It is said music has the capacity to melt even stones, so it is no wonder that every living being gets mesmerised on listening to music. There will be very few who are not inclined to music, in some form or the other, or who have never experience the blissful effect of soothing music. In this article, I have attempted to present to you the various popular forms of music in the world.

All the music is based on 7 main notes, the Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Da, Ne denoted in Western world as C,D,E,F,G,A,B There are many types of music practiced in different regions of the world. The popular types, few of which are also practiced in India, can be described as follows:

1.  Classical: Indian classical music is characterised by the generous use of the instrumentation. It can be classified as Hindustani and Carnatic based on the region of origin and the general composition of the music.  

• Hindustani music, developed in North India is based on the raga, each of which consists of 5 notes. It is more time-based and the ‘thaat’ concept is used to classify the ragas.
• Carnatic music is considered one of the oldest systems of classical music in the world, with its origin in South India. It is a very complex system of music system based on a system of ragas (melody) and talas (rhythm). There are seven rhythmic cycles and about 72 fundamental ragas, classified using the 'Shruti' concept.

The tabla is an important instrument in classical music. Although both the forms are monophonic, they differ in the names of the ragas and their count.

2.  Jazz: Syncopated or irregularly rhythmic music of the African-American origin. It is characterised by strong and complex rhythms. The main musical instruments used in jazz music are cornet, trumpet and violin.

3. Instrumental: This music, as the name suggests, is mainly performed with a single musical instrument, sometimes accompanied by a second or even a third one.

4. Rock (Rock n Roll) is a style of music which focuses heavily on guitar, drums, and loud vocals. Rock music is more about letting out your emotions through music. Rock music can be split up into many different subtypes, like Hard Rock, Classic Rock, Soft Rock, and Indie Rock. 

5. Pop: A variation of rock music, pop is softer in style, and relatively stresses on singing and vocal expressions, rather than the instrumentation.

6. Rap/Hip-Hop: This is music genre where different types of string and percussion instruments such as guitar, violin, fiddle, piano, bass and drums are used, though bass is the main one. Hip hop music is any music associated with rap. Rap music is part of the hip hop culture that is made up of Graffiti, breakdancing and rap music. Besides rap, hip hop music has elements of many of the other genre's like  Jazz, rock and even classical.

7. Blues: Blues is both a form of music as well as a music genre on which Jazz and Rock music are based. It had its roots in Africa, where the local tribals/slaves sang melancholic songs depicting their life, but gradually reached all through America. Blues music evolved from the country music and is based on the pentatonic (five tones) blues scale. It is characterized by a strong 4/4 rhythm and a 12-bar chord progression (12 measures). Lyric stanzas are usually in three lines incorporating a repeating harmonic structure

8. Folk music: It is a kind of traditional music that is handed down from generations and varies from culture to culture. This type of music reflects the emotions of the common people and the songs are well-understood by the layman. They can describe a story or just provide amusement. Tribal music, which is performed mainly by the tribals, comes under folk music

9. Techno Music: Also, knows as fusion music or remixes, this electronic genre of music is supposed to have originated in Detroit and features fast beats. This basically consists of mixed sound tracts to create on long tract. The music is, many times, generated by the computer (use of technology).

10. Celtic music: Also known as Scottish or Irish music, the Celtic tradition of music originated in the Celtic region, which comprises of places where the Celts, an ethnic tribe, settled. The music is characterized by the use of bagpipes, flutes (or whistles of some kind), drums, and sometimes guitar.

11. Country music/Bluegrass : This type of music, which is basically American, reflects the life of the people living in the particular area. It is slightly influenced by the European Celtic music, with the main musical instruments used here being the fiddle, mandolin, banjo, and guitar.  The song consists of only 3-4 rhythmic patterns.  

12. Soul music(R&B): Similar to country music, but differs slightly, as in the dialect of people in two different regions speaking the same language.  This is also a form of America’s folk music and clearly represents the African-American culture which is primarily an oral culture. Also, known as rhythm and blues, the key element in soul music is hand-claps and lot of hand movements while singing the song.