There are many definitions or criteria used to create specific lists of classical music traditions, most commonly including: the tradition must be fairly old, the tradition must possess some sort of notation, the tradition must require study or training to become an acceptable performer or composer. Lou Harrison, for instance, includes European classical music, Indian classical music, an Arabic tradition of classical music, and Chinese classical music. However, the most reliable indication that a tradition is a classical one is the self-identification as such by members of that tradition, for instance Ravi Shankar's questionable assertions that there are two superior musical traditions in the world, Indian classical music and European classical music.
Classicalmusic is a broad, somewhat imprecise term, but there are a number of ways that classicalmusic is identified.
Classicalmusic is primarily a written musicaltradition, preserved in music notation, as opposed to being transmitted in orally, by rote, or in recordings.
Improvisation in classicalmusic performance was far more common during the Baroque era, and recently the performance of such music by modern classical musicians has been enriched by a revival of the old improvisational practices.
Classicalmusic is a broad, somewhat imprecise term, referring to music produced in, or rooted in the traditions of, European art, ecclesiastical and concert music, encompassing a broad period from roughly 1000 to the present day.
Classicalmusic is primarily a written musicaltradition, preserved in music notation, as opposed to being transmitted orally, by rote, or in recordings.
Classical works are generally considered to display great musical complexity through heavy use of development, modulation (changing of keys), little outright repetition, and a wide use of musical phrases that are not default length--that is, four or eight bars long.