The Definition of the Work Entity for Pieces of Recorded Sound

Abstract

The traditional work-instance model differentiates between the intellectual content of a work and the semantic content of its material instantiations. Most scholarship on musical works has concentrated on classical music within the Western canon, and little attention has been paid to other genres of music. This article explores what would constitute an effective work-instance model applicable to sound recordings of non-classical music, examines the shortcomings of the standard work-instance model, and offers new perspectives on the idea of the musical work by integrating the views of philosophers and musicologists, suggesting an interdisciplinary approach to the knowledge organization of musical works. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Cataloging & Classification Quarterly on 23 Oct 2015, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/01639374.2015.1057886.