ἐκ τούτου πυραμοῦντος ἐπῆραν τουτʼ ἐσπᾶσι νικητήριον ὀρχήσεως· ἀπεδείχθη δὲ κριτὴς μετὰ Μενίσκου τοῦ παιδοτρίβου Λαμπρίας ὁ ἀδελφός· ὠρχήσατο γὰρ πιθανῶς τὴν πυρρίχην καὶ χειρονομῶν ἐν ταῖς παλαίστραις ἐδόκει διαφέρειν τῶν παίδων. ὀρχουμένων δὲ πολλῶν προθυμότερον ἢ μουσικώτερον, δύο τοὺς εὐδοκίμους καὶ βουλομένους ἀνασῴζειν τὴν ἐμμέλειαν ἠξίουν τινὲς ὀρχεῖσθαι φορὰν παρὰ φοράν. ἐπεζήτησεν οὖν ὁ Θρασύβουλος Ἀμμωνίου τί βούλεται τοὔνομα τῆς φορᾶς, καὶ παρέσχε τῷ Ἀμμωνίῳ περὶ τῶν μερῶν τῆς ὀρχήσεως πλείονα διελθεῖν.
AFTER this, a match of dancing was proposed, and a cake was the prize. The judges were Meniscus the dancing-master, and my brother Lamprias; for he danced the Pyrrhic very well, and in the Palaestra none could match him for the graceful motion of his hands and arms in dancing. Now a great many dancing with more heat than art, some desired two of the company who seemed to be best skilled and took most care to observe their steps, to dance in the style called φορὰν παρὰ φοράν. Upon this Thrasybulus, the son of Ammonius, demanded what φορά signified, and gave Ammonius occasion to run over most of the parts of dancing.
ἔφη δὲ τρία εἶναι, τὴν φορὰν καὶ τὸ σχῆμα καὶ τὴν δεῖξιν. ἡ γὰρ ὄρχησις ἔκ τε κινήσεων καὶ σχέσεων συνέστηκεν, ὡς τὸ μέλος τῶν φθόγγων καὶ τῶν διαστημάτων ἐνταῦθα δʼ αἱ μοναὶ πέρατα τῶν κινήσεών εἰσι. φορὰς μὲν οὖν τὰς κινήσεις ὀνομάζουσι, σχήματα δὲ σχέσεις καὶ διαθέσεις, εἰς ἃς φερόμεναι τελευτῶσιν αἱ κινήσεις, ὅταν Ἀπόλλωνος ἢ Πανὸς ἤ τινος Βάκχης σχῆμα διαθέντες ἐπὶ τοῦ σώματος γραφικῶς τοῖς εἴδεσιν ἐπιμένωσι. τὸ δὲ τρίτον, ἡ δεῖξις, οὐ μιμητικόν ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ δηλωτικὸν ἀληθῶς τῶν ὑποκειμένων ὡς γὰρ οἱ ποιηταὶ τοῖς κυρίοις ὀνόμασι δεικτικῶς χρῶνται, τὸν Ἀχιλλέα καὶ τὸν Ὀδυσσέα καὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν ὀνομάζοντες, ὡς ὑπὸ τῶν πολλῶν λέγονται· πρὸς δὲ τὰς ἐμφάσεις καὶ τὰς μιμήσεις καὶ ὀνοματοποιίαις χρῶνται καὶ μεταφοραῖς, κελαρύζειν καὶ καχλάζειντὰ κλώμενα τῶν ῥευμάτων λέγοντες, καὶ τὰ βέλη φέρεσθαι λιλαιόμενα χροὸς ἆσαι, καὶ τὴν ἰσόρροπον μάχην ἴσας ὑσμίνη κεφαλὰς, ἔχειν· πολλὰς δὲ καὶ συνθέσεις τῶν ὀνομάτων κατὰ μέλη μιμητικῶς σχηματίζουσιν, ὡς Εὐριπίδης ὁ πετόμενος ἱερὸν ἀνὰ Διὸς αἰθέρα γοργοφόνος, καὶ περὶ τοῦ ἵππου Πίνδαροςὅτε παρʼ Ἀλφεῷ σύτο δέμας / ἀκέντητον ἐν δρόμοισι παρέχων / καὶ Ὅμηρος ἐπὶ τῆς ἱπποδρομίας ἅρματα δʼ αὖ χαλκῷ πεπυκασμένα κασσιτέρῳ τε / ἵπποις ὠκυπόδεσσιν ἐπέτρεχον· / οὕτως ἐν ὀρχήσει τὸ μὲν σχῆμα μιμητικόν ἐστι μορφῆς καὶ ἰδέας, καὶ πάλιν ἡ φορὰ πάθους τινὸς ἐμφαντικὸν ἢ πράξεως ἢ δυνάμεως· ταῖς δὲ δείξεσι κυρίως αὐτὰ δηλοῦσι τὰ πράγματα, τὴν γῆν, τὸν οὐρανόν, αὐτοὺς τοὺς πλησίον· ὃ δὴ τάξει μέν τινι καὶ ἀριθμῷ γιγνόμενον ἔοικε τοῖς ἐν ποιητικῇ κυρίοις ὀνόμασι μετά τινος κόσμου καὶ λειότητος ἐκφερομένοις, ὡς τὰ τοιαῦτα καὶ Θέμιν αἰδοίην ἑλικοβλέφαρὸν τʼ Ἀφροδίτην / Ἥρην τε χρυσοστέφανον καλήν τε Διώνην· / καὶ Ἕλληνος δʼ ἐγένοντο θεμιστοπόλοι βασιλῆες, / Δῶρός τε,Ξοῦθός τε καὶ Αἴολος ἱππιοχάρμης / εἰ δὲ μή, τοῖς ἄγαν πεζοῖς καὶ κακομέτροις, ὡς τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐγένοντο τοῦ μὲν Ἡρακλῆς τοῦ δʼ Ἴφικλος· καίτῆς δὲ πατὴρ καὶ ἀνὴρ καὶ παῖς βασιλεῖς, καὶ ἀδελφοί, / καὶ πρόγονοι· κλῄζει δʼ Ἑλλὰς Ὀλυμπιάδα. / τοιαῦτα γὰρ ἁμαρτάνεται καὶ περὶ τὴν ὄρχησιν ἐν ταῖς δείξεσιν, ἂν πιθανότητα μηδὲ χάριν μετʼ εὐπρεπείας καὶ ἀφελείας ἔχωσι. καὶ ὅλως ἔφη μεταθήσειν τὸ Σιμωνίδειον ἀπὸ τῆς ζωγραφίας ἐπὶ τὴν ὄρχησιν· ποίησιν γὰρ εἶναι τὴν ὄρχησιν σιωπῶσαν, καὶ φθεγγομένην ὄρχησιν πάλιν τὴν ποίησιν· ὅθεν εἶπεν οὔτε γραφικῇ μετεῖναι ποιητικῆς οὔτε ποιητικῇ γραφικῆς, οὐδὲ χρῶνται τὸ παράπαν ἀλλήλαις. ὀρχηστικῇ δὲ καὶ ποιητικῇ κοινωνία πᾶσα καὶ μέθεξις ἀλλήλων ἐστί, καὶ μάλιστα μιμούμεναι περὶ τὸ ὑπορχημάτων γένος ἐνεργὸν ἀμφότεραι τὴν διὰ τῶν σχημάτων καὶ τῶν ὀνομάτων μίμησιν ἀποτελοῦσι. δόξειε δʼ ἂν ὥσπερ ἐν γραφικῇ τὰ μὲν ποιήματα τοῖς χρώμασιν ἑοικέναι τὰ δʼ ὀρχήματα ταῖς γραμμαῖς, ὑφʼ ὧν ὁρίζεται τὰ εἴδη. δηλοῖ δʼ ὁ μάλιστα κατωρθωκέναι δόξας ἐν ὑπορχήμασι καὶ γεγονέναι πιθανώτατος ἑαυτοῦ τὸ δεῖσθαι τὴν ἑτέραν τῆς ἑτέρας τὸ γάρ ἀπέλαστον ἵππον ἢ κύνα / Ἀμυκλαίαν ἀγωνίῳ / ἐλελιζόμενος ποδὶ μίμεο καμπύλον μέλος διώκων· / ἢ τό οἷος ἀνὰ Δώτιον ἀνθεμόεν πεδίον / πέταται θάνατον κεροέσσᾳ τε / εὑρέμεν ματεύων ἐλάφῳ / τὰν δʼ ἐπʼ αὐχένι στρέφοισαν ἕτερον κάρα πάντʼ ἐπʼ οἶμον / καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς μονονοὺ λειόθεν τὴν ἐν ὀρχήσει διάθεσιν τὰ ποιήματα καὶ παρακαλεῖν τὼ χεῖρε καὶ τὼ πόδε, μᾶλλον δʼ ὅλον ὥσπερ τισὶ μηρίνθοις ἕλκειν τὸ σῶμα τοῖς μέλεσι καὶ ἐντείνειν, τούτων δὲ λεγομένων καὶ ᾀδομένων, ἡσυχίαν ἄγειν μὴ δυναμένοις. αὐτὸς γοῦν ἑαυτὸν οὐκ αἰσχύνεται περὶ τὴν ὄρχησιν οὐχ ἧττον ἢ τὴν ποίησιν ἐγκωμιάζων, ὅταν δὲ γηρῶσαι νῦν ἐλαφρὸν ὄρχημʼ ἀοιδᾷ ποδῶν μιγνύμεν, / Κρῆτα μιν καλέοισι τρόπον. / ἀλλʼ οὐδὲν οὕτως τὸ νῦν ἀπολέλαυκε τῆς κακομουσίας ὡς ἡ ὄρχησις. διὸ καὶ πέπονθεν ὃ φοβηθεὶς Ἴβυκος ἐποίησε δέδοικα μή τι πὰρ θεοῖς / ἀμπλακὼν τιμὰν πρὸς ἀνθρώπων ἀμείψω. / καὶ γὰρ αὕτη καὶ πάνδημόν τινα ποιητικὴν προσεταιρισαμένη τῆς δʼ οὐρανίας ἐκπεσοῦσʼ ἐκείνης τῶν μὲν ἐμπλήκτων καὶ ἀνοήτων κρατεῖ θεάτρων, ὥσπερ τύραννος ὑπήκοον ἑαυτῇ πεποιημένη μουσικὴν ὀλίγου δεῖν ἅπασαν, τὴν δὲ παρὰ τοῖς νοῦν ἔχουσι καὶ θείοις ἀνδράσιν ὡς ἀληθῶς τιμὴν ἀπολώλεκε.
ταῦτα σχεδόν, ὦ Σόσσιε Σενεκίων, τελευταῖα τῶν ἐν τοῖς Μουσείοις τότε παρʼ Ἀμμωνίῳ τῷ ἀγαθῷ φιλολογηθέντων.
He said they were three,—φορά, σχῆμα, and δεῖξις. For dancing is made up of motion and manner (σχέσις), as a song of sounds and stops; stops are the ends of motion. Now the motions they call φοραί, and the gestures and likeness to which the motions tend, and in which they end, they call σχήματα: as, for instance, when by their own motions they represent the figure of Apollo, Pan, or any of the raging Bacchae. The third, δεῖξις, is not an imitation, but a plain downright indication of the things represented. For the poets, when they would speak of Achilles, Ulysses, the earth, or heaven, use their proper names, and such as the vulgar usually understand. But for the more lively representation, they use words which by their very sound express some eminent quality in the thing, or metaphors; as when they say that streams do babble and flash; that arrows fly desirous the flesh to wound; or when they describe an equal battle by saying the fight had equal heads. They have likewise a great many significative compositions in their verses. Thus Euripides of Perseus, He that Medusa slew, and flies in air; and Pindar of a horse, When by the smooth Alpheus’ banks / He ran the race, and never felt the spur; / and Homer of a race, The chariots, overlaid with tin and brass, / By fiery horses drawn ran swiftly on. / So in dancing, the σχῆμα represents the shape and figure, the φορά shows some action, passion, or power; but by the δεῖξις are properly and significatively shown the things themselves, for instance, the heaven, earth, or the company. Which, being done in a certain order and method, resembles the proper names used in poetry, decently clothed and attended with suitable epithets. As in these lines, Themis the venerable and admired, / And Venus beauteous with her bending brows, / Dione fair, and Juno crowned with gold. / And in these, From Hellen kings renowned for giving laws, / Great Dorus and the mighty Xuthus, sprang, / And Aeolus, whose chief delight was horse. / For if poets did not take this liberty, how mean, how grovelling and flat, would be their verse! As suppose they wrote thus, From this came Hercules, from the other Iphitus. / Her father, husband, and her son were kings, /
Her brother and forefathers were the same; / And she in Greece was called Olympias. / The same faults may be committed in that sort of dancing called δεῖξις, unless the representation be lifelike and graceful, decent and unaffected. And, in short, we may aptly transfer what Simonides said of painting to dancing, and call dancing mute poetry, and poetry speaking dancing; for poesy doth not properly belong to painting, nor painting to poesy, neither do they any way make use of one another. But poesy and dancing have much in common, especially in that sort of song called Hyporchema, in which is the most lively representation imaginable, dancing doing it by gesture, and poesy by words. So that poesy may bear some resemblance to the colors in painting, while dancing is like the lines which mark out the features of the face. And therefore he who was the most famous writer of Hyporchemes, who here even outdid himself, sufficiently evidenceth that these two arts stand in need of one another. For, whilst he sings these songs, […] he shows what tendency poetry hath to dancing; whilst the sound excites the hands and feet, or rather as it were by some cords distends and raiseth every member of the whole body; so that, whilst such songs are pronounced or sung, they cannot be quiet. But now-a-days no sort of exercise hath such bad depraved music applied to it as dancing; and so it suffers that which Ibycus as to his own concerns was fearful of, as appears by these lines, I fear lest, losing fame amongst the Gods, / I shall receive respect from men alone. / For having associated to itself a mean paltry sort of music, and falling from that divine sort of poetry with which it was formerly acquainted, it rules now and domineers amongst foolish and inconsiderate spectators, like a tyrant, it hath subjected nearly the whole of music, but hath lost all its honor with excellent and wise men.
These, my Sossius Senecio, were almost the last discourses which we had at Ammonius’s house during the festival of the Muses.
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