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A '''music genre''' (or '''musical genre''' or '''style''') is a [[category]] or label used to describe [[music]] that shares a certain [[style]] or "basic musical language" (van der Merwe 1989, p.3), or that have other certain elements in common. Some [[genre]]s, such as [[Indian music]], are geographically defined; others, like [[Baroque music]], are largely defined by time period. Still others, such as [[Barbershop (musical style)|Barbershop]], are defined by quite precise technical requirements.

Some genres are quite vague, and may be contrived by [[critic]]s; [[post-rock]], for example, is a term devised and defined by [[Simon Reynolds]]. Another example of this is [[video game music]], which while defined by its media, can also represent its own style, as well as that of any other musical genre.

To some extent, all attempts to label music will have a degree of artificiality to them, because [[musician]]s tend to produce music in any style they choose, without concerning themselves with which genre they are working in. Some people feel that the categorization of music into genres is useless. [[John Zorn]], for example, a musician whose work has covered a wide range of genres, wrote in ''Arcana: Musicians on Music'' that genres are tools used to "commodify and commercialize an artist's complex personal vision." Zorn believes that genres represent efforts at [[marketing]] rather than actual musical distinctions. Other artists feel that it is the artist's fault themselves for making a body of work that can be put into a shared class easily with others.

Dividing music by genre does make it easier to trace threads through [[music history]], and increasing the ease with which individuals find artists that they enjoy.

== Overview of main groupings ==
Although there are many individual genres, it is possible to group these together into a number of overlapping major groupings. The rest of this page attempts to do that for a number of widely agreed areas.

These definitions are relatively short and simple, referring to further articles as needed.


===Classical music (or art music)===
The term '''[[classical music]]''' refers to a number of different, but related, genres.  Without any qualification, the usual meaning of "classical music" in the English language is [[European classical music]] (an older usage describes specifically the Western art music of the [[Classical Music Era]]).  It can also refer to the classical (or ''art'') music of non-Western cultures such as [[Indian classical music]] or [[Chinese classical music]].

In a Western context, classical music is generally a classification covering music composed and performed by professionally trained artists.  Classical music is a written tradition.  It is composed and written using [[music notation]], and as a rule is performed faithfully to the score. ''Art music'' is a term widely used to describe classical music and other serious forms of artistic musical expression, Western or non-Western, especially referring to serious music composed after [[1950]].


=== Rhythm and blues ===

[[Rhythm and blues]] is a name for [[blacks|black]] popular music tradition. When speaking strictly of "rhythm 'n' blues", the term may refer to black pop-music from 1940s to 1960s that was not [[jazz]] nor [[blues]] but something more lightweight. The term "R&B" often refers to any contemporary black pop music. A notable subgenre of rhythm 'n' blues was [[doo-wop]], which put emphasis on polyphonic singing. In the early 1960s rhythm 'n' blues took influences from [[gospel music|gospel]] and [[rock and roll]] and thus '''[[soul music]]''' was born. In the late 1960s [[funk]] music started to evolve out of soul; by the 1970s funk had become its own subgenre that stressed complex, "funky" rhythm patterns and monotonistic compositions based on a riff or two. In the late 1970s [[hip hop]] and [[rap]] grew out of funk.

=== Rock ===

'''[[Rock]]''' is a confusing term with multiple definitions. It can be used strictly, referring to very little music recorded after the early [[1960s]], or broadly, to refer to almost all [[popular music]] recorded since the early [[1950s]]. It arose from multiple genres in the late [[1940s]], most importantly the [[jump blues]]. It was first popularized by performers like [[Bill Haley]] and [[Elvis Presley]], who fused the sound with [[country music]], resulting in [[rockabilly]]. In addition, [[gospel music]] and a related genre, [[R&B]] (rhythm and blues), emerged later in the decade. R&B soon became on of the most popular genres, with [[girl group]]s, [[garage rock]] and [[surf rock]] most popular in the US, while harder, more blues-oriented musicians became popular in the UK, which soon developed into [[British blues]], [[merseybeat]], [[mod]] and [[skiffle]]. 

Starting the mid-1960s, a group of British bands that played variations on American R&B-influenced blues became popular on both sides of the Atlantic -- the [[British Invasion]], a catchall term for multiple genres. These groups, including [[the Beatles]], fused the earlier sounds with [[Appalachian folk music]], forming [[folk rock]], as well as a variety of less-popular genres, including the soon-to-be       nt [[singer-songwriter]] tradition. Early [[heavy metal music|heavy metal]] and [[punk rock]] bands formed in this period, though these genres did not emerge as such for several years. 

The most popular genre of the British Invasion was [[            music]], which slowly morphed into [[Bluegrass music|bluegrass]]-influenced [[jam band]]s like the [[Grateful Dead]] and ornate, [[classical music|classically]]-influenced [[progressive rock]] bands. Merseybeat and mod groups like [[The Yardbirds]] and [[The Who]] soon evolved into [[hard rock]], which, in the early [[1970s]] specialized into a gritty sound called [[glam rock]], as well as a mostly underground phenomenon called [[power pop]]. In the early to mid-1970s, singer-songwriters and pop musicians       led the charts, though [[punk rock]] and [[krautrock]] also developed, and some success was achieved by [[southern rock]] and [[roots rock]] performers, which fused modern techniques with a more traditionalist sound.


=== Country music ===

'''[[Country music]]''' is usually used to refer to [[honky tonk]] today. Emerging in the [[1930s]] in the [[United States]], honky tonk country was strongly influenced by the [[blues]], as well as [[jug band]]s (which cannot be properly called honky tonk). In the [[1950s]], country achieved great mainstream success by adding elements of [[rock and roll]]; this was called [[rockabilly]]. In addition, [[Western swing]] added influences from [[swing (genre)|Swing]] and [[Bluegrass music|bluegrass]] emerged as a largely underground phenomenon. Later in the decade, the [[Nashville sound]], a highly polished form of country music, became very popular. In reaction to this, harder-edged, gritty musicians sprung up in [[Bakersfield, California]], inventing the [[Bakersfield sound]]. [[Merle Haggard]] and similar artists brought the Bakersfield sound to mainstream audiences in the [[1960s]], while Nashville started churning out [[countrypolitan]]. During the [[1970s]], the most popular genre was [[outlaw country]], a heavily rock-influenced style. The late [[1980s]] saw the [[Urban Cowboy]]s bring about an influx of pop-oriented stars during the [[1990s]]. Modern bluegrass music has remained mostly traditional, though [[progressive bluegrass]] and [[close harmony]] groups do exist, and the sound is the primary basis for [[jam band]]s like the [[Grateful Dead]].


===Electronic music===

[[Electronic music]] started with the invention of the [[synthesizer]].  
Some subcategories of electronic music include [[electronic dance music]], [[space music|space]], [[new age music|new age]], [[ambient music|ambient]], and the catch-all "[[electronica]]," which can sometimes include all of the above electronic sub-genres.

One of the first people to popularize the synthesizer was [[Wendy Carlos]] who performed classical music on the synthesizer on the recording ''[[Switched_On_Bach|Switched-On Bach]]''.
Space music was popularized by the group [[Tangerine Dream]], among others, as a precursor to new age music.  New age music served to support and perpetuate the values of the [[new age]] movement.  
Though there is some overlap between the various sub-genres of electronic music, [[Brian Eno]], the creator of ambient music, claimed that ambient had a bit of "evil" in it, whereas new age music did not.  
Eno's creation was less values-driven than new age; his goal was to create music like wallpaper, insofar as the listener could listen to or easily ignore the music. 

Naturally, many people have met electronic music also in the form of [[video game music]].


=== Electronic dance music ===

Although many artists in the [[1950s|50s]] and [[1960s|60s]] created pure '''[[electronic music]]''' with [[pop music|pop]] structures, fully formed electronic dance music as we know it today really emerged in [[1977]] with [[Giorgio Moroder]]'s ''[[From Here to Eternity]]'' album. 

There are now many subgenres of electronic music, these include: [[techno music|techno]] (mechanical sounding dance music featuring little melody and more noise), [[trance music]] (with a distinct style of instrumentation focused on complex, uplifting chord progressions and melodies), [[Goa trance]] (spawning from [[industrial music]] and tribal dance, focusing on creating psychedelic sound effects within the songs), [[house music]] (fully electronic [[disco]] music), [[big beat]] (using older drum loops and more melodic elements sampled and looped), [[drum and bass]] (an offshoot of hardcore and Jamaican [[dancehall]], utilizing quick tempos with sampled break beats, most notably the [[amen break]] and the [[funky drummer]]), [[gabba | gabber]] or [[gabba]], (a Dutch development on techno, which features extremely high tempos and lots of overdrive and distortion on the music, especially the base drum being distorted into a square wave tone), [[happy hardcore]] (a slightly more palatable version of Gabba, fusing elements of drum and bass as well). Of these subgenres, trance is probably the most widespread.

Electronic dance music is often composed to fit easily into a live [[disc jockey|DJ]] set.


=== Electronica ===

Electronic music that does not fall into the new age, techno or dance categories are often referred to as "left-field", or "'''[[electronica]]'''". These styles include [[ambient music|ambient]], [[downtempo]], [[illbient]] and [[trip-hop]] (among countless others, see [[list of electronic music genres]]), which are all related in that they usually rely more on their atmospheric qualities than electronic dance music, and make use of slower, more subtle tempos, sometimes excluding rhythm completely.

IDM (an abbreviation for [[intelligent dance music]]) is an elusive and confusing genre classification that can only be truly defined by flagbearers and flagburners like [[Aphex Twin]] and [[Autechre]].

All electronic music owes at least its historical existence to early pioneers of tape experiments known as [[musique concrète]], such as [[John Cage]], [[Pierre Schaeffer]] and [[Karlheinz Stockhausen]], as well as early synthesists like [[Wendy Carlos]] (aka Walter Carlos), [[Jean-Michel Jarre]], and [[Morton Subotnick]] .  (See '''[[electronic art music]]''').


=== Melodic music ===

'''[[Melodic music]]''' is a term that covers various genres of non-classical music which are primarily characterised by the dominance of a single strong [[melody]] line. [[Rhythm]], [[tempo]] and [[beat (music)|beat]] are subordinate to the melody line or [[tune]], which is generally easily memorable, and followed without great difficulty. Melodic music is found in all parts of the world, overlapping many genres, and may be performed by a singer or [[orchestra]], or a combination of the two.

In the west, melodic music has developed largely from [[folk song]] sources, and been heavily influenced by [[classical music]] in its development and [[orchestration]]. In many areas the border line between classical and melodic popular music is imprecise. [[Opera]] is generally considered to be a classical form. The lighter [[operetta]] is considered borderline, whilst stage and film [[musicals]] and [[musical comedy]] are firmly placed in the popular melodic category. The reasons for much of this are largely historical.

Other major categories of melodic music include [[music hall]] and [[vaudeville]], which, along with the [[ballad]], grew out of European folk music. [[Orchestral dance music]] developed from localised forms such as the [[jig]], [[polka]] and [[waltz]], but with the admixture of Latin American, negro [[blues]] and [[ragtime]] influences, it diversified into countless sub-genres such as [[big band]], [[cabaret]] and [[Swing (genre)|Swing]]. 
More specialised forms of melodic music include [[military music]], [[religious music]]. Also [[video game music]] is often melodic.

[[Traditional pop music]] overlaps a number of these categories: [[big band]] music and [[musical comedy]], for example, are closely allied to traditional pop.


=== Reggae, dub and related forms ===  

In [[Music of Jamaica|Jamaica]] during the [[1950s]], American [[R&B]] was most popular, though [[mento]] (a form of [[folk music]]) was more common in rural areas. A fusion of the two styles, along with [[Soca music|soca]] and other genres, formed [[ska]], an extremely popular form of music intended for dancing. In the [[1960s]], '''[[reggae]]''' and '''[[dub (music)|dub]]''' emerged from ska and American [[rock and roll]].  

Starting the late [[1960s]], a rock-influenced form of music began developing -- this was called [[rocksteady]]. With some [[folk music|folk]] influences (both Jamaican and American), and the growing urban popularity of [[Rastafarianism]], rocksteady evolved into what is now known as [[roots reggae]]. 
In the [[1970s]], a style called [[Lovers rock]] became popular primarily in the [[United Kingdom]] by British performers of ballad-oriented reggae music. The 1970s also saw the emergence of [[Two Tone]] in [[Coventry]], [[England]], with bands fusing ska and [[punk]], as well as covering original ska tracks. Punk band [[The Clash]] also used Dub and reggae elements.

Dub emerged in Jamaica when [[sound system]] DJs began taking away the vocals from songs so that people could dance to the beat alone. Soon, pioneers like [[King Tubby]] and [[Lee Scratch Perry]] began adding new vocals over the old beats; the lyrics were rhythmic and rhyme-heavy. After the popularity of reggae died down in the early [[1980s]], derivatives of dub dominated the Jamaican charts. These included [[ragga]] and [[dancehall]], both of which remained popular in Jamaica alone until the mainstream breakthrough of American [[gangsta rap]] (which evolved out of dub musicians like [[DJ Kool Herc]] moving to American cities). Ragga especially now has many devoted followers throughout the world.

[[Reggaeton]] is a fusion of reggae and [[rap]], popular in [[Latin America]], but gradually appearing in the [[mainstream]] charts.


=== Punk music ===

Punk is a subgenre of rock music (see below). The term "'''[[punk music]]'''" can only rarely be applied without any controversy. Perhaps the only bands ''always'' considered "punk" are the [[List of musicians in the first wave of punk music|first wave of punk bands]], such as [[the Clash]] and [[the Ramones]]. Before this, however, a series of underground musicians helped define the music throughout the [[1970s]] -- see [[List of forerunners of punk music|Forerunners of punk music]].

After 1978, following the collapse of [[The Sex Pistols]], punk could go no further.  However, the space that had been created in popular taste and in the distribution system facilitated a number of successors.  

With the exhaustion of The Sex Pistols, none of their peers -- [[Blondie (band)|Blondie]], [[Siouxie and the Banshees]], [[Television]], [[The Clash]], [[The Pop Group]], [[The Ramones]] was able to carry on the public fight for freedom of expression.  A flood of other groups came to prominence in Britain who explored the new space with abandon.  

Despite evidence to the contrary, many refused to believe that the phenomenon could not be repeated and several so-called genres acquired followings.  These 'genres' can be grouped into three categories -- [[hardcore punk]], [[New Wave music|New Wave]] and [[alternative rock]].  

''Hardcore'' punk music kept the raw, visceral energy of the original punk bands. In the [[1980s]], [[reggae]] influences resulted in a fusion called [[ska punk]], while another group of bands became known as [[Oi!]], uniting punks and [[Skinheads]] with an aggressive, though often humourous style of [[streetpunk]]. Some of these bands took a [[far-right]] political stance, most notably [[Skrewdriver]], but most distanced themselves from this, often appearing at the opposite end of the political spectrum, such as The [[Angelic Upstarts]]. During the [[1990s]], some more styles emerged, including [[straight edge]], and [[queercore]], based around subcultures -- straight edge and homosexuals, respectively. [[Psychobilly]] (see also [[cow punk]]) also emerged, fusing punk with [[rockabilly]] and other kinds of [[country music]]. In addition, [[emo]] (or emocore) had appeared by the 90s, characterized by slower beats, dreamy vocals and angst-ridden lyrics, and [[moshcore]], which involved heavy moshing.  

''New Wave'' was the most popular genre of punk music, dominating the charts during the early [[1980s]]. Varieties included [[Neue Deutsche Welle]], [[synth pop]], [[dream pop]] and the [[New Romantic]]s. Of these, the most popular was synth pop, though the most critically accepted groups were the underground dream pop bands. In the 1980s, dream pop evolved into many of the most popular genres of the [[1990s]]. This occurred primarily in Britain, with styles like [[jangle pop]] (and the [[Paisley Underground]]) and [[noise pop]] (and, later, [[twee pop]], [[shoegazing]]). All of these styles (along with [[psychedelic music]]) contributed to the popular emergence of [[Britpop]] in the middle of the decade.  

Keeping the anti-corporate stance of punk music, ''alternative rock'' is a broad grouping, referring to multiple styles. The earliest genres were [[noise pop]], [[post-rock]] and [[Gothic rock]]. These bands were unable to break into the mainstream, though they influenced many of the 1980s' most popular groups. 
By the end of the decade, post rock had developed into [[math rock]], while other genres like [[Riot grrl]], [[slowcore]] (aka [[sadcore]] or [[shoegazing]]) and [[grunge music]]. During the early [[1990s]], grunge music broke into the mainstream in a big way. With "alternative" now mainstream, other bands began referring to themselves as [[indie rock]].  
Many [[all-women band]]s are alternative, punk, post-punk, or riot grrl.  Popular alternative rock bands today incorporate several different styles of music bringing a hybrid of sounds, e.g. Linkin Park.


=== Hip hop / Rap ===

[[Hip hop]] and [[Rap]] can be seen as a subgenres of R&B tradition (see above). '''[[Hip hop]]''' began in inner cities in the US in the [[1970s]]. The earliest recordings, primarily from the early [[1980s]], are now referred to as [[old school rap]]. In the later part of the decade, regional styles developed. [[East Coast rap]], based out of [[New York City]], was by far the most popular as rap began to break into the mainstream. [[West Coast rap]], based out of [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]], was by far less popular until [[1992 in music|1992]], when [[Dr. Dre]]'s ''[[The Chronic]]'' revolutionized the West Coast sound, using slow, stoned, lazy beats in what came to be called [[G Funk]]. Soon after, a host of other regional styles became popular, most notably [[Southern rap]], based out of [[Atlanta]] and [[New Orleans]], primarily. Atlanta based performers like [[OutKast]] soon developed their own distinct sound, which came to be known as [[Dirty South]]. 
As hip hop became more popular in the mid-[[1990s]], [[alternative hip hop]] gained in popularity among critics and long-time fans of the music.  

[[De La Soul]]'s ''[[3 Feet High and Rising]]'' ([[1989 in music|1989]]) was perhaps the first "[[alternative rap]]" blockbuster, and helped develop a specific style called [[jazz rap]], characterized by the use of live instrumentation and/or [[jazz]] samples. Other less popular forms of hip hop include various non-American varieties; [[Japanese hip hop|Japan]], [[British hip hop|Britain]], [[Mexican hip hop|Mexico]], [[Swedish hip hop|Sweden]], [[Finnish hip hop|Finland]], [[French hip hop|France]], [[German hip hop|Germany]], [[Italian hip hop|Italy]] and [[Turkish hip hop|Turkey]] have vibrant hip hop communities. In [[Puerto Rico]], a style called [[reggaeton]] is popular. [[Electro hip hop]] was invented in the 1980s, but is distinctly different from most old school hip hop (as is [[go go]], another old style). Some other genres have been created by fusing hip hop with [[techno music|techno]] ([[trip hop]]) and [[heavy metal music|heavy metal]] ([[rapcore]]). In the late 1980s, [[Miami]]'s hip hop scene was characterized by bass-heavy grooves designed for dancing -- [[Miami bass music]]. There are also rappers with Christian themes in the lyrics -- this is [[Christian hip hop]].

==Contemporary African music==
Since the 1960s, most African popular music incorporates traditional local vocal, instrumental, and percussive styles, but also draws heavily on rock, reggae, and/or hip hop. For example [[raï]], which originated in [[Algeria]] and spread throughout North Africa and to the North African diaspora, especially in France, began with [[topical song]]s based in the local traditional music, but, starting around 1980, began to incorporate elements of hip hop.

Other notable contemporary African genres include [[Zulu jive]] ([[South Africa]]), [[highlife]] ([[Ghana]]) and in Nigeria [[juju music]] (now nearly a century old, and constantly evolving) and [[Afrobeat]]. Many African countries hae also developed their own versions of reggae and hip hop.


{{Musicgenres}}

==Reference==
*van der Merwe, Peter (1989). ''Origins of the Popular Style: The Antecedents of Twentieth-Century Popular Music''. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 0193161214.

[[Category:Musical genres]]

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