An Overview of Music – Types and Styles
Music is the art of composing sounds in harmony with the parts of sound, melody, beat, and rhythm to create a composition or song through the various factors of harmony, melody, rhythm, and timing. It’s one of the most universal human artistic aspects, shared by all cultures. It can be described as being a human voice, musical instrument, or a way to communicate music through emotions, tone, pitch, articulation, or even emotions. In its broadest sense, music can be defined as any type of recorded expression in which the performer (or listeners) express and react to a melody or beat. Many forms of music exist, but music is most commonly heard in four genres.
The most recognized genres are Classical music, Romantic music, New World music, and the Western music styles. Classic music is the oldest form of music, predating all other forms of music by centuries. This includes many types of classical music, including the Italian, German, and French classical music genres. Romantic music is created for romance, literature, or theater and takes different approaches to composition than classical music. New World music is the most widely-performed genre, often combining elements from other genres of music like jazz and new age.
Music is written in many different styles and is composed of many instruments and combinations of these instruments. It can also be written in another language, like German or Latin, or it can consist solely of musical harmonies. It’s a very important part of culture, with an influence on many things from art and literature to politics and technology.