ABSTRACT
The Bible provides us with several references about the singing of psalms by professional choirs and instrumental ensembles that were active in the first and second Temple of Jerusalem. The establishment of this activity is attributed to King David who is said to have invested the psalms with tonal settings that probably were the most important forerunners of the early Christian chant. Indeed, in the Jewish and early Christian traditions, king David is extolled as an ideal model of musical perfection to whom is ascribed the institutionalization of the Temple’s ritual in which music occupied a prominent place. The highly sophisticated vocal and instrumental music intoned in the framework of the rituals was performed by a specific class of professional musicians - the Levites. In Islam, David, who is usually called the prophet Da’ud, was a figure known to the poets of Arabia during the jahiliyya (heathen period before Muhammad).
