 10 Part I: Musical instructions of the period

e) The musical supervisors in the temple

General distinction

In the previous chapters about the second temple we wanted to point out the important family element found in the musical system of the temple. This phenomenon was common in neighboring Egypt and Mesopotamia. To such an extent that it took shape towards the establishment of musical guilds with a family foundation, those that occupied the benches of the secret and closed musical studio located in the temple.

This phenomenon received a stage of organization and institutionalization in the Greek period and especially in the Hellenistic period. These associations were usually associated with the municipal theater. It seems that a general effect was also felt in the Land of Israel, during the period when the House of Herod and Agrippa marveled at the establishment of theaters and their cultivation. A period in which Greek influence penetrated even the temple, at least much more than the period that preceded it, and this was expressed in orders, practices and even in various accessories, and in our case - even in musical signs.

Since the temple was built by Herod in 20 BC, there has been a change in regards to the musical directors in the temple, and especially - from the time of Agrippa II (63 BC). I would like to shed light on the entire affair in the retirement of the musical appointees as follows:

Ben Arza

The Mishnah lists among the lists of those appointed in the temple "Ben Arza on the bell" (Shekel 14:XNUMX), and the Tosefta instructs that "which are the officials who were in the temple: Yochanan ben Gudgda for locking the gates... Arza (the text in the Katha'i and Yaan: "Ben Arza") On the stand..." (Tosefta Shekelim XNUMX:XNUMX).

Apparently a lack of clarity, but not a question. Ben Erza, whether he was a Levite or a priest, was a sort of conductor of the Levite choir, giving the signal to the Levites to burst into song and play the musical instruments in the perpetual sacrifice ceremony, and this by ringing the bell while standing on the "pulpit". As mentioned, out of the dozen musical instruments of the Levites, the bell was the only one and the intensity of its sounds was high.

This officer apparently belonged to a musical family, according to Gilda, whose musical skill in operating the bell was probably passed down from generation to generation. And as stated before us, an appointed member of the circumstances of the new period in question.

Hogars ben Levi

In the list of appointees is "Hogers ben Levi - (appointed) for the song" (from Shekelim XNUMXth year XNUMX). A line of sources testified to his musical skill: "He would know a chapter in a song" (from Yoma XNUMX) and also - "Naima Yatira would know." And they said about him, about Hogars ben Levi, who used to make his voice a singer, and when he would put (a) his mouth into his mouth, he would utter several kinds of singers, and there were his priestly brothers (one should say - the Levites) who called him Bat Rash (Bat Rash); "And he puts his fingers between the capillaries and raises his voice in a pleasant way and he would bring out all kinds of singers..." (Song of Songs Raba XNUMX).

Before us is therefore an appointee from the Levite family, who was head and first of the Levite choir. This supervisor was skilled in musical ability. The worshipers in the temple would distinguish the "song of the day" from chapter to chapter, or from pleasant to pleasant by changing the orchestral accompaniment - with each ending one of the flutists would "slide" a single oboe, or other agreed upon signs, which only a few among the musical worshipers would find. One of them, the most senior of them, was Hogers (or Hogdes) ben Levi.

The musical knowledge and performance ability possessed by the aforementioned supervisor were considered a professional secret, a secret passed down in the family, such that only a few had the privilege of sharing it. This secrecy, which radiated family pride, was involved in the origins of the time in a very interesting case, the basis of which was an important core of the subject of our discussion. Well, with the exception of Hogars, the Mishnah counted the "house of Garmo (the person in charge) of the bread of the face" (XNUMX shekels XNUMX), baking it and letting it cool from the oven so that it would not break, was an art and a secret art passed down in the family for generations. And the Mishnah went on to present the "Beit Abtins (probably from Greek) on the act of incense" (ibid.), which through its feeding and through the use of special symbols to raise a cloud of smoke that rose and rose and did not turn to the sides, was also an examination of a professional secret in the temple. Also included was Ben Kamtzer (again from Greek), whose art was outstanding in the special craft of writing in the temple.

It seems that within the framework of the changes of the last decade to the number of the Second Temple days, the sages asked to appoint new numbers in the above four fields: poetry, the bread of the face, the burning of the incense and the craft of writing. However, the previous superiors refused to teach the secrets of the profession to the new ones. So the sages sought to condemn them, but to no avail. Ask to bring experts from Alexandria, ask to double, triple and even quarter their salary, but to no avail. All of them, with the exception of Ben Kamtzer, explained their refusal convincingly. The sages therefore understood that they were wrong, forgave them and blessed them.

It should be noted by the way that, unlike Beit Abtins or Beit Garmo, the Sages did not send to call and summon experts from Alexandria, when it has always been known for its musical flourishing, in relation to Hogars ben Levi (although, as we will see later, when certain musical instruments in the temple broke down, they sometimes turned to the Alexandrian musicians And this is to teach us that his professional musical secret was, in terms of Hada Badra, without equal.

The reasoning of the old/new appointees was interesting: "Beit Abba knew that the temple was going to be destroyed and they did not want to teach, that they should not do the same for foreign work as they did before (the destruction of the temple)..." In other words, the fear of the above-mentioned families, that the secret of the profession was passed on to them, was rooted in the anxiety that sharing the secret with other families could spell disaster in this regard, since the secret could be revealed to the Romans (after all, we are, after all, in the last years of the house and serving the The pagan worship "in this matter", as the Tosefta emphasized: "Let them (the aforementioned families, excluding Ben Kamtzer) be praised..." (Yuma 6:5-XNUMX).

This is to teach us, among other things, about the importance they attributed to significant secrets, those that included techniques of performing crafts and arts that went with the holy service, including musical secrets, which were worthy of being guarded at all times.

It is interesting, by the way, that in later traditions Hogars ben Levi appeared as the only figure among all the families listed above, who was not punished. It seems that this aspect is based on the special importance attributed to singing in the Temple and that it became very strong mainly from the third century CE onwards (which we will discuss in one of the following chapters) and this is due to the special circumstances of that period.

It is possible that the families' chapter may lead to an assumption about a certain degree of Greek-Hellenistic influence in the Temple. Except for the house of Ebatins, which is of Greek origin, there are hands to shred because the name "Hogers" was nothing but a nickname that stuck to him due to his professional skill. Whether "Cruso" as having an adoring voice, or "Agreso" as alert, standing on guard, is more suitable for the role and skill of Hogers ben Levi, we cannot decide. Either way, a study of the Greek terminology might be interesting.

At the end of this section, it is appropriate to raise an assumption that is based on consideration, although there is no conclusive evidence on the matter: in the Jerusalem Talmud, the craft of preparing perfumes for the worship ceremonies in the temple is included. This craft was both art and craft. The degree of strictness required by the Sages was emphasized in the tradition, where "she (the expert) lacked one of her qualities...we shall be bound by her death", and this passage is taken from the same source in the Jerusalem Talmud (Yoma chapter XNUMX, MA, page XNUMX).

Near the enumeration of the necessary sequence of actions of the perfumer, the expert, the taster, the Jerusalem Talmud says this: "He (the expert) said: tighten well, that the voice is beautiful for perfumes." Would it be far from assuming, because the order of operations of the expert perfume, which was secret, was laid out in lines of poetry, which made the order of work easier so that, God forbid, one or the other would not be forgotten. And by the way, this phenomenon of mobilizing the music, the rhymed, somewhat rhyming song, for the purposes of remembrance is found in the traditions of the period, even in other interesting topics, such as "Who is a fourth to the hands / for one even for two / from half a log to three or four / from a log to five and ten and a hundred" (From the Year of the Hands XNUMX), such as, for example, anthropologically, in Africa or Latin America. And if the Jerusalem Talmud enumerates, immediately after Parshat Bash'im, the Parshat of burning the incense, then the musical connection, and in particular in light of the entire discussed section, may take on a special dimension.

Proclamation cheeses

Next to Ben Arza and Hogars Ben Levy, the Mishna counted "Kroz Cheese" (Shekels XNUMX). Gabini's role was to announce every morning: "The priests to work and the Levites to the pulpit and Israel to the stand" (Yerushalmi Shekelim chapter XNUMX MHXNUMX p. XNUMX), and this before the beginning of the perpetual sacrifice ceremony.

Although this is obviously not a musical task, and the reason for mentioning Gebini lies in the fact that he was endowed with a tremendous voice, one that could be heard as far as Jericho, as the "testimony" of the source, to teach us about the importance they attributed to the special qualities of sounds, which comes up in the tradition regarding the unusual admiration of King Agrippa II regarding his voice of cheese And it is possible that the nickname "proclaimed cheese" is rooted in the Greek language - kiroso which means having a mighty voice.

Who were the "flutes before the altar"?

This question sparked a debate among the sages of the Mishnah. Rabbi Meir believed that these were the servants of the priests, according to Rabbi Yossi they were privileged families from Judah and according to Rabbi Hanina they were Levites.

In any case, the flute played before the altar was considered a novelty following the privilege of King Agrippa II and the victory of the Pharisees in the last decade of the Temple.

It seems that the sources refer to the period when the temple music reached its peak and underwent certain changes, the main ones being organization and institutionalization in the form of special appointments, in the form of binding musical instructions, when the Hill flute took an important place in the temple music, to the point of introducing this instrument into the family of the Levites' musical instruments on the "pulpit". And following this innovation, tradition included it among those important musical instruments whose sound emanated in Jerusalem and echoed as far as Jericho.

All the episodes of the series are under the tag: Israel sings