This essay presents a unique reading of Guido's Micrologus, an 11th century music theory treatise. Known best for its pedagogical contributions to chant theory and simplification of earlier theory, the Micrologus might have had a darker motive behind its creation. Given the prologue and epistle to Bishop Theodaldus that come just prior to the first lines of the treatise, we understand Guido and the Church that commissioned his work to be deeply afraid of the consequences of immoral music. I argue that the youth's proficiency in Guido's standardized system of music theory was the Church's solution to the immoral music problem. This solution was unique in the way it swayed from censorship and advocated for a specific type of music creation. An analysis of Plato's Republic helps understand the more conventional response an establishment would take to respond to the same problem. Most notably, this reading presents ironic consequences for the extensive presence of Guido's techniques in modern music theory. Did Guido's approach to music theory backfire? That is, in endeavoring to standardize music theory, did he create the simplified tools that made all music, even the undesirable types, more accessible and spreadable?
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