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what's the meaning of "comes some way down the list" below?

JAN SWAFFORD’S new book, “Language of the Spirit”, is a self-guided tour. “When a piece [of music] or a composer grabs you, go out and look for more on your own,” he says. And he has plenty of suggestions to get you started on streaming services such as Spotify or YouTube.

The “classical” genre on Spotify comes some way down the list, and classical buffs have been fretting for ages that audiences are getting greyer and smaller. Even so, many people have at least a passing acquaintance with some of the superstars of the classical repertoire: Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, say, or Mozart’s “Eine kleine Nachtmusik”, or Handel’s “Messiah”. If that has made them wonder how to put these works into context, this introduction to classical music is just what they need.

SOURCE: An elegant primer Classical music, made easy

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    The “classical” genre on Spotify appears towards the bottom of the list, and classical buffs have been fretting for ages that audiences are getting greyer and smaller.
    – Teacher KSHuang
    Apr 5, 2017 at 8:42
  • @TeacherKSHuang I must agree and disagree. It may also mean that the "classical" genre has become less popular and thus is at the bottom of the list. It isn't that much in demand so you can't come across it at the top of the list.
    – SovereignSun
    Nov 20, 2017 at 7:08

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I have to disagree with KSHuang. "some way down" the list does not necessarily mean "toward the bottom" of the list. There are other ways to express an item that is toward the bottom of a list: near the bottom, far down the list, etc.

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  • It looks like an allusion but … some way down the list is almost literal, and should be taken so. In any measure of popularity there must be a list… even if only 1,2,3,4… etc. What is most popular is listed first; everything else below, in decreasing order. Way down can’t be at the bottom; it could half-way or more. Way down by itself doesn’t suggest anything has become less popular… it just is, now. … classical buffs have been fretting for ages that audiences are getting greyer and smaller does hint at change but literally, it refers to the audience, not the genre.
    – Robbie Goodwin
    Nov 20, 2017 at 19:33

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