Klarinet Archive - Posting 000304.txt from 1998/06

From: "Carl Schexnayder" <carlsche@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] musical terminology
Date: Mon, 8 Jun 1998 21:46:20 -0400

Peter wrote:

>Hey all!
>
>I've always had an instinctive reaction against calling instrumental music
"songs" as in "My band's playing some great songs by Holst next term",
thinking to myself 'sing a song, play a piece'. Am I being stuffy?
>
>Peter Stoll
>Instructor, Univ.of Toronto

Hi Peter,

I have also felt that "song" implies words and singing. It has always
bothered me, too, when anyone refers to an instrumental composition as a
"song". I use both "piece" and "tune", either of which is preferable to me,
(my opinion - not fact). Another thing that has always bothered me was the
use of "classical" to refer to all serious music, since "classical" refers
to a period in history. I have, however, almost surrendered on that one
because using more precice terminology seems to confuse so many people.

Actually, I'd like to hear serious music referred to as "music" and any form
of popular "music" referred to as "entertainmemt"! The only problem with
that for me is that "entertainment" is not very entertaining!

Carl Schexnayder

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