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Musical scholar Ziad Ajjan composed eight poetry and musical pieces from the musical archaeological cuneiform tablet known as "Hymn of Supplication" H6 discovered in Ugarit in the early 20th century. Ajjan composed three musical pieces based on the musical notes in the tablet which dates back to 1400 BC, naming the pieces "Sunrise," "Sunset" and "Holiday in Ugarit." This marks the recording of the oldest music notation in the history of the world. Ajjan said he is still working on the tablet based on information he reached after extensive study and previous experiment, making use of previous research by fellow...

Elizabeth Armstrong Moore September 27, 2016 In 1950, a collection of 29 tablets was discovered in the ruins of Ugarit, an ancient city in the northern region of present-day Syria, but only one had survived the intervening centuries well enough to be deciphered. Known as H6, the 3,500-year-old clay tablet revealed a simple hymn specifying the use of nine lyre strings and the intervals between them, much like an "ancient guitar tab," reports ClassicFM, which has recently picked up the story. The resulting melody, it says, isn't just the oldest discovered in the world, but "utterly enchanting." Musician and composer...

Can China’s New Strategic Bomber Reach Hawaii? The People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) took delivery of 15 of China’s new Xian H-6K strategic bombers, Jane’s Defence Weekly reported back in June. This report has now seemingly been confirmed by Chinese state-run media outlets, which noted that “Jane’s Defence was the first media outlet to confirm that the H-6K had formally entered active service.” The H-6K nuclear-capable bomber is an upgraded version of the H-6 bomber, which is a locally built version of the Russian Tupolev Tu-16 Badger that Moscow first deployed during the 1950s. The PLAAF first received a...

TAIPEI--Aggressive military action by China's air force in the East China Sea triggered alarm in Japan that resulted in emergency scrambling by Self-Defense Forces fighter jets on two days in September. Chinese bombers made more than 40 sorties in airspace around the disputed Chunxiao gas field, known as Shirakaba in Japanese. SDF jets were scrambled 12 times, according to Taiwanese military sources. Japanese government sources later confirmed the account. China's action initially was seen as provocative. However, Japanese experts say the exercise could have been part of the Chinese military's readiness in the East China Sea in the event of...