Babylonian tunings for the 9-string sammû (c. 1800–600 BCE) and a hypothetical tablature for Panhellenic aulos (c. 500 BCE)

Babylonian tunings and Imperial Aramaic script provide context informing the interpretation of Hellenic evidence from a period in which all aspects of Greek civilization were influenced by the Near East.Aimed at composers, performers, scholars, and educators with an interest in the music of multicultural metropolitan societies before Plato, this is a progress report sharing research results obtained by practical experiment.

It makes an intimidating body of scholarship meaningful to musicians, offers some new insights to Classicists, and hones a Very Early music methodology in which the input of skilled practitioners in diverse cultures is central to the formation of ideas. Making sense of the hole boring of auloi buried in the Classical era forces a reassessment not only of established thinking but the mode in which scholarship is conducted when studying traces of musical activity – developing interpretations, overcoming bias, and communicating results.The contents of the fileset are multimodal (video, diagrams, writing, and an 'Aulos Tablature' font) to help dismantle echo chambers of expertise and stimulate multi-perspective collaborations.