Classical music is
art music produced or rooted in the traditions of Western music, including both
liturgical (religious) and
secular music. While a similar term is also used to refer to the period from 1750-1820 (the
Classical period), this article is about the broad span of time from roughly the 11th century to the present day, which includes the Classical period and various other periods. The central norms of this tradition became codified between 1550 and 1900, which is known as the
common practice period. The major time divisions of classical music are as follows: the
early music period, which includes the
Medieval (500–1400) and the
Renaissance (1400–1600) eras; the Common practice period, which includes the
Baroque (1600–1750),
Classical (1750–1820), and
Romantic eras (1804–1910); and the
20th century (1901–2000) which includes the
modern (1890–1930) that overlaps from the late 19th-century, the
high modern (mid 20th-century), and
contemporary or
postmodern (1975–2015) eras. European art music is largely distinguished from many other non-European and
popular musical forms by its system of
staff notation, in use since about the 16th century. Western staff notation is used by composers to prescribe to the performer the
pitches (e.g.,
melodies,
basslines and/or
chords),
tempo,
meter and
rhythms for a piece of music. This leaves less room for practices such as
improvisation and
ad libitum ornamentation, which are frequently heard in non-European art music and in popular music styles such as
jazz and
blues. Another difference is that whereas most popular styles lend themselves to the
song form, classical music has been noted for its development of highly sophisticated forms of instrumental music such as the
concerto,
symphony,
sonata, and mixed vocal and instrumental styles such as
opera which, since they are written down, can attain a high level of complexity.