The music history timeline below outlines the evolution of popular musical styles and genres from music’s early beginnings through to modern times. *Rotate your phone for best view.
Music’s Early Beginning
Archaeologists discovered primitive flutes made out of ivory and bone dating as far back as 43,000 years ago. The earliest evidence of musical notation was found on a Sumerian clay tablet dating back 4,000 years. Many historians consider Hurrian Hymn No. 6 (ode to goddess Nikkal) the oldest melody ever composed.
3000 BCE Ancient Egyptian Music
Ancient Egyptian music permeated through all aspects of daily Egyptian life. It was central to religious ceremonies, rituals, as well as the process of mummification. Musicians enjoyed significant status and were regularly connected with royal courts and temples. Commonly used instruments included flutes, harps and drums.
1,000 BCE Ancient Greek Music
Ancient Greek music played a major role in Greek society and culture. It was commonly played at religious ceremonies, public festivals, as well as private gatherings. The Greeks are also credited with creating various musical instruments including the kithara, lyre and aulos. Early Greek music theory also paved the way for Western musical traditions. High value was also placed on the philosophical and mathematical aspects of music. This lead to further advancements in music notation, scales and influencing European music development.
500 BCE – 500 CE Indian Classical Music
Indian Classical Music’s roots stretch back to ancient India’s Vedic texts with foundational texts like Bharata Muni’s ‘Natya Shastra.’ This rich and complex tradition involves intricate rhythms, scales and the construct of ragas. It evolved over centuries to include the two traditional styles of Hindustani (North Indian) and Carnatic (South Indian). Indian Classical Music continues to be a vibrant as well as influential genre in both India and globally.
500-1400 Medieval Music
Medieval music was the music of the Middle Ages beginning in the 5th to the 15th century. It was mainly religious music and compositions were mostly written for the Catholic Church. The music was characterized by Gregorian chant, which was monophonic, meaning a single-line melody without accompaniement. Medieval music was generally sung in Latin and focused on liturgical text.
1400-1600 Renaissance Music
This music of the Renaissance period lasted from the 14th to the 17th century. It was a period of great artistic and cultural development across Western Europe, and music played a vital role. Renaissance music is distinguished by polyphony; incorporating multiple independent melodies sung or played at the same time.
1597 Opera
Opera music began in Florence with a group of musicians, artists, statesmen and writers known as the Florentine Camerata who sought to recreate Greek drama storytelling through music. Many consider Jacopo Peri’s composition “Dafne” in 1597 to be the first opera.
1600 The Baroque Period (1600 – 1750)
Baroque music is characterized by stern musical forms and highly ornamental pieces. This style commenced in Europe around the early 1600s and continued until approximately 1750. Famous Baroque composers include Bach, Handel and Monteverdi.
1600s Gospel Music
Traced to the early 17th century, Gospel music is a genre of Christian music whose creation and performance in the form of sacred songs and hymns varies according to different cultures. Gospel music typically features dominant vocals including strong harmonies often repeated in a call and response fashion.
1750 The Classical Period (1750 – 1830)
Music of the Classical Period is characterized as being lighter and less strict than Baroque music. Highlights of the Classical era include the composing of symphonies, the piano sonata’s development and comic operas. Famous composers of the Classical period include Mozart, Beethoven and Haydn.
1830 The Romantic Period (1830 – 1900)
Music of the Romantic era is characterized by personal emotional expression with an emphasis on individuality and originality including the experimentation and freedom of form. Orchestras grew larger in size during this period. Famous Romantic period composers include Chopin, Schumann and Tchaikovsky.
Jazz’s Early Beginnings
1899 Ragtime (1899 – 1917)
Ragtime music is believed to have begun with Scott Joplin’s “Maple Time Rag.” This genre is largely characterized by its syncopated “ragged time” rhythms. Said to be a forerunner of jazz, this American music was heavily influenced by minstrel-show tunes, African American banjo playing plus aspects of European music.
1900 Blues
Drawing from African spirituals and traditions, when exactly blues music began is not clear. The earliest references to blues music date back to the late 19th century. In 1912 bandleader W.C. Handy’s Memphis Blues became a hit and drove the genre to new heights.
1902 Electronic Music
Electronic music comprises a wide range of music genres which employ electronic musical instruments and general purpose electronics such as personal computers. Electronic music devices were fisrt invented at the beginning of the 20th century. During the 1920s & 1930s, electronic instruments began to appear and by the 1940s, magnetic audio tape enabled musicians to record various sounds and then modify them by altering the tape speed to create various effects.
1920 Jazz
Jazz originated in New Orleans’ African-American communities in the late 19th century. It became more popular across the US and Europe in the early 1920s. Known as the “Roaring Twenties” with prohibition and speak easies, famous jazz artists include Louis Armstrong, Count Basie and Duke Ellington.
1920 Country Music
Country music’s roots date back to working-class Americans in the country’s south, particularly in the Appalachian Mountains. Early country musicians blended English ballads with Irish and Celtic songs. European immigrants who settled nearby contributed their influences as well. Famous country music artists include Hank Williams, Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash.
1920 Folk Music
American folk music’s origins actually date back to the early 1920s. It gained popularity during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl (1930-36). These early folk songs talked focused on economic hardships including the struggles to find work. Famous folk musicians include Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan.
1940s Bebop
Bebop began in early 1940s America and considered a dividing line in the history of jazz. It was a controversial departure from the era of swing music and the beginning of what became known as “modern jazz.” Bebop groups were smaller than swing bands, typically comprising of 3-4 musicians experimenting with advanced harmonies, altered and extended chords, complex syncopations, intricate melodies, and more. Unlike large swing bands, bebop groups featured small combos consisting of saxophone, trumpet, piano, guitar, double bass, and drums. Famous bebop musicians included Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis and more.
1940s Ryhthm & Blues (R&B)
Rhythm & Blues began in the African-American communities in the 1940s. Strongly influenced by jazz, blues and black gospel music, R&B is also credited as a major contributor to the creation of rock and roll. Famous R&B artists include Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and Stevie Wonder.
1940s Bluegrass
Bluegrass music was named after Bill Monroe’s band The Blue Grass Boys who began performing in the 1940s. Originating in America’s Appalachian region, its roots are in traditional English, Irish and Scottish music combined with blues and jazz. Bluegrass is generally played on acoustic instruments.
1950s Soul
Born of the Afro-American experience, soul music originated from the blues clubs, churches and US street corners. Soul’s major influences included R&B, gospel and doo-wop. In 1959 the Motown label was founded in Detroit and contributed significantly to soul music’s popularity among both blacks and whites. Famous soul artists include The Temptations, The Supremes and Aretha Franklin (The Queen of Soul).
Rhythm & Blues Beginnings
1950s Rock Music
Rock (Rock ‘n Roll) music began in the early 1950s U.S. It was heavily influenced by various genres including blues, jazz, gospel and country music. The music became largely guitar-driven by the late 1950s and encouraged a growing youth culture. Famous rock artists include Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and David Bowie.
1960s Psychedelic Music (aka Psychedelia) Psychedelic Music is represented by a wide assortment of popular music styles influenced by a subculture of people using psychedelic drugs in 1960s. San Francisco began experiencing an emerging music scene comprising of coffee houses and folk clubs. Independent radio stations also began catering to the nearby Berekely students and other ‘free thinkers’ who had moved to the city. While a culture of drug use among blues and jazz musicians had already existed, in the early 1960s the use of drugs such as cannabis, LSD, mescaline and peyote began growing among rock musicians as well.
1960s Disco
Disco is a beat-driven form of popular dance music whose name originated from American dance-oriented nightclubs known as discotheques. Famous disco artists include Gloria Gaynor, Donna Summer and the Bee Gees.
1960s Reggae
Reggae music began in 1960s Jamaica and spread quickly around the world. The genre takes its name from the 1968 song ‘Do the Reggay’ by Toots and the Maytals. Reggae is known for its forceful percussion, compelling bass lines, and up-stroke rhythm guitar known as the ‘skank beat.’ Reggae songs typically feature lyrics in Jamaican English. In 1963 Bob Marley & The Wailers were formed and are among the most famous reggae bands known today.
Late 1960s Heavy Metal
Heavy metal is a rock music genre that developed in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, mainly in the United States and United Kingdom. It evolved from hard rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock in late 1960s and 1970s with notable bands such as Judas Priest, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. Heavy metal is distinguished by loud distorted electric guitars, glaring rhythms, solid bass and drum sounds, and robust vocals.
1970s Synth-Pop
Synth-Pop (abreviation for Synthesizer Pop) is also known as Techno-Pop and is a music genre that first gained prominence in the early 1970s. Featuring the synthesizer as the predominant musical instrument, it is widely associated with progressive rock, electronic music, disco, and other genres. Synth-pop became a distinct music genre in the United Kingdom and Japan during the post-punk period as part of the late 1970s new wave movement.
Rap & Hip-Hop Beginnings
1970s New Wave
New Wave music emerged onto the US and UK music scenes in the late 1970s. This subset of rock music is largely characterized by quirky pop arrangements and electronic sounds. Famous new wave artists include The Talking Heads, Blondie and Elvis Costello.
1974 Punk Rock
Punk rock started in the 1970s and was largely the result of anti-establishment sentiment particularly in the US and Britain. Punk is characterized as having harsher sounds than typical rock, limited instrumentation, and shorter songs. Famous punk artists include The Clash, Ramones and Sex Pistols.
1980s Grunge
Grunge music is characterized by its combination of various alternative rock styles including punk and heavy metal. Grunge music’s raw, unpolished sound is typically generated by loud vocals, drums and distorted guitars. Famous grunge bands include Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Alice in Chains.
2010s
This decade experienced a further rise in social media’s influences on the types of music listeners listened to. Genres including house, pop-punk, nu-disco, nu skool breaks, indie rock, fusion, hard rock, and others enjoyed mainstream attention largely due to social media.
2017 Bedroom Pop
Bedroom Pop began around 2017 but gained considerable momentum in the early 2020s due to Covid 19. The global pandemic resulted in live concert cancellations worldwide for two years. Bedroom Pop, a musical genre whereby young artists record (DIY) from their bedrooms and post their music online, became more popular due to musicians being restricted to their homes. Popular bedroom pop artists include Billie Eilish, Clairo, and Girl In Red.
