Grammar Question: 'Music' or 'Musics'

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Can any english lit person clear this up once and for all?

When is it correct to use the plural 'musics' as in 'musics of Africa', etc. I've always thought this sounds horribly pretentious because substituting plain old'music' for 'musics' makes perfect sense, anyway. Are writers just useing the plural to sound clever?

― Spoombung (spoombung), Tuesday, 27 July 2004 06:46 (twenty-one years ago)

I suppose the idea is that 'musics' is to music what 'wines' is to wine, i.e. types of. It seems to be a journalistic trait of our times to turn uncountable nouns into countables, as in 'an entertainment'. I think it sounds lousy.

By the way, if you're the real Kev Hopper I love your solo album. If not, I love his solo album.

― Japanese Giraffe (Japanese Giraffe), Tuesday, 27 July 2004 16:54 (twenty-one years ago)

It's meant to underline the fact that more than one tradition is being discussed, comparable to "African cultures" which doesn't sound strange at all (to me). It sounds a lot more academic than journalistic, to me.

― Rockist Scientist, Tuesday, 27 July 2004 17:50 (twenty-one years ago)

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