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Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

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Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#31

Post by pxc »

crazygringo wrote: post #3

This is fantastic, classical music absolutely needs a dedicated interface since the organization by composer and multi-movement works is so different from popular music. But I wonder if it will help with finding which version of a work to listen to. A given symphony or piano prelude might have 100 or more recordings. If you go to classical music forum postings, you can usually find a thread asking "what's your favori…

> This is fantastic, classical music absolutely needs a dedicated interface since the organization by composer and multi-movement works is so different from popular music.

It really doesn't. It was easy enough to organize music by the correct metadata in a local collection on Amarok 15 years ago. ID3 already supports all of the requisite metadata. You just need an app that is flexible and supports a 'now playing queue' by default and offers multiple views into your collection instead of the watered down garbage you get with streaming music apps today.

The only reason you'd think this is because most streaming apps today have a UI that is an even worse iteration of a very old version of iTunes, where you have to manually create a playlist in a cumbersome fashion in order to have any real control over what you're playing.

Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#32

Post by jeffbee »

ben7799 wrote: post #5
crazygringo wrote: post #3

This is fantastic, classical music absolutely needs a dedicated interface since the organization by composer and multi-movement works is so different from popular music. But I wonder if it will help with finding which version of a work to listen to. A given symphony or piano prelude might have 100 or more recordings. If you go to classical music forum postings, you can usually find a thread asking "what's your favori…

I've noticed there's a problem on streaming services where low quality artists basically spam the service with extremely low quality recordings of classical pieces. They often sound like they just got a midi file of the score and played it back through a piece of software. The scores for most classical music are public domain so there is nothing "wrong" about this but no one really wants to listen to low quality MIDI…

I once asked Android Auto to play "act 2 from carmen" and it responded with an absolutely bizarre rendition of the Toreador Song that had been programmed into a MIDI in the voice of birds chirping. Just crazy. Sometimes I think the algorithm they use at YouTube Music optimizes for paying the least royalties.

Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#33

Post by ben7799 »

fckgw wrote: post #25
ben7799 wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've noticed there's a problem on streaming services where low quality artists basically spam the service with extremely low quality recordings of classical pieces. They often sound like they just got a midi file of the score and played it back through a piece of software. The scores for most classical music are public domain so there is nothing "wrong" about this but no one really wants to listen to low quality MIDI…

Apple Music actually has a lot of human editors and curators controlling playlists and spotlighting featured music. I'm sure their classical service will be similar.

That's basically what made me switch. Apple has a huge advantage there, at least over Amazon.

Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#35

Post by WillAdams »

ben7799 wrote: post #20
vestrigi wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have an accessible example for two different recordings of a composition that each shine in their own light?

Another example is orchestras that record historical pieces with period correct instruments that are intonated/tuned/tempered in a period correct way as those changed over the years. Look up Well Temperament versus Equal Temperament, etc.. These kinds of changes can make things sound quite different than a modern interpretation on modern instruments setup in a modern way.

The appropriately-named "The Academy of Ancient Music" is a very approachable way to access such music recordings.

Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#36

Post by WillAdams »

AdmiralAsshat wrote: post #23

Welp, I estimate this will kill my NPR Classical Radio app within a year or so.

I'm still surprised that there isn't a requirement for streaming services to carry publicly beneficial content (and pay a license fee for such content to NPR/PBS).

Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#37

Post by pwinnski »

kpierce wrote: post #29
pwinnski wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is 100% accurate. Classical music is just different from other music in too many ways to make them work well in the same UI. I have yet to see a UI that does it well, so I'm looking forward to seeing Apple's stab at it. Generally you can't go wrong with Deutsche Grammophon, or Hyperion, or even Telarc, but there sure are some stinkers out there, labels just trying to have a large catalog of any quality. And some…

I am not into classical music, but I think there are similarities for fans of jam bands especially the grateful dead. Ive never heard a group so passionate about specific versions of song depending on the date/location. I feel UI designers could make something work but its such a niche group of people its hard to spend resources designing and maintaining a catalog of recordings of different versions of the same song.

Come to think of it, Phish or Grateful Dead live shows have some overlap, but that's more about recordings on different dates by the same artist, while classical adds different artists, or sometimes the same artist on different dates, or sometimes the same orchestra but a different conductor, or...

But yes, that's the closest I can think of, but I think it's a smaller niche even than classical music.

Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#38

Post by tomComb »

hulitu wrote: post #2

> These can be streamed in high-quality audio of up to 192 kHz/24-bit Hi-Res Lossless up to. And down to ? 0 bps ?

You seem to be getting downvoted, but generally I think consumers should be wary of this phrasing ('up to') and it should be called out.

It is often a way for companies (or headlines) to seem to be claiming something without actually committing to anything.

Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#39

Post by gevz »

vestrigi wrote: post #10
crazygringo wrote: post #3

This is fantastic, classical music absolutely needs a dedicated interface since the organization by composer and multi-movement works is so different from popular music. But I wonder if it will help with finding which version of a work to listen to. A given symphony or piano prelude might have 100 or more recordings. If you go to classical music forum postings, you can usually find a thread asking "what's your favori…

Do you have an accessible example for two different recordings of a composition that each shine in their own light?

This video compilation is the great example how a simple 11 beats from the “rite of spring” can be interpreted.

>103 different versions of the same 11 notes for a total of 1,133 beats

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=z-NqGMS8p-c

Re: Apple launches its new classical music streaming app for pre-order

#40

Post by dawnerd »

hulitu wrote: post #2

> These can be streamed in high-quality audio of up to 192 kHz/24-bit Hi-Res Lossless up to. And down to ? 0 bps ?

Older recordings are simply not going to have higher quality available and it wouldn't really be beneficial to stream it at a higher rate just for the sake of hitting a marketing number.
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