AR4g Musical genres

This page is based on Deborah Lee & Rick Szostak, “Classifying Musical Genres. Building Musical Form and Genre into BCC: Repurposing LCGFT Terms for Music into the Basic Concepts Classification” Knowledge Organization 49 (4):257-272, 2022.  The paper explains why we treat genres, forms and types together here: the meanings of these terms overlap. The paper took as its starting point the Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms (LCGFT), and explored how these could best be adapted to a classification such as BCC. That paper in turn was indebted to our fellow participants at the Institute for Knowledge Organization and Structure workshop on music classification held in Portland Oregon in November 2019: Richard Smiraglia, Brad Young, Joshua Henry, and Richard Griscomb. 

Note that many musical "genres" can be dealt with synthetically. This allows us to be more precise while maintaining reasonably short schedules. Dramatic music is best treated as (work)(for)(particular kind of drama).  Operatic works can be captured synthetically as can the more complex (work)(for)(opera)(copied for)(television).  Note here that rearrangements or adaptations are not a distinct genre but are best captured synthetically. We can also capture synthetically types of music distinguished by medium of performance, such as (work)(for)(opera)(associated with)(chamber orchestra).   Works of music are sometimes distinguished by length; this also is best done synthetically:  a short piece of music might be indicated by combining “less” (QC6) with “time period” (T2).  Rather than having a genre of "functional music," we can synthetically indicate works of music designed for a particular function, such as national anthems. Humorous music (and types of, such as parody), are best dealt with synthetically.  Karaoke, noise music, teaching pieces, improvisations, and unfinished works are other "genres" treated in LCGFT that are best treated synthetically in BCC.

Sacred music is an important type of functional music. Ideally this would be dealt with synthetically: We would ideally flesh out our schedules of religious ceremony so that sacred music could be linked both to particular religions and particular (parts of) celebrations.

Most subclasses of "folk music" can be captured synthetically with links to a particular ethnic group or country. There are some exceptions, such as Aleke, which is one kind of music associated with the Maroon peoples of Latin America, which would likely need to be treated in our schedule of genres.

Some other subclasses of folk music such as cumulative songs and enumerative songs seem to describe particular techniques or subject matter rather than style. They do not, then, seem to be exclusive to “folk music.” Cumulative and enumerative songs are structured so that verses repeat but with some additions or substitutions. This can potentially be dealt with synthetically, perhaps by linking increase (↑) with cycles (↕) . Alternatively, these could be recognized as musical techniques.

Medleys might be dealt with synthetically also, by simply linking different works together. But it seems best to recognize that medleys are more than the sum of their parts, and treat them as a genre, while describing synthetically the genres or pieces of music that a particular medley incorporates

We are thus left with a compact set of musical genres (which can be fleshed out as necessary in practice). We will follow BCC practice in using alliterative notation when possible.:

a  Art music [It would be impractical to treat this synthetically.]  Subgenres include Symphonies, Sonatas, and Saibara.  Yet other "subclasses" such as Aleatory music, Carnatic music, or Microtonal music are best captured synthetically.  

b. Chants. Key subgenres include organa and antiphons, but most other subgenres suggested by LCGFT can be captured synthetically.  

c. Country music  [We think we do not need a broader term for "popular music" but can capure this synthetically with "intended for popular audience" as necessary.]

e. Electronica

f. Folk music (see above: a very small set of subgenres is necessary such as Aleke)

g. Gregorian chants. [Though sacred music in general, and most types of sacred music, can best be dealt with synthetically, there are some 27 subgenres that may deserve treatment here. Another important one is canticles.]

h. Hymns [Could be treated synthetically as communal song for worship, but that would be complicated for such a common genre] 

k. Filk music

m. Medley (see above)

r. Rock music

t. Glitch music

u. Mughams