Now it was always going to be a challenge because of the fact that I felt that almost everybody would have a different opinion on what song is the number one song of all time and it turns out that my hunch was correct. I had hoped to reach about 100 votes within the month but only managed 29 once I whittled out the comments that were not votes and people who had listed more than one song.

So here goes:

1. Wall to Wall - Chris Brown

2.= Train Kept a Rollin - Aerosmith

= Look for the Silver Lining - Chet Baker

= Train Kept a Rollin - Johnny Burnette and The Rock and Roll Trio

= Sweet Caroline - Neil Diamond

= Like I Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan

= Subterranean Homesick Blues - Bob Dylan

= In Your Eyes - Peter Gabriel

= Someone to Watch Over Me - George and Ira Gershwin

= I Take A Lot of Pride in What I Am - Merle Haggard

= The Devils Party - INXS

= Over the Hills and Far Away - Led Zeppelin

= Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin

= Imagine - John Lennon

= Redemption Song - Bob Marley

= American Pie - Don McLean

= Bat Out of Hell - Meatloaf

= Hurt - Nine Inch Nails

= Zero Sum - Nine Inch Nails

= I'll Stand By You - The Pretenders

= Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen

= Creep - Radiohead

= Under The Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers

= Satisfaction - Rolling Stones

= If We Hold Together - Diana Rose

= Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon and Garfunkel

= My Way - Frank Sinatra

= Toxicity - System of a Down

As you can see my thoughts of a vast array of votes was proven to be correct. Chris Brown's song "Wall to Wall" managed two votes as did the song "Train Kept a Rollin" however one was the Aerosmith version and the other the original by Johnny Burnette and The Rock and Roll Trio. Nine Inch Nails managed to get two songs on the list with "Hurt" and "Zero Sum" as did rock legends Led Zeppelin with "Stairway to Heaven" and "Over the Hills and Far Away". The rest of the songs all managed a single vote thus creating an outright first with "Wall to Wall" and a second equal for the remainder.

A fruitless effort really. I didn't really achieve what I set out to do but then I knew that this could be the case. Thanks everybody for voting and you have all proved one thing; each and every one of us has our own views, opinions and tastes.

Check out the voting on the original article at Online Survey: Let's Find the Number One Song of All Time

There are three stages of evolution in the Italian madrigal. At around 1525-1550, composers' main concern was to write a piece that was comfortable for the performer to play, so there was no virtuostic display. By 1550-1580, the madrigal became a recognized art form that clearly connected with the text. And by 1580-1620, the direct expression of composer's personally was shown in the Italian madrigal. A few of Italy's most prominent madrigalists were Monteverdi, Gesualdo, Luzzasch and Marencio. Topics of the Italian madrigals include love, unsatisfied desire, humour, satire, politics, and incidents of city & country life. Gesualdo's composition, Moro lasso, al mio duolo is an Italian madrigal outlining his depression and emotional pain. He used extreme chromaticism and word painting to represent his personal life in his music. The texture of the composition is homophonic for 5 voices. This particular madrigal came from his 6th book of madrigals.

As mentioned earlier, the Italian madrigal became popular throughout Europe, especially in England. The madrigals built a firm foundation in the court of Elizabeth I who was in power from 1558-1603. The publication of Musica transalpina (Music from Beyond the Alps) in 1588 triggered popularity of the madrigal in England. The madrigals in this publication were with English translation. The English madrigals has simpler text, happy/humorous moods, and uses nonsense syllables while the Italian madrigals include extreme chromaticism, weeping/sighing/ dying topics, wordpainting, extreme virtuosity, and dramatic declaration of words. Examples of English madrigalists were Thomas Morley, Thomas Weeltes, John Wilbye, Orlando Gibbons, and John Farmer. John Farmer was an organist, master of choirs at Christ Church in Dublin who flourished in the 1590s. Fair Phyllis by Farmer is an English Madrigal. The composition was published in 1599 and it has 4 voices. It's very lighthearted compared to Moro lasso, al mio duolo. This is one of the main differences between the two. Madrigals were an important part of music during the Renaissance. It was one of the most dominant secular works of its time.

Recently two articles were published featuring The Rock 1000 top rock songs of 2008 preview and the actual winners of the countdown and people commented on how this song should have been on the list and how this song shouldn't have etc. So I have decided to try and remedy the differences in opinion by creating a survey for the number 1 song of all time as judged by you, the reader.

This means that you can choose your pick for the number 1 song of all time whether it be Rage Against The Machine's "Killing in the Name", Lupe Fiasco's "Kick, Push" or Paris Hilton's…I can't recall the name of it, and not be offended when your choice of song is not on the list.

Here's how to vote. All you are required to do is place the name and artist of your number 1 song of all time in the comments box below, type the security code and click submit. After 1 month from date of publication of this article, the results will be collated and analyzed to bring you once and for all, the number 1 song of all time.

To get the ball rolling I will cast the first vote and say that "Under The Bridge" from the Red Hot Chili Peppers off their 1991 album Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magic is the number 1 song of all time.

For inspiration and or help in choosing your number 1 song of all time, you might like to read the above mentioned articles:

• The Rock 1000: Top10
• The Rock 1000: The Actual Top 10
• Ultimate Music: Top 10 Rock Songstresses in Looks and Talent

Carnatic music is a form of vocal music where Swara, Raga and Tala are the main ingredients. Nature in the form of sounds of birds and animals inspired the man to create this form of music. Various ancient works like the Vedas and Natya Shastra contributed enormously towards study of Carnatic music. Purandara Dasa who is known as the father of Carnatic music has contributed tremendously towards Carnatic music. Usually played along with Indian musical instruments like veena, flute, mridangam, nagaswara it was also experimented with English instruments like saxophone and piano. Carnatic music had gone through a revolutionary shift in patronage during the 19th century.

There are basic four elements of Carnatic music

1. Sruti: In terms of Western music we can relate it to tonic i.e. musical pitch; it is the note from which all the others are derived. In this sense, while shruti is a manifestation of the listener's mind.
2. Swara: Swara denotes to a type of musical sound that is a single note. Swaras also refer to the solfege of Carnatic music, which consist of seven notes, "sa-ri-ga-ma-pa-da-ni".
3. Raga: A melody is reinforced by the rules set by raga. It binds the movements, the scale, phrases used, and so on for a composition.
4. Tala: Tala sets the beat for a composition. Talas have defined cycles of number of beats which rarely varies within a song. Talas have specific elements, which in combinations can give rise to several variations so that different compositions can be sung with different rhythms. Carnatic music singers usually use their hands to keep the beat by moving them in specified forms, and using their fingers in parallel to keep time.

Knowledge of Carnatic music is imparted through different compositions. Every rendition of a Carnatic music composition is different and unique as it incarnates elements of the composer's imagination as well as the musician's interpretation. This allows lot of scope for free improvisation. Gurukula were usually the schools for Carnatic music where the guru used to teach his student who used to live in the gurukula. However in the 21st century, with new lifestyles and a parallel academic career, this system has found few takers. Today in the world of internet and media, online learning or learning through CD’s have many takers in the market. But still face-to-face learning is considered best for students.

Carnatic music is usually performed by a small ensemble of musicians, who sit on an elevated stage. This usually consists of at least; a principal performer, a melodic accompaniment, a rhythm accompaniment, and a drone. Don’t miss the next Carnatic concert in your city and also don’t forget to check out for Carnatic music in the music store.

18th Century

Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)

Joseph Haydn is often mentioned to have written 104 symphonies (the last being called as the 'London Symphony'). However, Anthony van Hoboken's list of Haydn symphonies is listing 108 - some of them fragmentary or more or less in a concerto form.

Haydn is considered as the father of this form. It explains why in music literature Haydn has a nickname 'Papa Haydn'. Also Joseph's brother Michael was a composer (now slightly forgotten) with a respectful amount of over 40 known symphonies.

Haydn's number has been generally considered as a 'record', but perhaps surprisingly Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (1739-1799) apparently wrote more symphonies than Haydn (around 120 symphonies) but is much more lesser known as a composer than Haydn.

Even more unknown aspect is that Czech composer Frantisek Xaver Pokorný (1729-1794) wrote at least 145 symphonies - most of which after his death were attributed to other known composers(!). This amount surpasses greatly the number of Haydn's symphonies.

Karl von Ordoñez (1734-1786)

Karl von Ordonez was an Austrian composer; wrote at least 73 symphonies.Leopold Hofmann (1738-93) is known to have written nearly 70 symphonies.

Giovanni Battista Sammartini (1700/1701-1775)

Giovanni Battista Sammartini wrote amount of over 60 symphonies, stylistically not too far from Haydn. Sammartini was an important early pioneer of the symphony form.

Czech composer Johann Baptist Vanhal (1739-1813) was also an important figure, with over 70 symphonies attributed to him. Another Czech composer Johann Stamitz (1717-1757) was an important early contributor to the Symphony form, although he died at a relatively young age of 39. His works list has 58 symphonies. Johann's son Carl wrote also more than 50 symphonies.

Iganz Holzbauer (1711-1783)

Iganz Holzbauer wrote 69 symphonies. Carl Joseph Toeschi (1731-1788) is not a well-known composer, but wrote at least 66 symphonies. Christian Cannabich (1731-1798) wrote over 60 symphonies - possibly even more.

Czech composer Pavel Vranicky (Paul Wranitzky; 1756-1808) has a list of 51 symphonies.

Francois-Joseph Gossec (1734-1829)

Gossec, who worked in France, wrote over 50 symphonies. Ignaz Pleyel (1757-1831), also very active in France, has a list of 41 known symphonies.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

He needs no introduction. Usually Mozart is reported to have written a total of 41 symphonies. In actual fact, Mozart completed at least 68, sometimes later revising into some other form. Despite this fact 41 are still the ones 'canonized' into his works list.

Carl Friedrich Abel (1723-1787) and Anton Fils (1733-1760)

They wrote over 40 symphonies, little-known Czech composer Fantisek Xaver Dusek (1731-1799) 39 symphonies, and Franz Ignaz Beck (1734-1809) well over 30 symphonies.

Also Italian-Spanish Luigi Boccherini (1743-1805), famous for his Cello concertos, wrote a total of 29 symphonies into his works list.

Also, very notably, Johann Sebastian Bach's sons wrote in total some hundred symphonies; almost 40 by Johann Christian Bach (1735-1782), nearly 30 by Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach (1732-1795) and over 20 by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788).

19th century

By the 19th century symphonies gained more length and wider perspectives. Considering this, only few composers could surpass number 10. Anton Bruckner (1824-1896) was one of them (if his symphonies "No. 0" and No. 00" are counted alongside with his 9 numbered ones). Also Joachim Raff (1822-1882) wrote a total of 11 symphonies but has been somewhat lesser-known figure until late years.

20th and 21st century

More modern times have shown a wider diversity in regard of the symphony form. For some time symphony was considered as a "dead" form. However, in some respects it is still far from becoming extinct!

From better-known 20th century composers Darius Milhaud wrote 12 symphonies (plus few others without number) as well as Brazilian Heitor Villa-Lobos. Also, Dmitry Shostakovich is very well-known of his legendaric 15 symphonies.

From Danish composers Vagn Holmboe completed 13 symphonies, Rued Langgaard 15 symphonies. Another Scandinavian, Allan Pettersson, wrote 17 large scale symphonies.

American composers Roy Harris wrote 15 and Henry Cowell a total of 20 symphonies.

A little-known composer is Romanian philosopher and multi-talent Dimitrie Cuclin (1885-1978) who created own aesthetics for the symphony form. He wrote 20 symphonies, one of which has a duration of 6 hours.

Another Eastern European composer, Latvian Janis Ivanovs (1906-1983) has catalogue of 21 symphonies. Also Nikolai Myaskovsky (1881-1950) wrote more than 20 symphonies, a total number of 27.

British composer Havergal Brian (1876-1972) completed 32 symphonies during his long life.

One composer who has been largely forgotten and neglected also in his native country is Finnish composer Erik Fordell (1917-1981) who wrote massive amount of works - including 44 symphonies.

American-Armenian Alan Hovhaness (1911-2000) was an extremely profilic contemporary symphonist. His output contains 67 numbered symphonies, and he is often mentioned as the person who revived symphony back into the 21st century.

The composer with the highest number of symphonies (upto today) is not from the classic period but comes from the contemporary scene.  Well-known Finnish conductor Leif Segerstam was born in 1944. But he is also a lively composer. In September 2008 the amount of his completed symphonies has already surpassed number 210.

As time went on, people kept singing and listening to the same chants over and over again. There's no question that people would start experimenting with harmonization. Out of the experiments, polyphony appeared by mistake. The earliest form of polyphony is called organum. When we add a 4th or 5th above or below the original chant, the style is a parallel organum. There are many examples of this in the Musica Enchiriadis, an anonymous 9th-century treatise that consists of the earliest records of polyphony. Composers belonging to the Notre Dame School contributed to the development of organum. Léonin discovered the duple organum and Pérotin extended it further to the triple and quadruple organums. Of course, the texture of these compositions is polyphonic. In each of the organums, there is a cantus firmus in the tenor and freely moving upper voices. The Haec dies organum written in c. 1175 is an example of a duple organum.

The early 13th-century Motets started because musicians wanted to add new text to the upper voice. As a result, the new composition was polytextual. Often they had the passages sang in text of different languages. The word mot, meaning word is the root of motet. This is why motet is an appropriate name for these new works. The cantus firmus is now an optional part of the motet. Many of the new pieces were written are completely original. The 14th-century motet is polyphonic and the 15th-century motet is homophonic. Much of the works were performed a cappella. In the example Ave Maria...virgo serena, by Josquin des Prez, a lot of imitation was used as well. They may have been isorhythmic and/or have used rhythmic modes. The Franco-Flemish school that Josquin belonged to composed several of these motets. Another famous composer who belonged to that school was Dufay. In conclusion, the development of Western music had started out as simple as the Gregorian chant and grew to the intricate Motet by the end of the middle ages.

Now, let us begin. For readers out there who are musicians, read on. If you are a reader who has been playing for about a year, and you don't have the courage to improve, listen. To be successful, you must do the following things; Practise, enjoy, practise= Success! Yes it sounds hard, but it is very easy. For those readers out there who are parents, and may wonder whether you want your child to be a musician, or might suggest their child playing one when they are older, read on. When you are young, your brain is developing very fast. Your child can adapt to whatever you want them to be. For example, if you want your child to be an exceptional pianist, you will play Mozart, Hayden, Bach piano music to them. Then they will begin to enjoy it, and then they would want to learn to play! For evidence, this strategy works, because my friend had their first child, and all they did was play piano music to him. Then he wanted to play piano! It sounds crazy, but it actually works.

Now, for people who are new to music. If you are new to music, i would recommend the following things;

Buy a music theory book. Recommend; Eric Taylor: Music Theory In Practice

Buy a music book for the instrument you want to learn

Now you may ask, "Why do I need a music theory book?" You need a music theory book because you need to learn how to read music! Please don't moan, because there is a very good reason why you shouldn't! Learning to read music is like learning a new language! Thats what music is! A New Language! And with all new languages, comes time, and dedication! Once you have mastered how to read music, then learning how to play your instrument will be very easy! Remember the following equation to success! Passion +work + dedication = Success!!

Now being a musician isn't easy. You will learn discipline and self control. Music also ties in with Mathematics. You will learn about this is in Music Theory. Now, you know everything you need to know to be successful musician. To put it together is a different thing. You will need to organise yourself. Putting a timetable together of when you practice. However, if you are adult, with a full time job, you need to think when you can practice. Now when you have your timetable, just dedicate that time to your practicing! Then, when you progress, look out for exams for your instrument! These are very, very handy qualifications. Say you spotted an advertisement on Television, saying they wanted a pianist to play for their dinner, and they wanted someone with Grade 5-7. Having that qualification, will give you cash!!! That's why musicians go out there and strive for jobs, they are needed!! See why being a musician is good? Even when you have mastered your instrument. You could pass it on to your children! Imagine the pride you will have! And that is what I am going to do. Passing my talent on to my future family! I hope you have enjoyed reading my article, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask me.

The folk music of a culture is music that is passed down from one generation to the next, often without writing it down. It includes many different kinds of music: lullabies and children's singing games, tunes that everyone enjoys singing together or dancing to, songs for celebrations, ceremonies, and holidays. Folk music can gradually change as it gets passed along. Usually nobody remembers who originally wrote it, or who changed it, and there may be more than one version of it around. Since ancient times, folk music has been the music of ordinary people, not the ruling class or professional musicians. In every culture, children learned and remembered the music that everyone enjoyed the most, and the music that was important to their traditions and ceremonies.

Baroque Music

Extravagant, ornamented, fancy, irregular... These are all adjectives that describe the music of the Baroque period- a period in which the art and architecture in the world was also very ornate and fancy.  The Baroque Era brought monumental changes to instrumental music. During this time, instrumental music became just as important as vocal music both in quality and quantity, as many new developments occurred in the instrumental world.
Keyboard music for the harpsichord was also a focus of compositions- there were many composers of the time that were amazing keyboardists. Bach was an example of a master composer of the Baroque who wrote very fancy-sounding keyboard music.

Classical Music

Music of the Classical period was also very structured and emotions were controlled.  It was tuneful and simple. 

The Classical period wanted balance and contrast.   This was achieved using form.  Music was not to be too loud or too soft, too fast or too slow.  Nothing was done in the extreme.  Control was more important than strong emotions.   

The sonata and the symphony were the popular musical forms during this time.
Famous composers during this time included Mozart and Beethoven.  The classical period ended when Beethoven died in 1827.  

Romantic Music
Romanticism aspires to transcend immediate times or occasions, to reach back into the past and forward into the future. As against the classic ideals of order, equilibrium, control, and perfection within acknowledged limits, Romanticism cherishes freedom, movement, passion, and endless pursuit of the unattainable.  It is this aspect which, perhaps, gives music of the Romantic Era its sense of longing, and heightened emotions.  This impatience of limits leads to a breaking down of distinctions.  The personality of the artists tends to become merged with the work of art; classical clarity is replaced by a certain intentional obscurity, definite statement by suggestion, allusion, or symbol. "Its incomparable power of suggestion which works on the mind directly, without the mediation of words, made it the dominant art, the one most representative of the 19th century".
 In the Romantic era, music acquired poetic or philosophical meaning. Antiquity, folklore, history and exotic cultures were examined as possible sources of inspiration.

Twentieth Century Music
With the coming of the 20th century, another evolution in the musical world emerged. While some of the early 20th century music can be seen as extensions of the late Romantic style, much of the music in this period can be seen as a rebellion. Composers did not look to build on what was standard but again created music freely and used sounds that went against the current grain. Twentieth century music can be described as being more refined, vague in form, delicate, and having a mysterious atmosphere.

Modern/ Pop Music
In the late 1950's that the idea of using tape to create a stand alone artistic work became more and more prevalent. However, it was with the studio recordings of the Beatles where the full use of multi-track recording and layering became common to popular music. The creation of this recording process transformed pop music.
The term pop music can refer to a specific kind of popular music.  Popular music is also a general term for any type of music that is or has been a top seller. This includes most types of rock music and many kinds of jazz.

1. Jason Mraz

   If you haven't heard of this dude, it is high time you should. In my opinion, one of the most talented singer/composer I have ever heard. With his geekish boyish look, you might just mistake him for another boy next door. But hey, this boy next door could play his guitar really well. And he is fantastic in his lip-sync, lyrics and melodies. You should hear him sing "live". Absolutely captivating to the ears. For starters, you might want to try some songs from this guy. My personal favourites? "I'm Yours", "Life is Wonderful", "You and I Both", "Wordplay", "Geek in the Pink", "The Remedy(I Don't Worry).

2. Travis

   This Scottish band is of an indie influence and if you like alternative rock, you might want to give this band a try. I first heard of them in their album "12 Memories". Fran Healy, the lead vocalist has a melanchoia touch to his voice and the songs would croon you. "12 Memories" was an affecting album since it's inspired by real life stories. Till this date, this band has 5 albums and a compilation of Singles. Some tracks worth checking out are "Beautiful Occupation", "Re-Offender", "One Night", "Sing", "Why Does it Always Rain on Me", "Battleships".

3. The Perishers

   This had to be my favourite band. As a Swedish rock band, The Perishers have one of the best music arrangements I have ever heard. Most often, their songs are soothing to the ears but can be depressing as well. The melodies are beautiful and tug at the heartstrings. This band might not be in the same league as Coldplay yet but they have sung a couple of soundtracks for series like "The O.C.", "One Tree Hill" and "Veronica Mars". One thing that is easily noted is the band's idiosyncratic sounds. Soft and mellow. You should check out songs like "Trouble Sleeping", "Let There Be Morning", "Pills", "Nothing Like You And I".

4. RyanDan

   RyanDan is a duo from Canadian who just launched their album recently. Other than being a pair of twins, this is a highly musical twin. I first heard of their songs while browsing a music store and man was I hooked. They have more of a contemporary classical style to their music but it makes them all the more appealing. Did I mention one of the brothers has a super high pitch voice that could blow you away? I thought they deserved more credits than their current standings now. But anyway, do check out "The Prayer", "I'll Be There", "Like the Sun", "Tears of an Angel".

There you go. Just some of my personal favourites in my journey of music listening. Their songs might not be for everyone since music is highly subjective. But if you would like your ears to be pleased, you should check out my recommendations.