The Old Testament, a treasure book of the Hebrews, also records a lot of music-related content, providing us with valuable information about ancient Hebrew music.

Hebrew music has a strong practical and religious character. Music was often used as accompaniment in Hebrew religious occasions, and the specialized musicians were mostly from the tribe of Levi. Even during the Babylonian captivity, music was indispensable for religious activities in the early synagogues, and the required musicians were still trained and selected among the Levites. Levitical musicians were also forced to join the palace band in Babylon, either playing compositional music or playing military music to encourage soldiers going to the battlefield. The Hebrew musicians in the Babylonian court band later formed the Temple band that returned to Jerusalem. The band is basically composed of string instruments, cymbals, and a large chorus. The band played most of the time for religious worship, the coronation of kings, and victory celebrations. There are few references to folk music activities.

Hebrew sources mention more than ten kinds of Jewish musical instruments, the main ones used are cymbals, bells, bells, lyres, harps, flutes, and trombones. The promotion of Hellenism made the entire West Asia and North Africa region pay more attention to music. Many theaters, arenas, and vaudevilles appeared in various places, and music also flourished. Not only were there special music performances, but there were also music to create atmosphere for other performances. The rise of music has become one of the topics often discussed by philosophers and scholars. The aesthetic form and social function of music have attracted more attention from society through academic discussions.

A direct consequence of the destruction of the Second Temple was the cancellation of worship services and related musical activities originally held in the Temple. The Levites who were good at rhyming music had no place to use and had to disperse. The synagogue replaced the temple as the main place for Hebrew religious activities. However, these relatively scattered and small-scale synagogues did not have the need to support musicians. Later, rabbinic Judaism simply prohibited the use of musical instruments in synagogues. Therefore, Jewish music moved towards a strictly vocal art.

Although synagogue music excludes the use of instrumental music, in real life, Hebrews still love instrumental music, which is used to accompany singing and dancing. The most commonly used are drums, flutes and long-necked harps. There are many labor songs during farming, fiber drawing, weaving and other labors. In taverns, fairs, and other lively places there was no shortage of entertainment with singing and the playing of musical instruments. But serious rabbis were very wary of the entertainment aspect of music. When the rulers of the Persian Sasanian dynasty made music a part of their hedonistic life, the Hebrew rabbis did the opposite, and some even tried to ban music. But the public's attitude toward music was not greatly affected by the rabbis. For example, the increasing popularity of instrumental music and responsive singing at weddings prompted leaders of Hebrew society to encourage music at weddings, so that some rabbis later changed their serious attitude towards music.