Perhaps the most famous incident of musical instrument playing in Roman history was Nero 'fiddling' whilst Rome burnt, a tale that is the result of a simple misreading of the sources.
So all those animated images of Nero I've seen as a violinist are based on a historical error? Wow.
In Mel Brooks' film "History Of The World Part 1", Nero (Dom De Luise) demands "Bring me a small lyre". Immediately a short man is brought in, claiming "I didn't do it!"
It's possible that by 'fiddled', it means 'vacillated', but that's not really true, either. His immediate reaction to the disaster was impressive and the emergency measures he put in place to rehome and feed people was well received. He was a very popular emperor for most of his reign.
So all those animated images of Nero I've seen as a violinist are based on a historical error? Wow.
In Mel Brooks' film "History Of The World Part 1", Nero (Dom De Luise) demands "Bring me a small lyre". Immediately a short man is brought in, claiming "I didn't do it!"
Mel must not have read the right records, either.
It's possible that by 'fiddled', it means 'vacillated', but that's not really true, either. His immediate reaction to the disaster was impressive and the emergency measures he put in place to rehome and feed people was well received. He was a very popular emperor for most of his reign.