Early Sounds from Etruria: musical scenery between Villanovan (IX century – 720 B.C.) and Orientalizing (720 – 580 B.C.) ages

Résumé En

Music in Etruria is a topic widely discussed mainly as regards the archaic period. In this period there are many evidences, from both the material culture (realia, painted figures on pottery, tomb walls, sarcophagi, reliefs, mirrors, bronze or terracotta figurines and architectural elements) and literary sources. The matter has blurred outlines for earlier ages: Villanovan and Orientalizing. Although the number of documents currently available is limited, percussion instruments are known during the Villanovan, mainly from graves, connected to the female sphere. These objects have a ritual function, also “life”, which point out the important role the women played at the beginning of the Etruscan culture. During the Orientalizing period the scenery becomes more diversified with the occurrence of wind and stringed instruments that we know from painted pottery and exceptional finds, like the “tromba-lituo” from Tarquinia. This variety indicates a progressive specialization in the character of both music and rituals, which points to a more complex structure of the Etruscan society.