为什么流行歌曲通常都是3分钟左右？
Why are popular songs usually around 3 minutes？
你可能已经注意到，现在的流行歌曲通常都是3分钟甚至更短。其实这一惯例源于上世纪初，这背后有什么历史原因呢？
You may have noticed that popular songs these days are usually 3 minutes or less. In fact, this practice originated at the beginning of the last century. What is the historical reason behind this?
无论你习惯上哪听歌——在收音机、流媒体音乐服务平台还是在随身听上——你应该能注意到现在的流行歌曲通常都是三分钟左右。
No matter where you're used to listening to music -- on the radio, streaming music service, or on the Walkman -- you should be able to notice that popular songs are usually about three minutes in length these days.
Vox公司解释道，这一惯例源自20世纪早期，当时虫胶制作的黑胶唱片（粗纹唱片）刚刚在市场上出现。这些唱片的转速各有不同，但是每分钟78圈的转速很快便成了业内标准。最流行的唱片大小是10英寸（25.4厘米）和12英寸（30.48厘米），前者每一面可以播放3分钟音乐，后者每一面可以播放四到五分钟音乐。为了让电台播放以及让人们购买他们的唱片，音乐人基本上都必须迎合这些时间限制。
Vox explains that the practice originated in the early 20th century, when vinyl records made of shellac (rough records) were just starting to appear on the market. These records vary in speed, but 78 revolutions per minute quickly became the industry standard. The most popular record sizes are 10 inches (25.4 cm) and 12 inches (30.48 cm), the former can play three minutes of music per side, and the latter can play four to five minutes of music per side. Musicians basically have to meet these time constraints in order to get the radio to play and to get people to buy their records.
20世纪40年代晚期45转的唱片诞生了，乙烯基塑料制作的更小更廉价的黑胶唱片每一面只能播放三分钟左右的音乐。大概在同一时间密纹唱片也上市了，但是电台播放45转的单声道唱片要容易得多，大批听众在听过电台的音乐之后就会去购买这种唱片。尽管3分钟的潮流是由78转的10英寸唱片引发的，但是45转的唱片却让20世纪中叶的电台单曲不得不控制在3分钟以内。
The 45-rpm record was born in the late 1940s, and smaller and cheaper vinyl records made of vinyl could only play about three minutes of music per side. LPs came out around the same time, but it was much easier for the radio to play 45-rpm mono records, which were bought by a large number of listeners after listening to the music on the radio. While the 3-minute trend was sparked by 78-rpm 10-inch records, 45-rpm records kept mid-20th century radio singles under 3 minutes.
当然，肯定也存在例外。鲍勃·迪伦1965年的歌曲《像一块滚石》时长超过6分钟，粉丝们纷纷打电话要求电台播放完整版本。结果奏效了，这首歌意外成为电台的热门歌曲。那时候如果人们想听6分钟的完整版，就可以购买密纹唱片。
Of course, there are certainly exceptions. Bob Dylan's 1965 song "Like a Rolling Stone" was more than six minutes long, and fans were calling for the radio to play the full version. It worked, and the song unexpectedly became a radio hit. Back then, if people wanted to listen to the full six-minute version, they could buy LPs.
过去这些年音乐技术不断进步，从唱片到磁带再到光盘，然而3分钟作为流行歌曲实际长度的标准并没有过时。据Classic FM电台介绍，一部分原因是如果歌曲相对较短，电台就能在节目中插播更多商业广告。唱片公司应该也青睐较短的单曲，因为时间长的单曲并不能给他们带来更多版税。不过也可能是因为流行歌曲的听众就是喜欢简短的歌，毕竟，过去几十年他们已经养成了这种听歌习惯。索尼音乐资料图书馆馆长托马斯·蒂尔尼告诉博客网站Mashable说：“这已经根植于我们的DNA中了。”
Music technology has improved over the years, from records to tapes to discs, yet 3 minutes is not outdated as the standard for the actual length of a popular song. Part of the reason, according to Classic FM, is that if the songs are relatively short, the station can insert more commercials into the program. Record companies should also favor shorter singles, as longer singles don't earn them more royalties. But it could also be because pop-song listeners just like short songs, a habit they've developed over the past few decades. "It's ingrained in our DNA," Thomas Tierney, director of the Sony Music Archives, told the blog site Mashable.
如今，许多单曲时长都不到三分钟。贾斯汀·比伯的《幽灵》只有2分钟33秒，李娜叉的《这就是我想要的》只有2分钟23秒。
Today, many singles are less than three minutes long. Justin Bieber's "Ghost" is only 2 minutes and 33 seconds, and Li Nacha's "This Is What I Want" is only 2 minutes and 23 seconds.
人们的注意力持续时间变短以及社交媒体的影响或许可以解释流行歌曲为什么越来越短，但是除此之外，还有报酬机制的因素。
People's shorter attention duration and the influence of social media may explain why pop songs are getting shorter and shorter, but in addition, there are factors of reward mechanism.
作曲人查理·哈尔丁告诉The Verge网站说：“现在不是依照唱片销量，而是依照流量来收费，一首歌收听时间达到30秒才能计入流量。这样一来，你会想在流媒体平台上一次播放更多歌曲，这意味着你会在专辑中收录更多短歌。”
Composer Charlie Harding told The Verge: "Instead of selling records, you're charging for traffic now, and it takes 30 seconds to listen to a song to count toward traffic. That way, you're going to want to be on streaming media. There are more songs on the platform at once, which means you'll have more short songs on your album."
换言之，如今一张唱片成功与否，与销量关系没那么大，而流量则重要得多。现在的流行歌手在制作音乐时也会反映当下形势的变化，这与20世纪的音乐人学着在3分钟的原有限制内创作并无不同。
In other words, the success of a record today has less to do with sales, and more important traffic. Today's pop singers also reflect the changing situation when making music, not unlike 20th century musicians who learned to write within the original limit of 3 minutes.
英文来源：Mental Floss
English source: Mental Floss
翻译&编辑：丹妮
Translator & Editor: Dany
