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Choral poetry is a type of lyric poetry that was created by the ancient Greeks and performed by choruses (see Greek chorus). Originally, it was accompanied by a lyre, a string instrument like a small U-shaped harp commonly used during Greek classical antiquity and later periods. During public religious festivals and important family functions, performances of archaic choral lyric poetry were often presented by choruses of both men and women. The archaic choral lyric poetry spanned about three hundred years, starting with the poet, Alcman, in the 7th century BCE and evolving to the works of Timotheos (or Timotheus of Miletus) in the 4th century BCE. In the beginning, choral poetry was mainly religious and the personal elements disappeared completely in later choral poems. It also detached itself from local ties and assumed Hellenic character. 〔(Greek Lyric Poetry: A Complete Selection of the Surviving Passages from the Greek Song-Writers )〕 These are commonly known subgenres for choral lyric poetry: * The marriage song (Epithalamium) or (Hymenaios) * The dancing song * The lament or dirge (Threnos〔(Merriam-Webster's Dictionary )〕) * The paean of praise to a god * The maiden song (Partheneion or Parthenion) * The processional (Prosodion) * The hymn * The dithyramb And in later years: * Praise for people (Enkomion) * Song at a party or symposium (Skolion)〔(Ancient History on Choral Lyric Poetry on ancienthistory.about.com )〕 ==Alcman== Alcman was a 7th century BCE poet who represents the earliest Alexandrian canon of the nine lyric poets. His choral poetry was known only through quotations by other Greek authors until 1855, when a discovery of a papyrus was found in a tomb at the Saqqara ancient burial ground in Egypt. This papyrus, now displayed at the Louvre in Paris, held the fragment with approximately 100 verses of his Partheneion (a poem sung by a chorus of adolescent girls).〔(Biography of Alcman on poemhunter.com )〕 Here is an example of choral poetry, from Alcman's Partheneion:〔(Translation from Harvard University's Center for Hellenic Studies )〕 :::"Having devised evil deeds, they suffered () in a way that cannot be forgotten. :::There is such a thing as retribution from the gods. :::Blessed () is he who, with a sound disposition, :::weaves through the time of day :::without punishment that makes him weep. And I sing :::the radiance of Agido, seeing :::her as the sun, which for us :::is shown by Agido - she is the eyewitness :::to shine () with its sunlight. But for me to praise () her :::or to blame () her is not allowed by the glorious () leader of the chorus (= Hagesikhora )" A photo of the papyrus containing Alcman's Partheneion fragment can be seen here: (''Partheneion fragment on papyrus'' ) 〔(Very Small Scripts by Kathleen McNamee )〕 Another Ancient Greek lyric poet, named Pindar, justified and exalted choral poetry at a time when society was turning away from it. He was also one of the nine lyric poets (like Alcman), and is said to be the greatest, despite the fact that his work is known to be challenging to read and appreciate. 〔(Pindar on ancienthistory.about.com )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「choral poetry」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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