Gaoshan music can be divided into two categories: folk songs and instrumental music. Folk songs are richer than instrumental music and can be divided into four categories: labor songs, life songs, ritual songs and narrative songs:

Labor songs are sung during farming, hunting, fishing and other labor, with agricultural labor songs being the most common. .

Life songs are divided into lyric songs, recitation songs, satirical songs, dance songs, drinking songs, children's songs and hypnotic songs, etc.

Ritual songs are divided into three types: ritual songs, sacrificial songs and witchcraft songs. Ritual songs are used for weddings, funerals and welcoming and seeing off guests, etc.; ritual songs are used for sacrifices related to agriculture, hunting and fishery. Ceremonies and occasions such as ancestor worship, head sacrifice and adult ceremony; witchcraft songs are used to pray for rain and to get rid of diseases.

Bale songs are legendary story songs that narrate history to remember ancestors and praise tribal leaders.