Georgian Polyphonic Music

The Origins of Western Polyphony

Essay from the year 2011 in the subject Musicology, grade: 90.0, University of San Francisco (Saint Ignatius Institute), course: Music and Art, language: English, abstract: Language and song are the most predominant markers that define cultural identity. Both allow an individual and a society to create not only a composite image of the world through word, but also interpret it and express it through an art as timeless as music. Cultures around the world have formulated individual music styles, instruments, and sounds to be able to express the mindset within their socio-cultural identities. From the Americas, to Africa and especially in Europe and Asia, the ethnic groups and peoples who populated the land formulated their own sense of self through the art and song they were able to produce. Nestled on the Eastern coast of the Black Sea, the country of Georgia can trace its civilization back into the stories out of Greek Antiquity. Made famous to the Western world of the past through the story of Jason and the Argonauts, the land became known as one plentiful in gold and wine. Although the lands were materially abundant in the stories of the Greek poets, the peoples of the Caucasuses found their wealth through the culture they cultivated over the decades.