The library also provides access to the complete Naxos music library. Everyone knows that Naxos recordings are not the best; they are also, in some sense, already available on eMusic. But these are full length streaming recordings of an extraordinary quantity of classical music. If you just want to know what someone is talking about when they refer to a particular piece of music, the answer is now almost immediate. That is quite astonishing, and a clear example of how the internet can really improve libraries.
I see that the library’s subscription runs out in spring next year, and must presumably be reviewed then by both sides. I hope very much that it continues. I certainly wouldn’t pay $25.00 a month for streamed music at 128kbps.
On a related note (ugh) close observers will not that the endlessly repeated story that the Dead allow other people to give away their music for free online is no longer exactly true. All of the high-quality recordings on the Internet music archive have been withdrawn: they can now only be streamed, which is not a pleasant experience. The live, paid for, concert downloads have also been shut off from Munck music.