MARSYAS AND APOLLO

Re-mythologized a bit
(See Tattoo section in Gallery)

 

I.     One day Athena was visiting Mount Parnassus. As she listened to the mesmerizing music that seemed to be everywhere, she wished she could join the music making. As she strolled past a pond she thought, "I'll make my own instrument." And so she did. She bound together two large, somewhat conical reeds, cut some smaller reeds and tied them together at the mouthpiece. A few holes in each tube and the aulos was born. The sound was strange and brittle, but she liked it.

Athena took her new invention and began to play along. At first cautiously and then more boldly, she found a place for herself in the music. Her lines darted in and out of the others, here smooth and flowing, now jagged and abrupt. She was having a blast until she saw her reflection in a puddle. Could that be her? Cheeks all puffed, face distorted with emotion? Athena recoiled in horror as she heard Apollo laugh.

"You're so vain," he jeered. "And what kind of musical instrument is that, anyway? You can't even sing and play at the same time!"

Athena was furious! In a towering rage she hurled the aulos as far as she could and stormed back home to Mount Olympus in a huff.
 

II.    "What was that?" thought Marsyas as he turned to follow the sound. "Did something fall from the sky?" There in the meadow, a few yards away he found the aulos that Athena had rejected. Marsyas was a shepherd. And he was bored. "What can this be?" he asked himself as he examined the curious object. As he looked it over a breeze caught that double reed just so and the aulos began to moan. "So that's it," he thought. "I can do that too." And so he did. At first it was a little rough, but Marsyas was fascinated. His flocks scattered and strayed but he didn't care. Sheep were so boring. This was fun!

As Marsyas played and played he just got better and better. Soon the strays returned. Lured by the music they brought all manner of woodland creatures back with them. Deer, wolves, birds, squirrels, bears and lambs mingled, enchanted by the music. Word soon spread through the forest and over the meadows and into every hamlet and village in Arcadia. People travelled from all over the valley and beyond to hear Marsyas charm the animals with his music. Soon Marsyas was so busy playing at village feasts and weddings that he had no time for sheep. Oh, the parties! The food! The wine! And the women! He had gone pro.
 

III.    Apollo was feeling restless. "I need a vacation." he decided. "Nobody appreciates how hard I work. They think it's so easy being the god of reason, order, balance, moderation, and clarity. And the god of music! They forget that I have to do all that in my 'spare time' after driving the chariot of the sun all day. They'd sure appreciate me if I went away for a while. They'd be scrambling to fill these sandals! Ha! That's it! A little trip. Check up on the humans. More entertaining than the zoo, really...." And so, disguised as a peasant, Apollo went down to earth.

It was oddly quiet as Apollo approached the first village he came to. Where were all the people? He soon found them. They were sprawled on the ground all over the center of the town. Many were still asleep. Others clearly had hangovers. They moaned and writhed or stared blankly ahead. A voice broke the calm. "Man! That sure was some kinda party we had last night! Why, I havent danced so much in years. I'll be sore for days! And Marsyas! That cat is bugged out! My body just had to move. Why, even Apollo himself couldn't have kept me dancing all night the way Marsyas did!"

"Really?" the stranger asked. "And where would I find this 'Marsyas'?" "He's not hard to find. Follow the animals. He's always playing his aulos in some glen or another. Just follow the animals." And so he did.

"Follow the animals! Yeah, right!" Apollo muttered as he left the village and headed up country. "Do they think I'm stupid?" But soon he saw what the peasant meant. At first it was just a few scattered animals that seemed to be heading in the same direction, but as he reached the crest of a ridge he could see the lines of beasts converging on a little stand of trees near the edge of the forest. And as he got closer he could see a man in the middle of that wild throng. "Marsyas, I presume," he snorted as he took a seat on a tree stump not far from where Marsyas rocked back and forth, eyes closed, aulos engaged. And it was quite a show, Apollo had to admit. But, better than he? "Never!" Apollo began to scheme.

"What do these animals and humans know about music anyway? They're drawn irresistibly to any shiny bauble. They can't possibly understand the subtle beauty and power of 'real' music. Only the gods can grasp such noble truths."

After a while Marsyas took a break and walked over to greet the stranger. "You're pretty good, kid. Very good!" Apollo purred. "But, guess what? I'm pretty good too. Let's you and I have a musical contest. It'd be so much fun! I'm very well connected. I could get Zeus himself and Poseidon and Hermes to be the judges." "Wow," thought Marsyas, "What an honor it would be to play for the gods!" And so he agreed. "What would you exact from me if you win?" Apollo continued. "Why, with those great connections of yours, I'll bet I could get some really good gigs. If I win I want Apollo to be my manager," Marsyas replied. "Done!" said Apollo. Marsyas beamed. "And what would you want from me if you should win?" he asked. "Oh, not much," Apollo answered. "Just your flayed skin." And so the terms of the contest were set.

IV.    As soon as the panel of judges assembled Marsyas suspected something was up. The stranger was just too familiar with the judges. It soon became apparent that the stranger was none other than Apollo himself. But what could Marsyas do about it? They had a deal. And he was a mere mortal while Apollo was the god of music. Before he even played a note he noticed a Scythian slave sharpening a big skinning knife and grinning at him.

But did he ever play! It was the performance of his life. It was so beautiful that the sky itself began to weep tears of joy. Even the muses swooned. But it was all for naught. The judges were all in Apollo's camp. And as soon as the contest was over Apollo had the slave bind Marsyas to the still standing bole of a dead tree and flayed him alive. He took the skin back up to Mount Parnassus and left Marsyas to die of exposure and be eaten by the wild animals he had once so charmed.