Essay On Genres Of Classical Music & Organization

If I had a large library of classical music files, and wanted to organize them into different sections or genres so I could keep track of them, it would be an extremely difficult job. There are so many different types of classical music, and the period of time in which they were created spans centuries. However, I think I would have to organize them by historical period in a large library, as that would be the most efficient way to go. I would divide my classical music files by Renaissance, Baroque, Classical (1750-1820 Classical Period), and Romantic. I would also have a section on 20th century classical works called Modernist.
There are many reasons for categorizing these works by historical period. First, each period had their own unique sounds that, while still disparate in their own ways, had a somewhat unifying aural aesthetic that spanned the era. When organizing them in this way, I allow myself to understand where the work lies in its historical context; as a result, I learn more about the era when I listen to the track and identify it as being “Baroque” or “Classical.” The Modernist category would allow for instrumental and classical works that fall after the Romantic period, and let me compare the instrumentation and composition approaches of that period to the others. This also allows the entire thing to be broken up into five distinct yet clearly-distinguishable categories, marking them by time period so as to allow them to be organized easily. This way, each category becomes a sort of crash course on the nature of the classical music of its era.