Deinde pater dicit: “Citharam lenius pulsato et tibiam paulisper tacere sinito.”

Both are future imperatives, singular.

• pulsato = you shall play/strike/pluck
• sinito = you shall allow/let

A native English speaker often expects an ordinary imperative such as pulsa or sine, but Latin also has a future imperative, especially in instructions, rules, or firm commands. In many texts it can sound a bit formal, deliberate, or emphatic.

So this is not just play... and let..., but something like:

• play...
• see that you let...

Latin has more than one way to give a command.

The forms you may have learned first are the present imperatives:

• pulsa = play!
• sine = allow!

Here, however, the speaker uses future imperatives:

• pulsato
• sinito

These are common in certain styles of Latin, especially:

• formal instructions
• solemn commands
• legal or ritual language
• very definite directions

So the sentence is not grammatically strange; it is just using a different imperative style.

Lenius is the comparative adverb of leniter.

• leniter = gently
• lenius = more gently / rather gently / more softly

So literally, citharam lenius pulsato means play the lyre more gently.

Latin often uses a comparative where English might say:

• more gently
• a bit more gently
• more softly

The comparison may be explicit or only implied from the context.

Because it is the direct object of pulsato.

• cithara = lyre
• citharam = the lyre as the thing being played/plucked

So:

• citharam pulsato = play/pluck the lyre

This is straightforward object use of the accusative.

This is because sino commonly takes an accusative + infinitive construction.

• tibiam tacere sinito = literally allow the pipe to be silent

Here:

• tibiam is the accusative subject of the infinitive tacere
• tacere = to be silent

So even though the pipe is the one doing the being silent, it appears in the accusative because it belongs to the accusative-and-infinitive pattern after sino.

Because tacere depends on sinito.

The structure is:

• sinito = allow / let
• tibiam tacere = the pipe to be silent

So Latin is saying:

• let the pipe be silent for a little while

If Latin used tace, that would be a direct command to a person:

• tace! = be quiet!

But here the command is not directly be silent! Instead it is allow the pipe to be silent.

Sino means allow, permit, or let.

A very common pattern is:

• aliquem/aliquid + infinitive + sinere
• to allow someone/something to do something

So here:

• tibiam tacere sinito
• allow the pipe to be silent
• more naturally in English: let the pipe be quiet

This is a very useful verb pattern to remember.

Paulisper is an adverb meaning:

• for a little while
• briefly
• for a short time

It goes with tacere:

• tibiam paulisper tacere sinito
• let the pipe be silent for a little while

Its position is flexible. Latin word order is freer than English word order, so the adverb can be placed before the infinitive without causing any problem.

Latin word order is much more flexible because the endings show the grammatical relationships.

In this sentence:

• citharam is clearly the object because it is accusative
• pulsato is the command verb
• tibiam is accusative with tacere
• sinito is the main verb of the second command

So Latin can arrange the words for style or emphasis:

• Citharam lenius pulsato
• et tibiam paulisper tacere sinito

A very literal order in English would sound odd:

• The lyre more gently play, and the pipe for a little while to be silent allow

But the Latin is perfectly normal.

The commands are addressed to one person, because pulsato and sinito are singular.

Latin usually does not need to state you, because the verb ending already shows it. So the understood subject is:

• you

If Latin wanted to make you explicit for emphasis, it could add tu, but that is unnecessary here.

Yes. Pulsare literally means to strike, beat, or set in motion by striking, and it is commonly used for sounding musical instruments.

So with citharam it means something like:

• strike/pluck the lyre
• more natural English: play the lyre

This is a good example of how a more physical Latin verb can correspond to a smoother English translation.