Ieeneia - I couldn't agree more!!

Labels are given to things after they have been in use for some considerable time, and they often overlap.

Unfortunately, some people can only learn music by having labels to guide them, which is why they are needed. They should also provide a common ground for discussion, but, as we've seen, we often find ourselves talking about the same thing, using different labels, and getting very confused!

Music is a living language, changing all the time. This, in itself, means that the terminology will change with use. Most of the terminology I 'preach' as a teacher is that which has remained unchanged for a few hundred years, being established by 'classical' composers.

Few people realise that 'bar lines' are a relatively modern notational concept - J.S. Bach, for example, was one of the first composers to start using them. Bach was also predominantly an improviser (extemporiser) in the spirit of modern 'pop' performers - he frequently wrote the music down after he had performed it, or got his pupils to do it for him.

Nothing in music is 'wrong' as such - personal preference is a more appropriate view. We know what is personally acceptable, what is a poor perfomance, and what sends shivers up our spine.

All that matters is our own enjoyment - but performers do have an obligation to their audience. However, music theory is often of no interest to the listener, despite the hours (even years) spent by the performer in the learning of his/her 'craft'.

A balance is needed, but in a thread (discussion) of a technical nature, technical terms (labels) are often a 'necessary evil'.

Hmmmm....