ballad vs tune

ballad

noun
  • A slow romantic song. 

  • A kind of narrative poem, adapted for recitation or singing; especially, a sentimental or romantic poem in short stanzas. 

verb
  • To compose or sing ballads. 

tune

noun
  • A song, or short musical composition. 

  • A melody. 

  • The act of tuning or maintenance. 

  • The state or condition of being correctly tuned. 

verb
  • To adjust (a musical instrument) so that it produces the correct pitches. 

  • To attune; to adapt in style of music; to make harmonious. 

  • to adjust the parameters of singing voice synthesis software such as VOCALOID (in order to achieve certain singing techniques, increase the human quality of the voice, etc.) 

  • To adjust or modify (esp. a mechanical or electrical device) so that it functions optimally. 

  • To adjust the frequency on a radio or TV set, so as to receive the desired channel. 

  • To be impudent towards; to cheek. 

  • To make more precise, intense, or effective; to put into a proper state or disposition. 

  • To give a certain tone or character to. 

  • Of faculties, senses, etc.: to adapt to or direct towards a particular target. 

intj
  • Used to show appreciation or approval of a song. 

How often have the words ballad and tune occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )