ɪnðə jˌʊɹɹəpˈiən tɹɐdˈɪʃən ðɪ ˈɜːlɪɪst sɚvˈaɪvɪŋ pˈoʊᵻmz, ðə hoʊmˈɛɹɪk ænd hˌiːzɪˈɑːdɪk ˈɛpɪks, aɪdˈɛntᵻfˌaɪ ðɛmsˈɛlvz æz pˈoʊᵻmz təbi ɹᵻsˈaɪɾᵻd ɔːɹ tʃˈæntᵻd tʊ ɐ mjˈuːzɪkəl ɐkˈʌmpɐnˌɪmənt ɹˈæðɚ ðɐn æz pjˈʊɹ sˈɔŋ.
In the European tradition the earliest surviving poems, the Homeric and Hesiodic epics, identify themselves as poems to be recited or chanted to a musical accompaniment rather than as pure song.