Singing Planets Don't Sing; They Speak

• Published in: Musical offerings Vol. 14; no. 1; pp. 27 - 38
• Main Author: Lauer, Joanna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Department of Music and Worship 2023
• Subjects: ancient; circle of fifths; concept; creation; design; god; greek; heavens; intelligent; intervals; music; music of the spheres; natural; order; overtone series; philosophy; pitch; planets; ratios; system
• ISSN: 2330-8206; 2167-3799
• DOI: 10.15385/jmo.2023.14.1.2

Ancient Greek philosophers conceived a theory called Music of the Spheres. This ancient theory progressed for almost one thousand years before finally proving itself untrustworthy. However, this examination uncovers an overlooked fact: the large amount of natural order in sound and music existing before the creation of man. Scripture reveals that God is a God of order, and an extensive amount of natural order is found in the universe. Evidence points to God being the creator of the universe. Specific examples of such evidence are the inherent order of sound laid out in pitches, interval ratios, the overtone series, the circle of fifths, and the effect of consonance and dissonance. The structure of music from the ground up reveals a pre-existing model that man developed and turned into music. Man harnessed natural components of sound to create music full of emotion and reaction. Though scientifically inaccurate, Music of the Spheres offers a pathway to discover that music, as a concept and system, exhibits God as the intelligent designer.