Arachin, Chapter 2, Mishnah 3. This chapter continues to gather halachot that are governed by a fixed minimum and a fixed maximum, and our mishnah adds two more subjects to the list: the trumpet blasts sounded in the Beit Hamikdash, and the musical instruments played there by the Levi'im.
The Trumpets
Whenever the public offerings were brought, the daily Tamid along with those of Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh and the festivals, there is a mitzvah that trumpets be sounded in the Beit Hamikdash. This sounding was entrusted to the kohanim.
Our mishnah states: "Ein pochatin", we never go below, "me'esrim ve'achat tekiot baMikdash", twenty one blasts in the Mikdash. On a plain weekday the count never fell short of that figure. And at the other end, "velo mosifin", we never go above, "al arba'im ushmoneh", forty eight, which was the ceiling for any day of the year.
Where does the figure twenty one come from? At daybreak, when the gates of the Azarah were swung open, three blasts were sounded. The bringing of the morning Tamid was accompanied by nine, and the Tamid of the afternoon by another nine. Add them together, three with nine and nine, and the sum is twenty one.
Reaching the maximum of forty eight
- On a day when a Mussaf korban was brought, whether a festival, Rosh Chodesh or Shabbat, nine additional blasts were sounded. Twenty one plus nine gives thirty.
- On Friday afternoon, six blasts were sounded to alert the people to cease their work before Shabbat, and three more to announce that Shabbat was arriving. That brings the count to thirty six. So a Mussaf day that fell on a Friday reached thirty six blasts.
- On Sukkot, the water drawing ceremony added another twelve blasts. When Sukkot coincided with a Friday, all of these came together and the total reached forty eight.
The Nevalim
From the trumpets the mishnah moves to the instruments of the Levi'im, whose song accompanied the bringing of the public offerings. "Ein pochatin", the minimum is, "mishnei nevalim", two nevalim, a kind of stringed instrument, "velo mosifin al shishah", and the ceiling is six. Why stop at six? Because past that point the music would cease to be pleasing, with the instruments crowding and blurring one another.
The Chalilin
"Ein pochatin mishnei chalilin", when flutes were played in the Beit Hamikdash, fewer than two were never used, "velo mosifin al shenayim asar", and never more than twelve. The number twelve corresponds to the number of days in the year on which the flute was played.
The mishnah now enumerates those days: "Uveshteim asar yom bashanah", and on twelve days in the course of the year, "hechalil makeh lifnei hamizbe'ach", the flute would sound before the mizbe'ach. The players stood in the Azarah while the offerings of that day were being brought.
- "Bishechitat Pesach rishon", when the Korban Pesach was shechted on the fourteenth of Nissan, to the singing of Hallel.
- "Uvishechitat Pesach sheni", and again a month later, on the fourteenth of Iyar, when Pesach Sheni was shechted, once more accompanied by Hallel.
- "Uveyom tov rishon shel Pesach", on Pesach's opening Yom Tov.
- "Uveyom tov shel Atzeret", on Shavuot, which the mishnah here calls Atzeret.
- "Uvishmonah yemei heChag", and throughout Sukkot's eight days, Shemini Atzeret being included in that reckoning.
What did the flute accompany on those twelve occasions? Song. The Levi'im would recite Hallel in its entirety while the nesachim, the wine poured out upon the mizbe'ach together with the Tamid of that day, were brought, and the flutes played along with their voices.
Two Details About the Flute
Having established how many flutes were used and on which days they were played, the mishnah adds two further halachot concerning them.
"Velo haya makeh", the instrument sounded was not, "be'avuv shel nechoshet", a pipe of copper, "ela be'avuv shel kaneh", but rather one fashioned from reed, "mipnei shekolo arev", since a reed pipe gives off a sweeter and finer tone than one of metal.
"Velo haya machlik", and the closing note was not sounded, "ela be'avuv yachidi", except by a lone pipe. When the music drew to its end the rest of the instruments fell silent and a single flute carried the final notes by itself, "mipnei shehu machlik yafeh", because one flute rounds off the melody far more beautifully than a group of them stopping all at once.