The concept of “praises” came to the modern world from distant Ancient Greece, when people still worshiped the gods. Of course, the meaning of the word itself has already undergone some changes, but in order to better understand what is the meaning of the concept, it is necessary to return to the roots.
Ancient Greek rites
The cult of the god Dionysus, the patron saint of wine and fun, appeared with the spread of vineyards in ancient Greece. The Greeks, at the end of the grape harvest, arranged a big celebration, accompanied by wine, fun and orgies. At such "events", where not everyone was allowed, songs were sung in honor of Dionysus, skits were played and sacrifices were made to God. In the understanding of the Greeks, all this was done solely in order to appease the deity and get a good grape harvest next year.
The songs of praise, which were performed by dressed-up satyrs, were called praises. The praises, in the end, became the basis in the development of Greek tragedy. Also appeared the same genre of literature, close to the modern understanding of odes.
The poet-musician Arion introduced the poetry genre into poetry in the 7th century BC. Since his work is practically inseparable from music, praises at that time remained mostly a piece of music. In the 5th century BC praise begins to acquire a dramatic image. The poet Bacchillides writes a similar work in the form of a dialogue, which is accompanied by accompaniment and choral singing between parts.
Renaissance praises
In the Renaissance, when artists sought to revive the samples of ancient culture, the praise of the genre was no exception in this process.
Especially striking were the attempts by Italians. For example, the poet and priest Girolamo Baruffaldi wrote the work "The Triumph of Bacchus", where the author praises the protagonist, overly describing his merits.
Less noticeable are the works in the prairie genre of German poets gravitating towards anacreontics - love, playful poetry about a careless life, the parent of which is the ancient Greek poet Anacreont. It is not surprising that the Italians had the most successful experience of reviving praises. As you know, it was here that the first opera called "Daphne" was born, which took its origins from the praises as well. Because the praise genre combined musical and theatrical elements.
