Glossary
art, or arts, music
Art music refers to music and musicians from the Western Classical Tradition which can be as far back as the Medieval & Renaissance era up until to Modern eras. This spans a huge selection of musical activity from the 15th century (and perhaps before) to the 21st century. Monteverdi (1567-1643) Mozart (1756-1791) & Messiaen (1908-1992) are all categorized as composers of Art music.
equal temperament
This is the means by which fixed pitch instruments (such as pianos, organs and any other keyboard instruments, as opposed to violins, etc.) are tuned. This way of tuning combines intervals (such as C# and Db) so that each semitone is an equal distance from the rest. This is not the case for all instruments; not all instruments have a system of temperament. String players (like violinists and cellists) would play the two notes C# and Db very subtly different, despite them being ‘the same’ on a keyboard instrument. So, in D major for instance – where the leading note is C# - the C# would be played ever so slightly sharper than, say, a Db in Db major. Equal temperament is by no means a hindrance to keyboard instruments. Before it was introduced to England in 1846, to play in certain keys would be intolerable (for instance, a scale played in an ‘intolerable’ key would sound vastly out of tune), as they would only have been tuned to certain commonly used keys. This was called ‘mean-tone temperament’. With equal temperament it is only the ‘A’ notes which are at their ‘true’ and ‘accurate’ pitch; the frequencies of all the other notes in between are compensated for. This adjustment is so minimal that the human ear accepts it, and it allows the player to play in every key and sound ‘in tune’.
jazz
Jazz music encompasses many sub-genres (including Dixieland, Big-band, Bebop and Avante-garde) and has developed throughout the 20th century to the present day. It emerged from blues and ragtime and relies strongly on improvisation – for this reason, some more recent sub-genres of Jazz (like Experimental jazz) can be self-indulgent, and more meaningful to the performer rather than the audience. Jazz is not regarded as ‘Art music’. Artists such as Duke Ellington (1899-1974), Louis Armstrong (1901-1971), and Dizzy Gillespie (1917-1993) are all regarded as Jazz musicians.
popular music
Popular music refers to all the contemporary styles of music that rely on the more commercial aspects of the music business. Publicity, promotion, single releases, chart ratings and award ceremonies all play a major part in the success of Popular music artists. There are many different styles of Popular music developing from blues music (though taking a different route than Jazz) at the beginning of the 20th century. Rock n Roll, Dance, Country, Heavy Metal, Indie, Punk, Rap, Reggae and Soul are just a few of many other styles which come under the classification of ‘Popular music’. Elvis Presley, The Beatles and Michael Jackson are just a few of the best-selling pop musicians of all time.
art, or arts, music
Art music refers to music and musicians from the Western Classical Tradition which can be as far back as the Medieval & Renaissance era up until to Modern eras. This spans a huge selection of musical activity from the 15th century (and perhaps before) to the 21st century. Monteverdi (1567-1643) Mozart (1756-1791) & Messiaen (1908-1992) are all categorized as composers of Art music.
equal temperament
This is the means by which fixed pitch instruments (such as pianos, organs and any other keyboard instruments, as opposed to violins, etc.) are tuned. This way of tuning combines intervals (such as C# and Db) so that each semitone is an equal distance from the rest. This is not the case for all instruments; not all instruments have a system of temperament. String players (like violinists and cellists) would play the two notes C# and Db very subtly different, despite them being ‘the same’ on a keyboard instrument. So, in D major for instance – where the leading note is C# - the C# would be played ever so slightly sharper than, say, a Db in Db major. Equal temperament is by no means a hindrance to keyboard instruments. Before it was introduced to England in 1846, to play in certain keys would be intolerable (for instance, a scale played in an ‘intolerable’ key would sound vastly out of tune), as they would only have been tuned to certain commonly used keys. This was called ‘mean-tone temperament’. With equal temperament it is only the ‘A’ notes which are at their ‘true’ and ‘accurate’ pitch; the frequencies of all the other notes in between are compensated for. This adjustment is so minimal that the human ear accepts it, and it allows the player to play in every key and sound ‘in tune’.
jazz
Jazz music encompasses many sub-genres (including Dixieland, Big-band, Bebop and Avante-garde) and has developed throughout the 20th century to the present day. It emerged from blues and ragtime and relies strongly on improvisation – for this reason, some more recent sub-genres of Jazz (like Experimental jazz) can be self-indulgent, and more meaningful to the performer rather than the audience. Jazz is not regarded as ‘Art music’. Artists such as Duke Ellington (1899-1974), Louis Armstrong (1901-1971), and Dizzy Gillespie (1917-1993) are all regarded as Jazz musicians.
popular music
Popular music refers to all the contemporary styles of music that rely on the more commercial aspects of the music business. Publicity, promotion, single releases, chart ratings and award ceremonies all play a major part in the success of Popular music artists. There are many different styles of Popular music developing from blues music (though taking a different route than Jazz) at the beginning of the 20th century. Rock n Roll, Dance, Country, Heavy Metal, Indie, Punk, Rap, Reggae and Soul are just a few of many other styles which come under the classification of ‘Popular music’. Elvis Presley, The Beatles and Michael Jackson are just a few of the best-selling pop musicians of all time.
