The definitions of the various musical genres...

[residentgrey]

Reggaeton is not on that list i see. It's Spanish Rap n Soca. Actually soca is not on there as well...

[LPChip]

2 Harbinger: I can't find the post I once made. It must've been from before the crash.

[bvanoudtshoorn]

You know, it's my belief that when you tag tracks that you put up here, it's best to give them fairly broad tags. Something like 'Dance' is better than 'Southern Uzbekistani 3.12am Rave Anthem Junglism As Played Within 122.3 Hours Of The Winter Solstice', IMO. :p

That's why I tend to tag my stuff with simple tags like 'Pop/Rock', 'Dance', and 'Classical'. That, and as Harbinger notes, it's often hard to tag one's music.

Also, given the relatively small number of regulars here, I tend to download or listen to stuff irrespective of the genre.

[LPChip]

I actually have a combination of those. By definition, I won't listen to tracks made in a certain style. If unknown to me, but I like the music from that author, I do listen. If I don't know the author, but the style is somewhat in my league, I also listen to it.

[Louigi Verona]

Genres is a curious thing. They are built on so much different criteria.
For instance, classical music genres are based on time periods and significant writing methods, compositional techniques and melody types.
At the same time music genre can be as broad as based on how it is performed - vocal music, instrumental.
Lots of modern genres are actually subgenres, which differ in rhythm and sounds typically used, along with what impression usually is evoked in a listener - Gothic Rock, Horror music, etc.
I must say that some modern genres are well defined and some are not. Ambient genre is pretty much well defined - it is music with a flat structure (leads and background are blended together). On the other hand it was then expanded to just call any atmospheric music ambient. And though in many times it is confusing, lots of atmospheric music tends toward flat structure anyway.
House and techno are simply 4/4 beat music with the emphasis on drums and electronic instruments. Various subgenres make sense but it is very difficult to define them well.

So it is just historically like that - genres are created by different criteria and that makes them really confusing.

[Harbinger]

Very good points, louigi. In my research i'm learning things i didn't know about the music genres i thought i knew a lot about. What i thought, for example, was New Wave is actually synthpop. Techno is a broader family of music than what i thought. Both of these were terms used in the 80s of music that i came to love. But 10-20 years of history has given us a clearer perspective of how everything came to be, and the "labels" are reworked (by whom who knows).

To all concerned: whatever labels are ever agreed to or listed are not or ever required. The only good thing they're here for is to prepare listeners for what they might be listening to, and perhaps as a "selling point" for those who like or are interested in that type of music. Critiques, if we can all agree, should not be concerned with how well the music fits the label (altho one may offer that a different label may fit better the music type).


UPDATE: The compiled listing can now be found here. Please read the intro carefully if you wish to contribute... Thanks to all for your input; i hope to make you proud.:wink: