Book contents
- Music and Philosophy in the Roman Empire
- Music and Philosophy in the Roman Empire
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Notes on Contributors
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 The Scala Naturae and Music
- Chapter 2 Music and Plutarch’s Platonic Cosmos
- Chapter 3 The Harmoniser God
- Chapter 4 Alexander of Aphrodisias and Musical Models for Ontological Enquiries
- Chapter 5 How to Resist Musical Dogmatism
- Chapter 6 Shifting Epistemological Perspectives in Ptolemy’s Harmonics
- Chapter 7 Musical Imagery in Clement of Alexandria and Origen
- Chapter 8 Plotinus on Music, Rhythm, and Harmony
- Chapter 9 Porphyry’s Commentary on Ptolemy’s Harmonics
- Chapter 10 The Music of the Virtues in Late Ancient Platonism
- Chapter 11 Harmonics as Theological Paradigm in Proclus
- Chapter 12 Calcidius on Cosmic Harmony
- Chapter 13 Harmonia in Philoponus’ Commentary on Nicomachus’ Introduction to Arithmetic
- Bibliography
- Index Locorum
- General Index
Chapter 1 - The Scala Naturae and Music
Two Models in Philo’s Thought
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 November 2020
- Music and Philosophy in the Roman Empire
- Music and Philosophy in the Roman Empire
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Notes on Contributors
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 The Scala Naturae and Music
- Chapter 2 Music and Plutarch’s Platonic Cosmos
- Chapter 3 The Harmoniser God
- Chapter 4 Alexander of Aphrodisias and Musical Models for Ontological Enquiries
- Chapter 5 How to Resist Musical Dogmatism
- Chapter 6 Shifting Epistemological Perspectives in Ptolemy’s Harmonics
- Chapter 7 Musical Imagery in Clement of Alexandria and Origen
- Chapter 8 Plotinus on Music, Rhythm, and Harmony
- Chapter 9 Porphyry’s Commentary on Ptolemy’s Harmonics
- Chapter 10 The Music of the Virtues in Late Ancient Platonism
- Chapter 11 Harmonics as Theological Paradigm in Proclus
- Chapter 12 Calcidius on Cosmic Harmony
- Chapter 13 Harmonia in Philoponus’ Commentary on Nicomachus’ Introduction to Arithmetic
- Bibliography
- Index Locorum
- General Index
Summary
Philo’s interest in music is as known as it is overlooked in its philosophical implications. This chapter focuses on the importance of the musical paradigm in Philo’s thought and its relation to the other complementary model adopted by the philosopher: the pattern of the scala naturae, inherited from Stoicism. More specifically, Philo’s appeal to the notion of harmony introduces the idea of some orderly discontinuity in nature, implying both the transcendence of God and the limited condition of human rationality: the world is indeed governed by harmony, but only in the very qualified sense that it implies harmonically defined relationships between very distant entities. This ‘vertical’ harmony, however, is combined with a ‘horizontal’ one, for God also exerts his providence through harmony, while, in turn, music is the intellectual means by which man can contemplate the heavens and draw closer to God. These are not mere metaphors, for music represents a proper philosophical model for Philo that he applies to aspects which will prove fundamental in the post-Hellenistic age.
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- Music and Philosophy in the Roman Empire , pp. 21 - 37Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020
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