The Power of Music

This is from Cassiodorus, a Christian from around the 5th – 6th century commenting on Psalms 81:4.  I think it is neat:

‘Blow up the trumpet at the beginning of the month, on the day of your noted solemnity.’…It should be observed that we are enjoined to hymn the Lord and celebrate the solemn day with instruments for musical performance; just as those instruments sweetly combine to produce pleasant melody and a single harmony, so all our actions can be directed to the Lord and offered to his ears with the most pleasant intonation.  The discipline of music incorporates great power and knowledge that brings delight; teachers of secular literature, through the generosity of God who grants all that is useful have made it possible through theoretical texts to ascertain what was earlier regared as hidden from view in the nature of the world.  The first division of this discipline, then, is into harmonics, rhythmics and metrics.  The second division, that of musical instruments, is between percussion, strings and wind.  The thrid division is into six harmonies, the fourth into fifteen tones.  In this way the virtue of his most beautiful discipline is unfolded by distinctions made a long time ago.  We read in secular works that many miracles were brought forth by these measures.  But we need say nothing of this fabulous material; we read that by means of David’s tuneful harp the demon was expelled from Saul.  The divine reading attests that the walls of Jericho at once collapsed at the din of trumpets.  So there is no doubt that the sounds of music, at the Lord’s command or with his permission, have unleashed great forces. [Emphasis mine]