Comments on: Classical in a Digital Age http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/ "Hello World" - The SlickEdit Developer Blog Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:18:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Bill http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/comment-page-1/#comment-244 Bill Fri, 07 Dec 2007 18:22:56 +0000 http://blog.slickedit.com/?p=174#comment-244 ArkivMusic was a good example of doing it right when I figured out how I wanted to do things. > Building a versatile cataloger and music > browser would be easier if the data did > not just reside in tags in the files. J. River MC 12 maintains a database with standard fields and custom fields you define. Fields can have changes their values stored in file tags or not. MC 12 has iPod sync capabilities too. Lots of people use them. You clearly want more than iTunes provides. I went through a thought process like yours and decided that iTunes wasn't good enough then (ver. 4.7) and wasn't likely to get better. Life got much better after I gave up on it. J. River has released a free version of MC 12 called Media Jukebox 12. It doesn't have the image and video features of MC 12. There is also a 30 day trial version of MC 12. If you try it, just realize that there is a lot of functionality and it won't all be obvious to you right away. The J. River forums are a first rate resource: http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php (I'm "Listener" on those forums.) I've posted on using MC 11 and 12 for classical music and on secure ripping. ArkivMusic was a good example of doing it right when I figured out how I wanted to do things.

> Building a versatile cataloger and music
> browser would be easier if the data did
> not just reside in tags in the files.

J. River MC 12 maintains a database with standard fields and custom fields you define. Fields can have changes their values stored in file tags or not.

MC 12 has iPod sync capabilities too. Lots of people use them.

You clearly want more than iTunes provides. I went through a thought process like yours and decided that iTunes wasn’t good enough then (ver. 4.7) and wasn’t likely to get better. Life got much better after I gave up on it.

J. River has released a free version of MC 12 called Media Jukebox 12. It doesn’t have the image and video features of MC 12. There is also a 30 day trial version of MC 12. If you try it, just realize that there is a lot of functionality and it won’t all be obvious to you right away.

The J. River forums are a first rate resource:

http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php

(I’m “Listener” on those forums.) I’ve posted on using MC 11 and 12 for classical music and on secure ripping.

]]> By: Wende Persons http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/comment-page-1/#comment-243 Wende Persons Fri, 07 Dec 2007 15:26:45 +0000 http://blog.slickedit.com/?p=174#comment-243 Great article, David, and thanks for mentioning ArkivMusic. President Eric Feidner and his founding partners understand classical music, databases and the Internet, and it's refreshing to have a drilldown search tool that is so simple and effective for classical music. I don't know if you know that ArkivMusic also imports the iTunes catalog so you can search for works to download on iTunes more efficiently via ArkivMusic. Happy listening! Great article, David, and thanks for mentioning ArkivMusic. President Eric Feidner and his founding partners understand classical music, databases and the Internet, and it’s refreshing to have a drilldown search tool that is so simple and effective for classical music. I don’t know if you know that ArkivMusic also imports the iTunes catalog so you can search for works to download on iTunes more efficiently via ArkivMusic. Happy listening!

]]> By: David O http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/comment-page-1/#comment-241 David O Fri, 07 Dec 2007 14:17:06 +0000 http://blog.slickedit.com/?p=174#comment-241 Actually, I wonder sometimes why we have to tag the music files anyway. One could argue that the tag data should stand alone and just include a link to a digital music file. Building a versatile cataloger and music browser would be easier if the data did not just reside in tags in the files. Some apps may be doing this. Please let me know. iTunes does really do this, in a way. If you use ogg files in iTunes, which iTunes can not manipulate directly, iTunes does store this separately in the iTunesLibrary.itl file. (Your aac file data is here too.) You can see an xml version of this by looking at the accompanying iTunesLibrary.xml file or by exporting a playlist to xml. Unfortunately, iTunes does not allow you much flexibility. Editting the iTunesLibrary.xml file directly (in an editor like SlickEdit), doesn't change anything. iTunes really just uses the proprietary format iTunesLibary.itl file and mirrors its contents to iTunesLibrary.itl. You could edit the iTunesLibrary.xml file, save it with another name, clear your library (or create a new one) and then import that xml file. Not very convenient, and you still can't specify coverflow artwork unless the art in embedded in each digital music file. Or you can program your own tools with the iTunes COM for Windows SDK, but your still limited to just the fields iTunes understands. Not much help for doing intelligent classical music cataloging. Actually, I wonder sometimes why we have to tag the music files anyway. One could argue that the tag data should stand alone and just include a link to a digital music file. Building a versatile cataloger and music browser would be easier if the data did not just reside in tags in the files. Some apps may be doing this. Please let me know.

iTunes does really do this, in a way. If you use ogg files in iTunes, which iTunes can not manipulate directly, iTunes does store this separately in the iTunesLibrary.itl file. (Your aac file data is here too.) You can see an xml version of this by looking at the accompanying iTunesLibrary.xml file or by exporting a playlist to xml.

Unfortunately, iTunes does not allow you much flexibility. Editting the iTunesLibrary.xml file directly (in an editor like SlickEdit), doesn’t change anything. iTunes really just uses the proprietary format iTunesLibary.itl file and mirrors its contents to iTunesLibrary.itl. You could edit the iTunesLibrary.xml file, save it with another name, clear your library (or create a new one) and then import that xml file. Not very convenient, and you still can’t specify coverflow artwork unless the art in embedded in each digital music file. Or you can program your own tools with the iTunes COM for Windows SDK, but your still limited to just the fields iTunes understands. Not much help for doing intelligent classical music cataloging.

]]> By: David O http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/comment-page-1/#comment-240 David O Fri, 07 Dec 2007 13:38:50 +0000 http://blog.slickedit.com/?p=174#comment-240 Perhaps I should look at J. River again. It's been a few years since I tried it. However, you mention the main problem. I have an old iPod and so the tug to use iTunes is quite strong. Plus, I've been seduced by their CoverFlow eye candy. Just when I thought that I could give up iTunes, they pull me back in. Perhaps I should look at J. River again. It’s been a few years since I tried it. However, you mention the main problem. I have an old iPod and so the tug to use iTunes is quite strong. Plus, I’ve been seduced by their CoverFlow eye candy. Just when I thought that I could give up iTunes, they pull me back in.

]]> By: Bill http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/comment-page-1/#comment-238 Bill Fri, 07 Dec 2007 08:41:04 +0000 http://blog.slickedit.com/?p=174#comment-238 > Why can’t putting music in my digital music > player work half this easily? Well, playing classical music on a PC can be much like using ArkivMusic. - My music files are in Flac format which allows me to define the tags I want to use: Composer = Composer, Artist = performer Monteux_LSO), Work name = the work name(Symphony No. 1), and track name = movement - I use the J. River media center 12 player to rip, tag and play my classical music collection. I can add the tags I want when I rip CDs. I have view schemes for classical and other genres. The classical view scheme has iTunes like panes for sub-genre, Composer, Work name, Artist and version to select the music files to be displayed. I can sort the displayed files based on up to 4 tags at a time. - I usually select a composer, then a work, then an artist. If I have several performances (say mono and stereo or different remasterings), I pick a versions too.) I got what I needed without painful compromises. I don't yet use a portable player like an iPod and I know that some compromises may be required. > Why can’t putting music in my digital music
> player work half this easily?

Well, playing classical music on a PC can be much like using ArkivMusic.

- My music files are in Flac format which allows me to define the tags I want to use:
Composer = Composer, Artist = performer Monteux_LSO), Work name = the work name(Symphony No. 1), and track name = movement

- I use the J. River media center 12 player to rip, tag and play my classical music collection. I can add the tags I want when I rip CDs. I have view schemes for classical and other genres. The classical view scheme has iTunes like panes for sub-genre, Composer, Work name, Artist and version to select the music files to be displayed. I can sort the displayed files based on up to 4 tags at a time.

- I usually select a composer, then a work, then an artist. If I have several performances (say mono and stereo or different remasterings), I pick a versions too.)

I got what I needed without painful compromises. I don’t yet use a portable player like an iPod and I know that some compromises may be required.

]]> By: Mozart http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/comment-page-1/#comment-237 Mozart Thu, 06 Dec 2007 20:20:30 +0000 http://blog.slickedit.com/?p=174#comment-237 http://musicbrainz.org http://musicbrainz.org

]]> By: kattana http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/comment-page-1/#comment-236 kattana Thu, 06 Dec 2007 20:10:45 +0000 http://blog.slickedit.com/?p=174#comment-236 What you want is foobar2000 and its custom title formatting. Extend the idv2 tags to include any missing information and display it how you like. What you want is foobar2000 and its custom title formatting.
Extend the idv2 tags to include any missing information and display it how you like.

]]> By: Lisa http://blog.slickedit.com/2007/12/classical-in-a-digital-age/comment-page-1/#comment-235 Lisa Thu, 06 Dec 2007 16:59:16 +0000 http://blog.slickedit.com/?p=174#comment-235 And if the picture isn't enough to prove it, I, being privileged to know you in person, can attest to the fact that you are a cool funky guy, despite your musical arrogance ;) A refreshing and enjoyable article! And if the picture isn’t enough to prove it, I, being privileged to know you in person, can attest to the fact that you are a cool funky guy, despite your musical arrogance ;)

A refreshing and enjoyable article!

]]>