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Western music developed out of the creatively fertile framework of Western philosophy that had its birthplace in ancient Greece. Pythagoras experiemented with intervals of sound based on small integers, which we recognize today as the 12-tone chromatic scale. From these logical roots developed the chantA chant is the rhythmic speaking or singing of words or sounds, either on a single note or with a simple melody involving a limited set of notes. Chants are used in a variety of settings. Supporters or players in sports contests may use them (see footballs of early ChristianChristian is: a follower of the faith of Christianity a popular first name and surname, especially in Northern Europe According to the New Testament, those who followed Jesus as his disciples were first called Christians by those who did not share their f tradition, first monophonicIn music, the word texture is often used in a rather vague way in reference to the overall sound of a piece of music. A piece may be described as having a "thick" texture, or a "light" texture, or other terms taken from outside of music ( Aaron Copland's, and later polyphonicPolyphony is a musical texture consisting of several independent melodic voices, as opposed to music with just one voice ( monophony) or music with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords ( homophony). The term is usually used in reference to mus and including instrumentA musical instrument is a device that has been constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. In principle, anything that somehow produces sound can serve as a musical instrument, but the expression is reserved generally to items that have thats.

See also

Musical genres in the Western tradition include:

• Classical music
  • Medieval European music
  • Renaissance musicRenaissance music is classical music written during the Renaissance period, approximately 1400 to 1600 A. Defining the end of the period is easier than defining the beginning, since there were no revolutionary shifts in musical thinking at the beginning o
  • Baroque musicBaroque music is Western classical music from the Baroque era, after the Renaissance music era and before the Classical music era proper. This roughly covers the time period from Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) through Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).
  • Classical music era
  • Romantic music
  • 20th century classical music

• Contemporary music
  • Acid
  • Bluegrass
  • Blues
  • Country music
  • Disco
  • Folk
  • Hymns
  • Indian music
  • Jazz
  • Metal
  • Punk rock
  • Rap
  • Rock and roll
  • Ska
  • Soul
  • Spirituals
  • Swing
  • Synthpop