How We Understand Music Genres

A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions.It is to be distinguished from musical form and musical style, although in practice these terms are sometimes used interchangeably.

Music can be divided into different genres in many different ways. The artistic nature of music means that these classifications are often subjective and controversial, and some genres may overlap. There are even varying academic definitions of the term genre itself.

There is a huge mess in music genre, especially now that people are mixing genres. Some genres are possible to tell easily but others are a little bit more complicated.

For another example, let's define two genres. I'll just use over-simplified definitions to make the point clearer.

• ·      Techno: Little harmonic and melodic movement (if at all). Emphasis in rhythm and percussive instruments. There is small variation through the song (no climax, no distinctive sections, for example).
• ·      Trance: Both melodic and harmonic movement. Emphasis on bass, and time-based effects like reverb and delay. Sometimes features string-ensemble-like synthesizers (known as pads). There is variation through the song (it has well-defined intro, break-down, climax, and other sections).
• ·      Both Techno and Trance: Loop-based electronic music, based on samplers and synthesizers, carved for the dance floor.

Since musicians can be very creative, not all songs have a specific and defined genre. Some are a combination of many, others present a new pattern with no associated genre at all. In contrast, there are songs that share well-defined patterns and are easier to catalog.