Classification as Culture: Types and Trajectories of Music Genres Author(s): Jennifer C. Lena and Richard A. Peterson Source: American Sociological Review, Vol. 73, No. 5 (Oct., 2008), pp. 697-718 Published by: American Sociological Association Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25472554 . Accessed: 29/08/2011 18:38 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact
[email protected]. American Sociological Association is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to American Sociological Review. http://www.jstor.org Classification as Culture: Types and Trajectories ofMusic Genres JenniferC. Lena Richard A. Peterson VanderbiltUniversity Vanderbilt University Questions of symbolic classification have been central to sociology since its earliest days, given the relevance of distinctionsfor both affiliationand conflict.Music and its a genres are no exception, organizing people and songs within system of symbolic classification.Numerous studies chronicle thehistory of specific genres ofmusic, but none document recurrent processes of development and change across musics. In this article, we analyze 60 musics in theUnited States, delineating between 12 social, organizational, and symbolic attributes. We find four distinct genre types?Avant-garde, Scene-based, Industry-based, and Traditionalist. We also find that these genre types an combine toform three distinct trajectories.