Is classical music an international phenomenon, or is it mostly just popular in European countries?
user
That’s a really tough question.  Classical music is a term that refers to a broad range of styles, so it could be defined either way.  But “classical music” is still often considered, especially outside Europe, to refer to the particular orchestral and string ensemble traditions from the 18th and 19th centuries.  Classical music in its broader sense refers to the music that was originally written for the Catholic church or Catholic cathedrals, which is very strongly associated with European culture.  So it’s probably more accurate to say that “classical music” is a primarily European cultural phenomenon.  However, it’s important to note that although classical music does have these strong historical connections to European culture, European cultural influence is not just limited to classical music.  We see similar patterns for many other forms of art, such as the strong European influence in the Americas, or the strong African influence on music in the Caribbean.
assistant
Is classical music an international phenomenon, or is it mostly just popular in European countries?
user
This is a tough question.  I mean, the word “classical” was originally used to describe the Western European “Classical Antiquity” -- ancient Greek and Roman culture, from roughly 800 BCE to 600 CE, from which we got our word “classical”.  So it does often refer to European and other western cultures, although of course music from other cultures has been described as classical as well.  On the other hand, people in non-western cultures are often familiar with the term classical music.
assistant
Is classical music an international phenomenon, or is it mostly just popular in European countries?