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A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a Song structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usually made of sections that are repeated or performed with variation later. A song without instruments is said to be a cappella.
Written words created specifically for music, or for which music is specifically created, are called lyrics. If a pre-existing poem is set to composed music in the classical tradition, it is called an art song. Songs that are sung on repeated pitches without distinct contours and patterns that rise and fall are called . Songs composed in a simple style that are learned informally by ear are often referred to as . Songs composed for the mass market, designed to be sung by professional singers who sell their recordings or live shows, are called . These songs, which have broad appeal, are often composed by professional songwriters, composers, and lyricists; art songs are composed by trained classical composers for concert or recital performances. Songs are performed in Music studio and an Music recording is made, or they are performed live for audience. (In some cases a song may be performed live and simultaneously recorded.) Songs may also appear in theatre (e.g., opera), films and TV shows.
A song may be for a solo singer, a lead singer supported by background singers, a duet, trio, or larger ensemble involving part song singing in vocal harmony, although the term is generally not used for large classical music vocal forms including opera and oratorio, which use terms such as aria and recitative instead.Luise Eitel Peake. 1980. "Song". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, sixth edition, 20 vols., edited by Stanley Sadie, Vol. 17: 510–23. London: Macmillan Publishers; New York: Grove's Dictionaries. . A song can be sung without accompaniment by instrumentalists (a cappella) or accompanied by instruments. In popular music, a singer may perform with an acoustic guitarist, pianist, organist, accordionist, or a backing band. In jazz, a singer may perform with a single pianist, a small combo (such as a trio or quartet), or with a big band. A Classical singer may perform with a single pianist, a small ensemble, or an orchestra. In jazz and blues, singers often learn songs by ear and they may improvise some melody lines. In Classical music, melodies are written by composers in sheet music format, so singers learn to read music.
Songs with more than one voice to a part singing in polyphony or harmony vocals are considered choir works. Songs can be broadly divided into many different forms and types, depending on the criteria used. Through Semantic change, a Word sense of the word "song" may refer to , such as the 19th century Songs Without Words pieces for solo piano.
Art songs emerge from the tradition of singing romantic Courtly love, often to an ideal or imaginary person and from religious songs. The and bards of Europe began the documented tradition of romantic songs, continued by the Elizabethan lutenists. Some of the earliest art songs are found in the music of Henry Purcell. The tradition of the romance, a love song with a flowing accompaniment, often in triple meter, entered opera in the 19th century and spread from there throughout Europe. It expanded into popular music and became one of the underpinnings of popular songs. While a romance generally has a simple accompaniment, art songs tend to have complicated, sophisticated accompaniments that underpin, embellish, illustrate or provide contrast to the voice. Sometimes the accompaniment performer has the melody, while the voice sings a more dramatic part.
There are many genres of popular songs, including , , , , rock, blues and soul songs as well as indie music. Other commercial genres include rapping. Folk songs include ballads, lullaby, , mourning songs, dance songs, , ritual songs and many more.
Although songs about boxers and successful racehorses were common in the nineteenth century, few are performed by current singers. In particular, fox-hunting is considered politically incorrect. The most famous song about a foxhunter, "D'ye ken John Peel" was included in The National Song Book in 1906 and is now often heard as a marching tune. A. L. Lloyd recorded two EPs of sporting ballads; "Bold Sportsmen All" (1958) and "Gamblers and Sporting Blades (Songs of the Ring and the Racecourse)" (1962). The High Level Ranters and Martin Wyndham-Read recorded an album called "English Sporting Ballads" in 1977. The Prospect Before Us (1976) by The Albion Dance Band contains two rarely heard hunting songs.
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