IMSLP Forums

What is a Category?
A Category is not a search Tag.
A good Categorization system is a powerful tool for organizing the entire contents of the website.

1. If all works of a given genre are collected in their entirety under one category, powerful Searches can be made, such as
Category:Art Songs&intersect=Spanish
Category:Baroque&intersect=Keyboard Works

2. The Categories themselves should be nested in super- and sub-categories for navigation, a category tree.
And if the programmers can add the code, a {{categorytree}} template can even be used for navigation, like on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Music


To get the ball rolling, here is an outline of a good Category Tree for the IMSLP, with the primary Categories to be used in the main Genre field given in bold:

• 1. Category:Vocal Works
  • a. Category:Vocal Stage Works
    • i. Category:Operas
      ii. Category:Operettas (including German Singspiele, French Operas-Comiques, Spanish Zarzuelas, English Musicals, etc.)
  • b. Category:Choral Works
    • i. Category:Sacred Choral Works
      iI. Category:Secular Choral Works
  • c. Category:Solo Vocal Works (1 or more solo voices without chorus)
    • i. Category:Art Songs
      ii. Category:Popular and Traditional Songs (i.e folk songs, cabaret, jazz, parlor pieces, etc.)
      iii. Category:Sacred Vocal Works
      iv. Category:Vocal Writings and Exercises

• 2. Category:Dance
  • a. Category:Ballet
    b. Category:Social Dances (Waltzes, Minuets, etc.)

• 3. Category:Instrumental
  • a. Category:Orchestral
    b. Category:Ensemble
    • i. Category:Chamber Works
      ii. Category:Band Music (including Marches, Instrumental Jazz)
    c. Category:Solo Instrumental
    • i. Category:Keyboard Works
      ii. Category:Keyboard Writings and Exercises
      iii. Category:Solo Instrumental Works
      iv. Category:Instrumental Writings and Exercises
  4. Category:Writings
  • a. Category:Biographies
    b. Category:Criticism
    c. Category:Theory and Instructional

This suggested category tree has 20 Primary Categories to put in the workpiece template Genre field. The "Sacred Choral Works" category could probably be further broken down; instrumentalists probably have some more ideas for the instrumental section; and I could see "Popular and Traditional Songs" being broken down in the future if enough scores come in.
A secondary genre field, or even a Tag field, could be added to the work piece template for other things, but the above categories are both basic and productive for users. For all vocal works it might also be a good idea to make the language field a (sub)category.

http://imslp.org/wiki/User:Perlnerd666/Archive has an old copy of the fairly recent discontinued idea.
I personally think that the only important feature of any categorization system is that it be extensible by admins...perhaps:
1. User suggests category.
2. Category is created on the condition that the user move all of the pages by his/herself.

One problem with this categorization is that common words such as Lieder aren't included and it is a given that people will search for them.

There also doesn't seem to be a category for those works which aren't choral, but contain more than one voice, e.g. Mendelssohn op.63.

Steltz, that's still "solo vocal", I'll clarify as 1 or more solo voice.
If one term is used consistently and productively, users will quickly catch on. Right now most of the French Lieder won't be found by searching any of the usual terms.
Operalala