§19.37Διὰ τί τοῦ ἐν φωνῇ ὀξέος ὄντος κατὰ τὸ ὀλίγον, τοῦ δὲ βαρέος κατὰ τὸ πολύ (τὸ μὲν γὰρ βαρὺ διὰ τὸ πλῆθος βραδύ, τὸ δὲ ὀξὺ δι’ ὀλιγότητα ταχύ), ἔργον μᾶλλον ᾄδειν τὰ ὀξέα ἢ τὰ βαρέα, καὶ ὀλίγοι τὰ ἄνω δύνανται ᾄδειν, καὶ οἱ νόμοι ὄρθιοι καὶ οἱ ὀξεῖς χαλεποὶ ᾆσαι διὰ τὸ ἀνατεταμένοι εἶναι;
Why is it that, although the high pitch in voice corresponds to the small and the low pitch to the large (for the low pitch is slow because of its quantity, while the high pitch is fast because of its smallness), it is more of an effort to sing high notes than low ones, and only few can sing the high notes, and the Orthian songs and high-pitched songs are difficult to sing because they are strained?
καίτοι ἔλαττον ἔργον τὸ ὀλίγον κινεῖν ἢ τὸ πολύ, ὥστε καὶ ἀέρα.
And yet, it is less of an effort to move a small quantity than a large one, and thus also the air.
ἢ οὐ ταὐτό γε ὀξύφωνον εἶναι φύσει καὶ τὸ ὀξὺ ιιιἄδειν, ἀλλὰ φύσει μὲν ὀξύφωνα ἅπαντα δι’ ἀσθένειαν τῷ μὴ δύνασθαι πολὺν κινεῖν ἀέρα, ἀλλ’ ὀλίγον, ὁ δ’ ὀλίγος ταχὺ φέρεται, ἐν δὲ τῷ ιιιἄδειν τὸ ὀξὺ δυνάμεως σημεῖον.
Or is it that to be naturally high-voiced is not the same as to sing high, but rather, all are naturally high-voiced through weakness because they cannot move much air but only a little, and a little air is carried fast, whereas in singing, the high pitch is a sign of power?
τὸ μὲν γὰρ σφοδρῶς φερόμενον ταχὺ φέρεται, διὸ τὸ ὀξὺ δυνάμεως σημεῖον.
For that which is violently carried is carried fast, wherefore the high pitch is a sign of power.
διὸ καὶ οἱ ἑκτικοὶ ὀξύφωνοι.
Therefore also those of robust habit are high-voiced.
καὶ ἔργον τὰ ἄνω ᾄδειν· τὰ δὲ βαρέα κάτω.
And it is an effort to sing high notes, but low notes are easy.
§19.38Διὰ τί ῥυθμῷ καὶ μέλει καὶ ὅλως ταῖς συμφωνίαις χαίρουσι πάντες;
Why does everyone delight in rhythm, melody, and concord in general?
ἢ ὅτι ταῖς κατὰ φύσιν κινήσεσι χαίρομεν κατὰ φύσιν;
Is it because we naturally delight in natural movements?
σημεῖον δὲ τὸ τὰ παιδία εὐθὺς γενόμενα χαίρειν αὐτοῖς.
A proof of this is that children enjoy them as soon as they are born.
διὰ δὲ τὸ ἔθος τρόποις μελῶν χαίρομεν.
But we delight in the styles of melodies because of habit.
ῥυθμῷ δὲ χαίρομεν διὰ τὸ γνώριμον καὶ τεταγμένον ἀριθμὸν ἔχειν καὶ κινεῖν ἡμᾶς τεταγμένως· οἰκειοτέρα γὰρ ἡ τεταγμένη κίνησις φύσει τῆς ἀτάκτου, ὥστε καὶ κατὰ φύσιν μᾶλλον.
We delight in rhythm because it possesses a familiar and ordered number and moves us in an ordered manner; for ordered movement is by nature more akin to us than disordered movement, and thus also more natural.
σημεῖον δέ· πονοῦντες γὰρ καὶ πίνοντες καὶ ἐσθίοντες τεταγμένα σώζομεν καὶ αὔξομεν τὴν φύσιν καὶ τὴν δύναμιν, ἄτακτα δὲ φθείρομεν καὶ ἐξίσταμεν αὐτήν· αἱ γὰρ νόσοι τῆς τοῦ σώματος οὐ κατὰ φύσιν τάξεως κινήσεις εἰσίν.
A proof of this: when we exert ourselves, drink, and eat, we preserve and increase our nature and power in an ordered way, but in a disordered way we destroy and displace it; for diseases are movements of the body not according to its natural order.
συμφωνίᾳ δὲ χαίρομεν, ὅτι κρᾶσίς ἐστιν λόγον ἐχόντων ἐναντίων πρὸς ἄλληλα.
We delight in concord because it is a mixture of opposites that have a ratio to one another.
ὁ μὲν οὖν λόγος τάξις, ὃ ἦν φύσει ἡδύ.
Ratio, then, is order, which was by nature pleasant.
τὸ δὲ κεκραμένον τοῦ ἀκράτου πᾶν ἥδιον, ἄλλως τε κἂν αἰσθητὸν ὂν ἀμφοῖν τοῖν ἄκροιν ἐξ ἴσου τὴν δύναμιν ἔχοι ἐν τῇ συμφωνίᾳ ὁ λόγος.
And everything mixed is sweeter than the unmixed, especially if, being sensible, the ratio in concord holds its power equally at both extremes.
§19.39Διὰ τί ἥδιόν ἐστι τὸ σύμφωνον τοῦ ὁμοφώνου;
Why is concord more pleasant than unison?
ἢ καὶ τὸ μὲν ἀντίφωνον σύμφωνόν ἐστι διὰ πασῶν;
Or is it that antiphony is a concord based on the octave?
ἐκ παίδων γὰρ 〈καὶ〉 νέων καὶ ἀνδρῶν γίνεται τὸ ἀντίφωνον, οἳ διεστᾶσι τοῖς τόνοις ὡς νήτη πρὸς ὑπάτην.
For antiphony is produced by children, youths, and men, who differ in pitch as nete does from hypate.
συμφωνία δὲ πᾶσα ἡδίων ἁπλοῦ φθόγγου (δι’ ἃ δέ, εἴρηται), καὶ τούτων ἡ διὰ πασῶν ἡδίστη· τὸ ὁμόφωνον δὲ ἀπλοῦν ἔχει φθόγγον.
Every concord is more pleasant than a single sound (the reasons for this have been stated), and of these the octave is the most pleasant; whereas unison has a single sound.
μαγαδίζουσι δὲ ἐν τῇ διὰ πασῶν συμφωνίᾳ, ὅτι καθάπερ ἐν τοῖς μέτροις οἱ πόδες ἔχουσι πρὸς αὑτοὺς λόγον ἴσον πρὸς ἴσον ἢ δύο πρὸς ἓν ἢ καί τινα ἄλλον, οὕτω καὶ οἱ ἐν τῇ συμφωνίᾳ φθόγγοι λόγον ἔχουσι κινήσεως πρὸς αὑτούς.
And they magadize in the concord of the octave because, just as in meters the feet have a ratio to one another of equality, or of two to one, or some other, so also the sounds in concord have a ratio of movement to one another.
τῶν μὲν οὖν ἄλλων συμφωνιῶν ἀτελεῖς αἱ θατέρου καταστροφαί εἰσιν, εἰς ἥμισυ τελευτῶσαι· διὸ τῇ δυνάμει οὐκ ἴσαι εἰσίν.
In other concords, then, the endings of the other note are incomplete, terminating at the half; wherefore they are not equal in power.
οὖσαι δὲ ἄνισοι, διαφορὰ τῇ αἰσθήσει, καθάπερ ἐν τοῖς χοροῖς, ἐν τῷ καταλύειν μεῖζον ἄλλων φθεγγομένοις ἐστίν.
And being unequal, they cause a difference to perception, just as in choruses, when at the conclusion some sing louder than others.
ἔτι δὲ ὑπάτῃ συμβαίνει τὴν αὐτὴν τελευτὴν τῶν ἐν τοῖς φθόγγοις περιόδων ἔχειν.
Furthermore, it happens that the hypate has the same ending of the periods in the sounds.
ἡ γὰρ δευτέρα τῆς νεάτης πληγὴ τοῦ ἀέρος ὑπάτη ἐστίν.
For the second stroke of the air by the nete is the hypate.
τελευτώσαις δ’ εἰς ταὐτόν, οὐ ταὐτὸν ποιούσαις, ἓν καὶ κοινὸν τὸ ἔργον συμβαίνει γίνεσθαι, καθάπερ τοῖς ὑπὸ τὴν ᾠδὴν κρούουσιν· καὶ γὰρ οὗτοι τὰ ἄλλα οὐ προσαυλοῦντες, ἐὰν εἰς ταὐτὸν καταστρέφωσιν, εὐφραίνουσι μᾶλλον τῷ τέλει ἢ λυποῦσιν ταῖς πρὸ τοῦ τέλους διαφοραῖς, τῷ τὸ ἐκ διαφόρων τὸ κοινόν, ἥδιστον ἐκ τοῦ διὰ πασῶν γίνεσθαι.
When they end in the same place, though not doing the same thing, a single and common work happens to be produced, just as with those who strike [the strings] to accompany the song; for these too, though not playing the flute to accompany the rest, if they end in the same place, give more pleasure at the end than pain by the differences before the end, because the common element from different sources is produced most pleasantly by the octave.
τὸ δὲ μαγαδίζειν ἐξ ἐναντίων φωνῶν.
And magadizing consists of opposite voices.
διὰ ταῦτα ἐν τῇ διὰ πασῶν μαγαδίζουσιν.
For these reasons they magadize in the octave.
§19.40Διὰ τί ἥδιον ἀκούουσιν ᾀδόντων ὅσα ἂν προεπιστάμενοι τύχωσι τῶν μελῶν, ἢ ἐὰν μὴ ἐπιστῶνται;
Why do people listen with more pleasure to songs when they happen to know the melodies beforehand than when they do not know them?
πότερον ὅτι μᾶλλον δῆλός ἐστιν ὁ τυγχάνων ὥσπερ σκοποῦ, ὅταν γνωρίζωσι τὸ ᾀδόμενον;
Is it because the singer's success, as if hitting a target, is more obvious when they recognize what is being sung?
γνωριζόντων δὲ ἡδὺ θεωρεῖν.
And for those who recognize it, contemplation is pleasant.
ἢ ὅτι συμπαθής ἐστιν ὁ ἀκροατὴς τῷ τὸ γνώριμον ᾄδοντι;
Or is it because the listener feels sympathy with the one singing what is familiar?
συνᾴδει γὰρ αὐτῷ.
For he sings along with him.
ᾄδει δὲ πᾶς γεγηθὼς ὁ μὴ διά τινα ἀνάγκην ποιῶν τοῦτο.
And everyone sings with joy when doing so not out of some necessity.