What are the genres of music?

We immediately warn you that it’s very difficult to answer in one article the question of what genres of music are. In the entire history of music, so many genres have accumulated that one cannot measure them with a yardstick: choral, romance, cantata, waltz, symphony, ballet, opera, prelude, etc.

For more than a dozen years, musicologists "break their spears", trying to classify musical genres (by the nature of the content, by functions, for example). But before dwelling on the typology, let us clarify the very concept of the genre.

What is a music genre?

A genre is a kind of model with which specific music corresponds. He has certain conditions of performance, purpose, form and nature of the content. So, the goal of a lullaby is to calm the baby, so for it the “swaying” intonations and the characteristic rhythm are typical; on the march - all the expressive means of music are adapted to a clear step.

What are the genres of music: classification

The simplest classification of genres - according to the method of performance. These are two large groups:

• instrumental (march, waltz, etude, sonata, fugue, symphony)
• vocal genres (aria, song, romance, cantata, opera, musical).

Another typology of genres is related to the performance environment. It belongs to A. Sokhor, a scientist who claims that music genres are:

• ritual and religious (Psalms, Mass, Requiem) - they are characterized by generalized images, the domination of the choral beginning and the same mood among the majority of listeners;
• mass household (types of song, march and dance: polka, waltz, ragtime, ballad, anthem) - they are distinguished by their simple form and usual intonations;
• concert genres (oratorio, sonata, quartet, symphony) - characteristic performance in the concert hall, lyrical tone as the author's self-emphasis;
• theater genres (musical, opera, ballet) - require action, plot and scenery.

In addition, the genre itself can be broken down into other genres. So, opera-seria ("serious" opera) and opera-buffa (comic) are also genres. At the same time, there are several other varieties of opera, which also form new genres (lyric opera, epic opera, operetta, etc.)

Genre Names

You can write a whole book about the names of music genres and how they appear. Names can tell about the history of the genre: for example, the name “kryzhachok” is a dance that is due to the fact that the dancers were located cross (from the Belarusian “kryzh” - cross). Nocturne ("night" - translated from French) was performed at night in the open air. Some names originate from the names of the instruments (fanfare, musette), others - from the songs (Marseillaise, kamarinskaya).

Often, the music gets the name of the genre when transferred to another environment: for example, folk dance to ballet. But it happens the other way around: the composer takes the theme of "The Seasons" and writes the work, and then this theme becomes a genre with a certain form (4 seasons like 4 parts) and the nature of the content.

Instead of conclusion

Talking about the genres of music, it is impossible not to mention the common mistake. This is a confusion in terms when such styles as classic, rock, jazz, hip-hop are called genres. Here it is important to remember that the genre is the scheme on the basis of which the works are created, and the style rather indicates the features of the musical language of the creation.

The author - Alexandra Ramm