Over the last few years Spanish music has evolved quite a bit making its music as diverse and extensive as the history of the country. There is no other country in Europe that offers the same amount of different elements within their cultural music history with each element representing a part of Spain’s unique past.
There were many different competing cultures that contributed to a great deal of the original traditional Spanish music including influences from Greece and the Romans. A great deal of the music stemmed from chants and sacred music and mixed with Moorish music. At the same time, regional music began to become more popular until the Government prohibited it.
During the Renaissance period a great deal of instrumental music began to flourish across the land including the emergence of the Spanish guitar and influences that can best be described as from a variation of Arabic music. Throughout the reset of the 16th century polyphonic singing became popular which can be attributed partially to bordering countries Flanders and France. As it became easier to travel more Spanish musicians started to pick up musical styles from other countries and bring them back and make them their own.
Over the 17th and 18th century Spanish opera started to develop as the zarzuela form of music became a part of culture that still exists today. At this point classical music started to fall out of favour and folk music began to take its place throughout the different regional areas of Spain. Today, pop music and rock and roll has become the norm with a bit of the Spanish flamenco rhythms tossed into the mix making it unique to the country.