Music Genres
Alternative:
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became
widely popular by the 1990s. It is seen to be descended from punk rock.
Alternative rock is a broad term consisting of music that differs greatly in
terms of its sound, its social context, and its regional roots. It is so broad,
it consists of a number of sub-genres, such as grunge, indie rock, etc. The
typical instruments played in Alternative rock are drums, electric guitar,
keyboard, bass, and vocals.
*Artist Examples:
30 Seconds to Mars; All time low; Bullet for my Valentine; You Me at Six
Classical: Classical
music is the art music rooted in the
traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, from roughly the 11th
century to present times. The central norms of this tradition became codified
between 1550 and 1900, which is known as the common practice period. It should
not be confused with the Classical Era. Western staff notation is used by composers to determine the pitch, speed, meter, individual rhythms
and exact execution of a piece of music. The term "classical music" did not appear until
the early 19th century.
Country:
Country music is a genre of American popular music that began in the rural
regions of the Southern United States in the 1920s and 20th century Canada. It
takes its roots from South-Eastern American folk music, and Western cowboy.
Country music often consists of mostly string instruments such as banjos,
fiddles, acoustic guitars, and harmonicas.
The term ‘Country music’ started being used instead of
the term ‘Hillbilly music’, in the 1940’s. The term country music is used today
to describe many styles and subgenres.
*Artist Examples:
Taylor Swift; Dolly Parton; Billy Ray Cyrus; Tim McGraw; etc
Dance: Dance
music is music composed specifically to promote or to accompany dancing. Dance
music takes the form of either a whole musical piece or a musical arrangement.
*Artist Examples:
David Guetta; Calvin Harris, Cascada; etc
HipHop/Rap:
Hip hop music, (also known as rap music), consists of a stylized rhythmic music
that normally accompanies rhythmic & rhyming speech, (rapping). Rapping is
not a required component of hip hop music. Other elements include synthesis,
and sometimes beat boxing.
*Artist Examples:
Eminem; Lil Wayne; 50 Cent; Lil Kim; Ludacris; Snoopdog; etc
Gospel: Gospel
music is written and performed to express either personal, spiritual or a
communal belief regarding Christian life. Like other forms of Christian music, the creation,
performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies
according to culture and social context. Gospel music is composed and performed
for various purposes, such as pleasure and, religious or ceremonial purposes.
Pop: The term ‘Pop
music’ derives from the abbreviation of “popular”. It is a genre of popular
music which originated in the 1950s. Pop
music is extremely diverse, often including elements from other music styles;
however, there are core elements which define pop music, such as short lengths,
basic formats like ‘verse-chorus-verse-chorus’, repeated choruses, and melodic
tunes. Pop songs are often catchy, and quite easy simple and easy to remember. Pop
music is generally thought of as a genre which is commercially recorded and
desires to have a mass audience appeal; and performed for pleasure and
entertainment, rather than having artistic depth.
*Artist Examples:
Justin Timberlake; Britney Spears; Christina Aguilera; etc
R&B/Soul:
R&B (rhythm and blues) , is a genre of popular African-American music that
originated in the 1940s. In the early 1950s, the term rhythm and blues was frequently
applied to blues records. Starting in the mid-1950s, the term
"R&B" was used to refer to music styles that incorporated
electric blues, as well as gospel and soul music. In the 1970s, “R&B” was
used as a term for soul and funk. Eventually, by the 1980s, a newer style of
R&B developed, known as "Contemporary R&B".
*Artist Examples:
Alicia Keys; Amy Winehouse; R Kelly; Mary. J. Blige; Beyonce; Usher; Mariah
Carey; etc
Reggae: Reggae
was first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While the term is used to
refer to most types of Jamaican music, it actually denotes a particular music
style that originated from the development of ‘ska’ and ‘rocksteady’.
Reggae is easily recognized by the rhythmic accents on
the off-beat, known as the skank. This pattern accents the second and fourth
beat in each bar, and combines with the drums emphasis on beat three, in
contrast to most other popular genres focus on beat one, the
"downbeat". The tempo of reggae is usually quite slow in contrast to
other Jamaican music.
*Artist Examples:
Bob Marley; UB40; Inner Circle; Dennis Brown; Aswad; Judge Dread; etc
Rock: The
sound of rock emerged in its modern form in the 1950s with the popularisation
of rock and roll. The sound of an electric guitar in rock music is by an electric
bass guitar, and percussion produced from a drum kit & cymbals. This trio
of instruments is often accompanied by the keyboard, the piano, the Hammond
organ and synthesizers. A group of musicians performing rock music is known as
a rock band and usually consists of between two and five members.
Rock music is traditionally built on a foundation of
simple rhythms in a 4/4 meter, with a repetitive snare drum back beat on beats
two and four. Melodies are often derived from older musical modes.
*Artist Examples:
Guns’N’Roses; Aerosmith; AC DC; Rolling Stones; Pink Floyd; etc
They have changed the features of their magazine to suit Rihanna as an artist, and her genre of music. They have exchanged their usual red text for bright pink instead. This straight away is going to imply to their loyal/regular readers, that this issue is going to be different.
