# Outline of music

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to music:
Music – human expression often in the medium of time using the structures of sounds or tones and silence. It may be expressed in terms of pitch, rhythm, harmony, and timbre.

## Definition of music

* Definition of music
** One of the arts
** One of the performing arts
** One of the humanities
** An academic discipline

## History of music

History of music
* Timeline of musical events
** Prehistoric music
** Ancient music
*** Music in ancient India
*** Music of Mesopotamia
*** Music of ancient Greece
*** Music of ancient Rome
* Art music
** Andalusian classical music
** Arab classical music
** Chinese classical music
** Indian classical music
*** Carnatic music
*** Hindustani classical music
** Persian traditional music
*** Sasanian music
* Western classical music
* Dates of classical music eras
** Early music period
*** European medieval music
**** Saint Gall
**** Saint Martial
**** Goliard
**** Ars antiqua
***** Notre-Dame school
**** Troubadour
**** Trouvère
**** Minnesang
**** Ars nova
**** Trecento
**** Ars subtilior
*** Renaissance music
** Common practice period
*** Baroque music
**** the galant music period
*** Classical period
*** Romantic music
** 20th-century classical music
*** Impressionism
*** Expressionist
*** Modernism
*** Neoclassicism
*** Experimental music
*** Postmodern music
*** Contemporary classical music
** 21st-century classical music

### By region or ethnicity

* Timeline of trends in Australian music
* Byzantine music
* Timeline of Chinese music
* Timeline of Italian music
* Timeline of music in the United States
* History of music in the biblical period

## Musical ensembles

Musical ensemble
* Band
** Band (rock and pop)
** Brass band
** Concert band
** Fanfare band
** Jazz band
*** Big band
** Marching band
** Military band
*** Ottoman military band
** One-man band
** Pipe band
* Camerata
* Chapel
* Choir
** Flute choir
** Men's chorus
** Singakademie
* Decet
* Duet
** Piano duet
* Duodecet
* Gamelan
* Nonet
* Octet
** String octet
* Orchestra
** Pit orchestra
** String orchestra
* Percussion ensemble
* Quartet
** Flute quartet
** Piano quartet
** Saxophone quartet
** String quartet
** Wind quartet
** Woodwind quartet
* Quintet
** Brass quintet
** Clarinet quintet
** Pierrot ensemble
** String quintet
** Wind quintet
* Septet
* Sextet
** Piano sextet
** String sextet
* Sinfonietta
* Trio
** Clarinet trio
** Jazz trio
*** Organ trio
** Piano trio
** String trio

## Genres of music

* Blues
* Classical
* Country
* Electronic
** Electronic dance
* Electronica
* Folk
* Funk
* Gospel
* Grunge
* Hip hop
* Jazz
** Avant-garde jazz
** Chamber jazz
** Free jazz
** Latin jazz
** Orchestral jazz
* Latin
** Latin ballad
* Martial music
* Pop
** Dance-pop
** Electropop
* Reggae
* Rhythm and blues
* Rock
** Heavy metal
** Progressive rock
** Psychedelic rock
** Punk rock
* Ska
* Theatre music
** Ballet
** Opera
** Musical theatre
*** Incidental music

### Music by region

Cultural and regional genres of music
    Africa
       West Africa
          Benin • Burkina Faso • Cape Verde • Côte d'Ivoire • Gambia • Ghana • Guinea • Guinea-Bissau • Liberia • Mali • Mauritania • Niger • Nigeria • Senegal • Sierra Leone • Togo
       North Africa
          Algeria • Egypt • Libya • Mauritania • Morocco • Sudan • South Sudan • Tunisia • Western Sahara
       Central Africa
          Angola • Burundi • Cameroon • Central African Republic • Chad • The Democratic Republic of the Congo • Equatorial Guinea • Gabon • Republic of the Congo • Rwanda • São Tomé and Príncipe
       East Africa
          Burundi • Comoros • Djibouti • Eritrea • Ethiopia • Kenya • Madagascar • Malawi • Mauritius • Mozambique • Rwanda • Seychelles • Somalia • Tanzania • Uganda • Zambia • Zimbabwe
       Southern Africa
          Botswana • Lesotho • Namibia • South Africa • Eswatini
       Dependencies
          Mayotte (France) • St. Helena (UK) • Puntland • Somaliland • Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
    Asia
       Central Asia
          Kazakhstan • Kyrgyzstan • Tajikistan • Turkmenistan • Uzbekistan
       East Asia
       China • Tibet • Hong Kong • Macau • Japan • North Korea • South Korea • Mongolia • Taiwan
       North Asia
          Russia
       Southeast Asia
          Brunei • Burma (Myanmar) • Cambodia • Indonesia • Laos • Malaysia • Philippines (Metro Manila) • Singapore • Thailand • Timor-Leste • Vietnam
       South Asia
          Afghanistan • Bangladesh • Bhutan • Maldives • Nepal • Pakistan • Sri Lanka
          India
             States of India: Andhra Pradesh • Arunachal Pradesh • Assam • Bihar • Chhattisgarh • Goa • Gujarat • Haryana • Himachal Pradesh • Jammu and Kashmir • Jharkhand • Karnataka • Kerala • Madhya Pradesh • Maharashtra • Manipur • Meghalaya • Mizoram • Nagaland • Odisha • Punjab • Rajasthan • Sikkim • Tamil Nadu • Telangana • Tripura • Uttar Pradesh • Uttarakhand • West Bengal
       West Asia
          Armenia • Azerbaijan • Bahrain • Cyprus (including disputed Northern Cyprus) • Georgia • Iran • Iraq • Israel • Jordan • Kuwait • Lebanon • Oman • State of Palestine • Qatar • Saudi Arabia • Syria • Turkey • United Arab Emirates • Yemen
    Caucasus (a region considered to be in both Asia and Europe, or between them)
       North Caucasus
          Parts of Russia (Chechnya, Ingushetia, Dagestan, Adyghea, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachai-Cherkessia, North Ossetia, Krasnodar Krai, Stavropol Krai)
       South Caucasus
          Georgia (including disputed Abkhazia, South Ossetia) • Armenia • Azerbaijan (including disputed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic)
    Europe
       Akrotiri and Dhekelia • Åland • Albania • Andorra • Armenia • Austria • Azerbaijan • Belarus • Belgium • Bosnia and Herzegovina • Bulgaria • Croatia • Cyprus • Czech Republic • Denmark • Estonia • Faroe Islands • Finland • France • Georgia • Germany • Gibraltar • Greece • Guernsey • Hungary • Iceland • Ireland • Isle of Man • Italy (Rome) • Jersey • Kazakhstan • Kosovo • Latvia • Liechtenstein • Lithuania • Luxembourg • Macedonia • Malta • Moldova (including disputed Transnistria) • Monaco • Montenegro • Netherlands • Poland • Portugal • Romania • Russia • San Marino • Serbia • Slovakia • Slovenia •
       Norway
          Svalbard
       Spain
          Autonomous communities of Spain: Catalonia
       Sweden • Switzerland • Turkey • Ukraine
       United Kingdom
          England (Cornwall, London, Sussex) • Northern Ireland • Scotland • Wales (Cardiff, Newport)
       Vatican City
       European Union
    North America
       Canada
          Provinces of Canada: • Alberta • British Columbia (Vancouver) • Manitoba • New Brunswick • Newfoundland and Labrador • Nova Scotia • Ontario • Prince Edward Island • Quebec • Saskatchewan
          Territories of Canada: Northwest Territories • Nunavut • Yukon
       Greenland • Saint Pierre and Miquelon
       United States
          Alabama • Alaska • Arizona (Tucson) • Arkansas • California (Los Angeles) • Colorado Denver • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia (Athens, Atlanta) • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois (Chicago) • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland (Annapolis, Baltimore) • Massachusetts • Michigan (Detroit) • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York (New York City) • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania (Philadelphia) • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas Austin • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington (Olympia, Seattle) • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming
          Washington, D.C.
       Mexico
       Central America
          Belize • Costa Rica • El Salvador • Guatemala • Honduras • Nicaragua • Panama
       Caribbean
          Anguilla • Antigua and Barbuda • Aruba • Bahamas • Barbados • Bermuda • British Virgin Islands • Cayman Islands • Cuba • Dominica • Dominican Republic • Grenada • Haiti • Jamaica • Montserrat • Netherlands Antilles • Puerto Rico • Saint Barthélemy • Saint Kitts and Nevis • Saint Lucia • Saint Martin • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines • Trinidad and Tobago • Turks and Caicos Islands • United States Virgin Islands
    Oceania (includes the continent of Australia)
       Australasia
          Australia
             (Adelaide, Perth, Sydney)
             Dependencies/Territories of Australia
                Christmas Island • Cocos (Keeling) Islands • Norfolk Island
          New Zealand
       Melanesia
          Fiji • Indonesia (Oceanian part only) • New Caledonia (France) • Papua New Guinea • Solomon Islands • Vanuatu •
       Micronesia
          Federated States of Micronesia • Guam (USA) • Kiribati • Marshall Islands • Nauru • Northern Mariana Islands (USA) • Palau • Wake Island (USA) •
       Polynesia
          American Samoa (USA) • Chatham Islands (NZ) • Cook Islands (NZ) • Easter Island (Chile) • French Polynesia (France) • Hawaii (USA) • Loyalty Islands (France) • Niue (NZ) • Pitcairn Islands (UK) • Adamstown • Samoa • Tokelau (NZ) • Tonga • Tuvalu • Wallis and Futuna (France)
    South America
       Argentina • Bolivia • Brazil • Chile • Colombia • Ecuador • Falkland Islands • Guyana • Paraguay • Peru • Suriname • Uruguay • Venezuela
    South Atlantic
       Ascension Island • Saint Helena • Tristan da Cunha

## Musical compositions

Musical composition

### Types of musical pieces and compositions

Musical form

#### Single-movement forms

* Strophic form (AA...)
* Binary form (AB)
* Ternary form less often tertiary (ABA)
* Arch form (ABCBA)

#### Multi-movement forms

* Ballet
* Cantata
* Chorale
* Concerto
* Dance
* Etude
* Fantasia
* Fugue
* Mass
* Opera
* Oratorio
* Prelude
* Requiem
* Rhapsody
* Sonata
* Suite
* Symphonic poem
* Symphony

### Sections of a piece or composition

Section (music)
* Introduction
* Exposition
* Recapitulation
* Verse
* Refrain (chorus)
* Bridge
* Interlude
* Guitar solo
* Conclusion
* Coda
* Fadeout

### Musical notation

Musical notation
* Staff
** Clefs
** Key signature
*** Key
** Time signature
*** Beats
** Bars (Measures)
** Ledger lines
* Grand staff
* Notes
** Note values
** Dotted notes
** Ties
* Accidentals
** Tempo
** Dynamics
* Lyrics (included on vocal music)
* Modern musical symbols
* Score (for ensembles)
* Sheet music

#### Variations of musical notation

* Percussion notation
* Figured bass
* Lead sheets
* Chord charts
** Shape note system

## Musical techniques

* Bell chord
* Broken chords
** Arpeggio
*** Bass arpeggiation
*** Non-harmonic arpeggio
* Ostinato
* Tremolo
* Guitar performance techniques

## Musical skills and procedures

* Absolute pitch
* Ear training
* Fingering
* Learning music by ear
* Modulation
* Numerical sight-singing
* Practice
* Relative pitch
* Sight reading
* "Swinging"
* Transposition
* Tuning
* Virtuosity

### Vocal ranges

* Vocal range

#### Female ranges

* Soprano
* Mezzo-soprano
* Contralto

#### Male ranges

* Boy soprano
* Sopranist
* Alto
* Tenor
* Baritone
* Bass-baritone
* Bass

## Musical instruments

Musical instrument (List of musical instruments)
* Wind instruments
* Percussion instruments
* String instruments
* Voice
* Electronic instruments
* Keyboard instruments
** Musical keyboard
See also the List of musical instruments by Hornbostel–Sachs number

## Music technology

Music technology
* Electric music technology
* Electronic and digital music technology
* Mechanical music technology

## Music industry

Music industry
* Album
* Compact disc (CD)
* Compact Cassette
* Concert
* Concert tour
* Grammy Awards
* Music recording sales certification
* Performance
* Record
* Record industry
* Recording studio
* Single

### Music industry participants

* A&R
* ASCAP
* Band manager
* Booking agent
* BMI
* Copyright collective
* Disc jockey
* MCPS
* Musician – person who writes, performs, or makes music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music.
** Instrumentalist – one who plays a musical instrument.
*** Traditional instrumentalist – one who plays folk music on traditional instruments such as gongs.
*** Classical instrumentalist – one who plays classical music, usually with Western orchestral instruments such as the violin, flute etc.
*** Instrumentalists who plays popular music – one who plays with instruments in the big band, e.g. the electric guitar, drums, saxophone, trumpet, trombone etc.
** Singer – a vocalist.
** Composer – person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media.
*** Songwriter
*** Arranger
** Conductor – leads a musical ensemble. A conductor may simultaneously act as an instrumentalist in the ensemble.
** Recording artist – creates recorded music, such as CDs and MP3 files.
* Musicians' Union
* Publisher
* PRS
* Record producer
* Record label
* Record distributor
* Tour promoter
* Road crew ("roadies")
* Performance rights organisation

## Music theory

Music theory

### Elements of music

Elements of music
* Pitch
* Scale
* Mode
* Chord
* Dynamics (music)
* Articulation
* Texture
* Consonance and dissonance
* Expression
* Harmony
* Melody
* Musical form
* Notation
* Rhythm
* Timbre

## Musicology

Musicology
* Biomusicology
** Evolutionary musicology
* Cognitive musicology
* Ethnomusicology
* Historical musicology
* Systematic musicology
** Sociomusicology (music sociology)
** Philosophy of music
** Music acoustics (physics of music)
** Computer sciences of music
*** Sound and music computing
*** Music information retrieval
*** Computing in musicology
* Zoomusicology

### Music education

Music education
* Music lessons

## Music and politics

Music and politics

## Music organizations

* Musicians' Union (UK)
* Sony Music Entertainment
* International Music Council
* International Federation of the Phonographic Industry
* Australian Recording Industry Association

## Psychology of music

Psychology of music
* Cognitive musicology
* Cognitive neuroscience of music
* Culture in music cognition
* Music and emotion
* Music-specific disorders
* Music therapy
* Psychoacoustics
* Psychoanalysis and music
* Psychology of music preference