The Sense of “Pleasure” in Eastern Chant

Music is by default a key element of every kind of Entertainment. Actually, the two terms (Pleasure and Music) are almost synonymous in the geographical area of the East - especially during the late medieval period - and there is a plethora of relevant evidence in the rescued literature and musicological sources to support this argument. It seems that there is a mutual and interactive “dialogue” between the two terms. This is an ideological and philosophical dialogue, as well as a completely fundamental and practical one: the musicians (the people who actually carry out the musical task) channel in abundance and mainly ensure the pleasure of the people who participate in any type of entertainment; and they do so through both their presence and their performance. However, at the same time, in order to acquire the ability to act in this way, i.e. to bring the “entertaining” dimension of music to the forefront, they themselves have to be in a position to experience music as pleasure, to grasp the multiple gratifications which are hidden at the very core of every kind of music. In both circumstances we can refer to two high level conquests of the Spirit and the Art: the pleasure of Music and music for Pleasure. In the present article Ι will attempt a first approach of the issue and an outline of its twofold dimension.