Naxos Music Library?

[*anj*]

I'm thinking about subscribing to the Naxos Music Library this year, and I'm trying to decide if it'll really be worth the money. Has anyone here ever done this? There seem to be (at least) two different levels of membership. One costs $225/yr., the other costs $19.95. I'm considering the less expensive one, but it's hard to see whether or not there are enough composers represented.

 

I took a free 15 minute trial of the complete site, and it was really nice. There was an especially good children's section.

 

Pro: Less expensive than purchasing all of the music that I want us to experience this year.

 

Con: Potentially very expensive, plus there's some annoying copyright law in the US that prevents us from listening to certain genres through the site.

Edited August 28, 2010 by *anj*

[Beth in OH]

We have had a $19.95 Naxos membership for years. My dd's are serious chamber musicians, and that is one of the best sites for listening to chamber music. Naxos will have all major composers represented, and many of the lesser known ones, too.

 

The only thing that would have made the site better in our eyes is if it also offered a download purchase option.

 

Beth

[*anj*]

Thanks, Beth. This is very helpful information. I have a question. Is the Junior Section accessible with your subscription?

[tearose]

I find Naxos recordings kind of cheap. They're usually okay recordings, but you usually aren't going to find the best artists, orchestras, etc. But that being said, I am very picky when it comes to classical CDs--probably a lot more so than most people.

[annlaura]

Naxos does not always provide the best performances or recording quality, but some of their artists and recordings are fantastic. If you were buying recordings of major works by major composers, I doubt any Naxos CDs would be on my list of recs. They do have an extensive catalog which can be very helpful. And a number of universities use the service, although probably the more expensive version.

[Beth in OH]

Thanks, Beth. This is very helpful information. I have a question. Is the Junior Section accessible with your subscription?

 

Sorry to be so slow to get back to you. I was moving dd #2 into her college dorm the past couple of days. :)

 

I honestly don't know about the junior section, although I'm not aware that there's any "genre" of music that's not available.

 

One of our reasons for using Naxos is that lesser known works that might not be commercially viable are available there. It's important for musicians to be able to hear a work they're performing, and some works are simply not available on major artist/label cd's. In addition, Naxos makes it possible to study an individual work without purchasing an entire cd.

 

HTH,

Beth

[*anj*]

Thanks Beth, and everyone.

 

I went ahead and joined at the $20 level. I'm bummed though, because I had hoped to be able to listen to entire albums (or at least entire pieces, rather than individual selections only.) Of course they want you to subscribe at the highest level, and that is the only way use it the way that I'd find most useful.

 

I sent an email to the Homeschool Buyer's Co-op, asking if they might be able to arrange for a deal for homeschoolers. They have contacted Naxos, so we'll see what happens. :glare:

[Guest j4ckcampbe11]

Full disclosure, I work for Naxos - I comment in order to provide some information to anyone considering our products.

 

Our range of streaming options has just expanded. The $19.95 option is to stream all content found on Naxos.com. That's an ocean of music, but it is still limited to the Naxos family of labels. In addition, ClassicsOnline.com (owned by Naxos, but a full service retailer) has over 200 labels available both as downloads and a streaming subscription for 9.99 per month or 99.90 per year. And the Naxos Music Library has all the same content as ClassicsOnline plus a library of information designed to be part of college curriculae. Individual licenses are available for purchase on Naxos Music Library as stated above.

 

Downloads: Both Naxos.com Naxos Music Library provide links from each album to the corresponding album download page in ClassicsOnline for download purchase. And coming soon- downloads available directly from the Naxos.com site.

 

Thanks for your interest in our products, and in Classical music education!

[Guest jeby]

Hi Everyone,

 

I, too, work for Naxos and am the father of 4 homeschooled children, ranging in age from 5-18. I encourage you to visit http://www.naxos.com to find out more about our extensive catalog of renowned recordings. Not only are Naxos (and labels distributed by Naxos) titles consistently reviewed by classical and arts-related press, but also have received 17 Grammy awards (and been nominated for more than 50). Check out Gramophone, Classics Today, Fanfare, Audio Audition, etc. for numerous reviews on Naxos recordings. Naxos records with many of the same (and similar) artists and orchestras as other independent and major labels.

 

There's another resource from Naxos of which you might not be aware - http://www.naxosspokenwordlibrary.com. For $15/month or $150/yr, you can listen to the full catalog of Naxos Audiobooks. Classic literature, biographies, history, arts, etc. - there's over 750 titles, many of which display the text along with the audio (and you can print many of the texts, as the PDFs are available for download). My kids listen to Naxos Audiobooks almost every day, sometimes as a part of their literature curriculum, and often during play/free time. I don't know of another service of its kind.

 

Here's a few direct links that you may find helpful in dissecting the wealth of information on our website:

 

http://www.naxos.com/feature/Navigating_Through_Naxos.asp

http://www.naxos.com/labels/naxos_educational-newreleases.htm

http://www.naxos.com/education/introduction.asp

 

All that being said, I'm happy to answer any questions you might have, and will be happy to direct you to additional resources that you might find helpful. I also welcome your suggestions as to how Naxos might further serve the home education community with additional projects and resources.

 

Best regards,

 

Jonathan Eby

Director of Operations

Naxos of America, Inc.

[tearose]

Personally, I think that you're better off downloading better recordings off of iTunes or Amazon or the like instead of limiting yourself to Naxos--you often have the option of downloading single tracks or whole albums off of itunes or Amazon. Yes, Naxos sometimes has recordings of pieces that aren't available otherwise, but it is rarely my first choice if there are many options. (And I am someone who would check out a dozen recordings of the same piece when I was in college and grad school to find the one I thought was best) I have a huge classical CD collection and do not have many Naxos recordings--most of the ones I have were given to me by people who thought they were being nice because I love classical music (I appreciate the thought but don't listen to them much)