User:CallerNo6/CSG history and principles

Purpose

As mentioned on [mb-style], I want to work on a CSG "start here" page, and also on the fundamental questions such as "when should one apply the CSG?".

In order to start doing that, it'd help if there were some agreed-upon starting points. This content isn't meant to become a guideline, but I'll use the underlying ideas to formulate future proposals.

This is my take on the development and underlying purpose of the CSG, past and present. Corrections and discussion would be appreciated.

CSG Basic principles (in Q&A form)

Q: Why do we have a CSG at all? Why is "classical" music treated differently?

A: First, by "classical" we don't mean a particular style or genre exactly. We're talking about music that's performed and presented as part of a musical tradition with certain broad characteristics (e.g. it tends to be "composer-centric" rather than "performer-centric"). [1]

The CSG is meant to recognize this difference in musical traditions.

Q: What data does the CSG affect?

A: The "factual" data such as ARs don't change. The CSG /does/ affect the following:

1. The slightly fuzzier "artist" fields [2], which is a function of tradition and context (IMO).
2. The titles of Works which were not originally "titled". (i.e. many classical works are identified by attributes such as catalog, opus, key and/or instrumentation but don't have proper "titles"). These are commonly refered to as "untitled Works" in CSG discussions.
3. Recording and Track titles. The extent to which this is true will be determined by future proposals.
4. Release (and RG) titles in cases where none exists (or when the cover is ambiguous). Often, the cover of a classical release will simply list the included Works, either in full or in part. On the same release, the spine might have an even more abbreviated listing.

Q: Can a release be subject to only some aspects of the CSG?

A: Yes! e.g. you can have "composer-centric" artist credits on a release that doesn't require CSG-normalized titles.

Q: Why are "classical covers" a special category?[3]

A: IMO what we've been calling "classical covers" are performed and presented outside what we're calling the "classical tradition". [4]

Q: Are film scores "classical"?

A: Good question. IMO they are often presented as such. And they are often played on "classical" radio stations. On one hand, soundtrack titles won't generally need CSG normalization. On the other hand, some soundtrack works that aren't strictly "classical" might still benefit from "CSG for Works".

Note: Soundtrack Style was crafted to follow many of the same conventions as the CSG.

Q: What about "classical" performances of "pop" music?

A: I think MB has got this slightly wrong in the past. As an example, if the Kronos Quartet included Jimi Hendrix[5] in a "classical recital", then IMO this should be treated as any other "classical" track. It's the *presentation* and *performance* that matter, not the composer's "genre".

There will be grey areas, but I believe releases should generally be consistent. That is, either all track artists should be CSG-ified on a release, or none should, to avoid confusion.

Q: When does the CSG apply to Works?

A: Good question. Is it enough to say that classical-ness is in the "I can't define it, but I know it when I see it" category?

CSG-specific guidelines for Works will be

1. Guidelines for untitled Works
2. Guidelines for ARs, althouth hopefully these will mostly be consistent with the rest of MB.