# Apple Music and awesome classical music selection



## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

I am astonished during the past few days how many classical music albums I have discovered so far on this application. Here are some of the finds I got off so far on my iPad (and iPhone too).










I just love this app. Now too much to listen to over the next year or so...

I found the complete Decca recitals for Sutherland and oddball Decca Analogue box set...

Any other people using Apple Music for their classical music hunt?


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## Dustin (Mar 30, 2012)

Albert7 said:


> I am astonished during the past few days how many classical music albums I have discovered so far on this application. Here are some of the finds I got off so far on my iPad (and iPhone too).
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'm loyal to Spotify as of now but do you know how they compare? I know Spotify probably has 98% of the classical albums I ever look for but there are a couple labels, usually small, that they don't have.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

Dustin said:


> I'm loyal to Spotify as of now but do you know how they compare? I know Spotify probably has 98% of the classical albums I ever look for but there are a couple labels, usually small, that they don't have.


For the rare classical music box sets and boutique labels, Spotify cannot compare to Apple Music. I'm more excited when Apple Music comes to Android this fall.


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## Musicophile (May 29, 2015)

I'm using the French service Qobuz which allows lossless streaming, and like it very much. The only issue with all streaming service is the awful tagging, which makes it very hard to actually find stuff by simple research.


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## MrTortoise (Dec 25, 2008)

I currently subscribe to Google Play and have been happy with their classical selection. My only grip is, like Musicophile's experience with Qobuz, the tagging is horrible and finding what you are looking for usually means searching by performer/orchestra/conductor instead of composer.

I'm curious to try the new Apple service. If it is more enjoyable to search and browse than Google Play it may win me over.


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## Brian Rin (Apr 18, 2015)

I wouldn't say they are not comparable. Apple Music might have a few box sets and a small label like Linn and Mirare in their catalog, but it doesn't offer that much more than Spotify. Here are some differences I noticed:

1. Apple Music has recent Chandos recordings (!!!): Most of you following this label probably have noticed by now that Chandos pulled pre-2010 recordings from all major streaming websites. Apple Music seems to have recordings released up till 2014 BUT Apple Music is mysteriously missing all of the old Chandos back catalog. This is the biggest difference to me and there's a big trade-off. Only ArkivMusic has all of Chandos available for streaming.

2. Spotify doesn't have new Naxos (2015) recordings but Apple Music does. Spotify has been always slow with BIS and Naxos releases. Apple Music is also missing new BIS recordings that Google Music has. 

3. Small labels such as ones mentioned above are on Apple Music. The only exclusive to Apple Music that I know is Linn. Other small labels like Onyx and Mirare have been present on Google already. Most listeners wouldn't even notice a difference.

Besides these, the usual big labels (DG, Decca, EMI, etc.) are present equally. Apple Music has few big boxes like the recent 6-disc DG release of Dutilleux's music. Honestly, not that much of a gain here since most compilations are present in their original single-disc releases. 

All in all, I would say all streaming major streaming platforms have similar catalogs. Until some magic hand persuades ECM and/or Hyperion, there won't be anything significantly new.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

For me those compilation box sets are crucial. You can't go wrong with that. Also new classical music albums from the major houses will include the bonus tracks that Spotify doesn't have. Think of that special Hilary Hahn track that will make you go ga-ga.



Brian Rin said:


> I wouldn't say they are not comparable. Apple Music might have a few box sets and a small label like Linn and Mirare in their catalog, but it doesn't offer that much more than Spotify. Here are some differences I noticed:
> 
> 1. Apple Music has recent Chandos recordings (!!!): Most of you following this label probably have noticed by now that Chandos pulled pre-2010 recordings from all major streaming websites. Apple Music seems to have recordings released up till 2014 BUT Apple Music is mysteriously missing all of the old Chandos back catalog. This is the biggest difference to me and there's a big trade-off. Only ArkivMusic has all of Chandos available for streaming.
> 
> ...


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

Ugh my iPad 3 is acting wonky so I have to reinstall everything tonight .


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## Oscarf (Dec 13, 2014)

So looks like the content is good compared with other platforms but what about sound quality? I have been an Spotify user for years but I only use it for pop and rock music. I find the Spotify sound quality quite poor in classical music (I listen mostly to orchestral and choral music). Is Apple music any better?


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## Sonata (Aug 7, 2010)

Albert do you know if everything available on iTunes is available on Apple Music? If so, I'm sure it is only a matter of time before I become a subscriber. Not right now....need to start saving some money for family vacation, but I honestly thing 10 bucks a month would save me money in the long haul.


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## Musicophile (May 29, 2015)

Oscarf said:


> So looks like the content is good compared with other platforms but what about sound quality? I have been an Spotify user for years but I only use it for pop and rock music. I find the Spotify sound quality quite poor in classical music (I listen mostly to orchestral and choral music). Is Apple music any better?


Both Spotify and Apple Music are using lossy compression, Spotify Premium is MP3 320 (variable bit rate), Apple Music AAC256, which on paper could be slightly better (in spite of the lower bit rate), but essentially both are the same.

If you want CD quality, you'll need to go with a more expensive service like Tidal or Qobuz Hifi. I subscribe to the latter.

Whether the improvement in SQ is worth $10 more per month than the lossy streaming services, depends on your budget and your hifi.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

Sonata said:


> Albert do you know if everything available on iTunes is available on Apple Music? If so, I'm sure it is only a matter of time before I become a subscriber. Not right now....need to start saving some money for family vacation, but I honestly thing 10 bucks a month would save me money in the long haul.


All classical music good. Albums not on AM include Final Fantasy soundtracks and complete Beatles box set.


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## Brian Rin (Apr 18, 2015)

Sonata said:


> Albert do you know if everything available on iTunes is available on Apple Music? If so, I'm sure it is only a matter of time before I become a subscriber. Not right now....need to start saving some money for family vacation, but I honestly thing 10 bucks a month would save me money in the long haul.


Major labels are both on iTunes and AM, but some independent ones are only on iTunes (Hyperion, ECM, MDG, Chandos). You can check manually using an iDevice or desktop iTunes without starting your free trial or subscribing.


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## rspader (May 14, 2014)

Sonata said:


> Albert do you know if everything available on iTunes is available on Apple Music? If so, I'm sure it is only a matter of time before I become a subscriber. Not right now....need to start saving some money for family vacation, but I honestly thing 10 bucks a month would save me money in the long haul.


No, not all of iTunes is available in Apple Music. Somewhat random example: I searched Steven Isserlis in iTunes and got 98 results. The same search in Apple Music yielded only 56 results. Apple advertised that you could listen to "virtually" everything in iTunes through Apple Music. "Virtually" means whatever Apple says it means, apparently.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

rspader said:


> No, not all of iTunes is available in Apple Music. Somewhat random example: I searched Steven Isserlis in iTunes and got 98 results. The same search in Apple Music yielded only 56 results. Apple advertised that you could listen to "virtually" everything in iTunes through Apple Music. "Virtually" means whatever Apple says it means, apparently.


And that's due to licensing issues for sure. Still something is better than nothing to me.


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## Oscarf (Dec 13, 2014)

Musicophile said:


> Both Spotify and Apple Music are using lossy compression, Spotify Premium is MP3 320 (variable bit rate), Apple Music AAC256, which on paper could be slightly better (in spite of the lower bit rate), but essentially both are the same.
> 
> If you want CD quality, you'll need to go with a more expensive service like Tidal or Qobuz Hifi. I subscribe to the latter.
> 
> Whether the improvement in SQ is worth $10 more per month than the lossy streaming services, depends on your budget and your hifi.


Thanks. I will give it a try though 320 has never really worked for me for classical music... I am probably spoiled and can not live with anything less than CD quality


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## Musicophile (May 29, 2015)

Oscarf said:


> Thanks. I will give it a try though 320 has never really worked for me for classical music... I am probably spoiled and can not live with anything less than CD quality


In Spain, you should have access to both Qobuz Hifi/Sublime and Tidal, so you're all set if you prefer CD quality. I personally do as well.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

Apple Music sounds as good as any CD and in fact sometimes better.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

Update... Apple Music is addictive. More classical music box sets downloaded so only 15-ish Gb left on my iPad 3. The new list.










Update: Lord Lance is still trying out how to use Apple Music. Tutorial s'il vous plait?


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