What is contemporary music?

Adult contemporary music (AC) is a North American term used to describe a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, rhythm and blues, quiet storm, and rock influence. read more

Perhaps the best perk of being a 21st-century musician is the opportunity to travel the globe, hang and play with the local musicians, hear new music, experience a variety of cultures, and see and hear the world from different vantage points. read more

The term ‘contemporary music’ can mean a variety of things to a variety of people. For the purpose of setting the scope of this draft Strategic Plan, Australian contemporary music is defined as music that is currently being written, recorded and performed by Australians. Its genres would include (but would not be limited to) blues, country, electronic/dance, experimental, folk, funk, hiphop, jazz, metal, pop, rock, roots, and world. read more

Contemporary classical music can be understood as belonging to the period that started in the mid-1970s to early 1990s, which includes modernist, postmodern, neoromantic, and pluralist music. However, the term may also be employed in a broader sense to refer to all post-1945 musical forms. read more

In 1973 the “music of the day” for me was rock and jazz with a dash of contemporary classical music for spice. It meant pretty much the same thing to Berklee faculty members, who were predominantly jazz musicians, with a few classical folks and some young rockers thrown into the mix. read more