Nicolas works with our wonderful collection of Naxos Audio Books - and has some great things to say about all of the new changes and features of the NSWL.
The bookmarking ability is especially exciting! Head on over to the NAB Blog, and have a read!
Well, despite good intentions to start a weekly blog in January, it appears I will be starting it in February. The New Year brought more updates and work than expected, and through it all I enjoyed listening to (predominantly) flute music. I was a flautist in college and always seem to gravitate to flute and piccolo music in the Naxos Music Library. The following suggestions include some of my more-recent discoveries. I hope some of you will also find a few new pieces to enjoy!
1. Egil Hovland – Piccolo Concerto, Op. 117 (ACD5004) I enjoyed this piece not only for the fabulous piccolo-writing, but for the beautifully-executed cadenza at the end!
2. Bartolomeo Campagnoli –Flute Concerto in D major, Op. 3, No. 2 (CDS214)
3. Walter Gieseking –Flute Sonata (AV2076) This CD has become one of my favorites. All pieces are truly beautiful, but Gieseking’s Flute Sonata gets my vote for “the piece to listen to” on this album.
4. Gary Schocker –Flute Quartet No. 1, “Nymphs” (INNOVA556) I’ve admired Schocker’s playing for a while. His first quartet was playful and fun to hear!
5. Antonio Vivaldi –Piccolo Concerto in C major, RV 443 (BIS-CD-21)
6. Kenji Bunch “Velocity” and Eve Beglarian “I will not be sad in this world” (8.559629) Great modern pieces that use a great deal of extended technique and electronics respectively—
7. Philippe Gaubert –Fantasie (LVC1071)
8. Cesare Ciardi –Works for Flute and Piano (CDS78) I had never heard Ciardi’s works for flute, and I especially enjoyed his works in theme and variation.
9. W.A. Mozart’s Violin Sonatas arr. for flute and Francois-Bernard Mache’s “Sopiana” (ACD22108) This CD had a lovely mix of all types of flute music; from Classical to Modern. The Mozart flute concertos are lovely, but it was nice hearing a flautist play Mozart works that I hadn’t heard or played a dozen times. The Mache piece was new to me, as was the orchestration (tape and flute), which I enjoyed.
We wanted to take a few moments and update you on some of the exciting new features implemented into the Naxos Video Library over the past few weeks!
Mouse-over, DVD Highlights!
Now, when you mouse over any work in the NVL, a small "box" will appear with a work synopsis, and any other noteable features of the DVD. In the case of Carmen below, you can see that included in the NVL, are the Bonus Features!
Skip By Chapter!
Just like a standard DVD, you're now able to skip ahead through a video by chapter. Mousing over the "Play" button, will allow you to view the Skip buttons. Move your mouse off of the "Play" button, and the skip buttons disappear into the abyss (leaving you more room for wonderful Opera and Ballet of course!)
Where am I?
No more confusion about what chapter you're in, or where in the Opera you just "skipped" to! Simply open the Chapters tab, and look for the wonderful new Film Strip icon, and you'll know instantly where you are!
Do you have a suggestion for the NVL? Are there features you'd like to see implemented? If so, you can e-mail us at Naxos, or leave a comment!
Congratulations and Welcome to our first two subscribers! The folks at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities - and Douglas College have already made the NVL a part of their offerings! Enjoy all that the NVL has to offer!
The Naxos Music Library is an extraordinary resource. I’ve been a fan since my undergraduate years when I worked in my university’s music library. Now I work for Naxos Music Library full-time and have unlimited access to some of the world’s best classical music 24-7! I’ve discovered a lot of new music since joining the NML team, both through my own perusal and recommendations from subscribers world-wide. With a constantly growing selection of almost 40,000 CD’s, it’s easy to gloss over some worthwhile pieces and recordings. For this reason I’ve decided to compile a weekly playlist of pieces that deserve a bit of extra attention. Perhaps some of these pieces will be old news to you. Perhaps you will not like some of my suggestions, but the hope is that we’ll all spend a little more time with classical music and discover a few new favorites that would have otherwise remained unknown to us.
Week of 11-15 January 2010 Symphonies
1. Georg Christoph Wagenseil—Symphony in C, Op. 5, No. 5, WV361 (777112-2) I’ve had a soft-spot for Wagenseil ever since my Classical Symphony class in Vienna. His symphonies are short, sweet, and were dwarfed by Haydn, Mozart and other Classical composers who advanced the genre; however, as my prof used to say, “The symphony had to start somewhere.” 2. Johann Christian Bach—Sinfonia for Double Orchestra in D, Op. 18, No. 3 (8.553367) 3. Zdenek Fibich—Symphony No. 1 in F, Op. 17 (8.553699) 4. Gloria Coates—Symphony No. 15, “Homage to Mozart” (8.559371) The most prolific female symphonist in history certainly deserves more recognition. Liner notes for this CD are especially interesting. 5. Herman Berlinski—Symphonic Visions (8.559446) 6. William Schuman—Symphony No. 3 and Symphony No. 5 (8.559317) 7. William Grant Still—Afro-American Symphony (BCD9086) This has been my favorite symphony for 2 years now. Still’s Americana and use of a solo banjo are brilliant. 8. Alan Hovhaness—Symphony No. 63 “Loon Lake”, Op. 411 (8.559336) Alan Hovhaness wrote 67 symphonies, among many other works. Like all prolific composers, some of his works have faded into the background of his vast output. His 63rd symphony caught my attention because of the unique sounds (sounds of the loon and bird-songs) and beautiful flute/piccolo parts. 9. Bedrich Smetana—Festive Symphony (8.223120) Smetana played a large role in establishing a Czech national sound. This is one of his lesser-known works, and I enjoyed getting acquainted with it. 10. Vincent Persichetti—Symphony No. 8, Op. 106 (FECD-0034)
The Naxos Music Library Jazz has its own iPhone App! The function and form mirrors the NML App. It also, allows access to your NML Jazz individual and account based playlists remotely!
Upon logging into the NML today, many of you notice the "Buy and Download" buttons in the NML. These links will take you to our Download store, Classics Online!
While many users welcome this feature, (as even some of the more well known recordings can be tough to find for purchase), some folks epxressed interest in the ability to turn this feature off.
Here's a step by step guide to turning the links off, should your institution like to.
Here's a Screenshot with the Link on.
1. To Begin: Log into the NML with your administrator Username//Password
2. Click on "Manage Account"
3. The next pop-up will display the account management screen. You can see the "Enable/Disable" option for the COL Links.
That will do it! If you have any other questions, feel free to contact us at Naxos.
It's been a busy past few months for us in the NOL (Naxos Online Libraries) world. I say NOL, because this post has nothing to do with the NML! With all of the iPhone and NML Development, we almost forgot to do a nice Friday preview for everyone!
The Naxos Video Library is in it's final stages of Beta Testing! What does this mean for you? It means it's now time to show some screenshots, video's, and to share some thoughts!
Since we're still in development, things can and will change from the previews below.
Also, please leave comments or e-mail me directly with anything you'd be interested in seeing in the NVL! Now, let's get to the previews!
As I mentioned previously, I'm still learning all of the Youtube/Blogspot Embed rules. Please excuse the video aspect ratio. *If you know how to adjust this, please share! I've tried all of the suggested tips so far :(*
First is a short video of the Player Window.
Looks Great! You'll notice that just like the NML, the NVL's metadata is linked. Do you enjoy a particular choreographer and want to see what else we have in the NVL by him/her? Simply click on their name to get a full listing!
Next up is the main menu scroll, and Playlist Window.
The Youtube video may be a bit small, so it's best to check out the site itself. Many of the menus have drop downs and expandable options!
The NVL divides all of the videos into the appropriate chapters, and best of all, by work! If you're looking for a particular aria, rest assured you'll be able to instantly jump directly to it! Here's a screen-shot of the chapter and work seperation!
Another great feature of the NVL is the Playlist function. By using the administrator log in credentials, you'll be able to create custom clips (see below for a video on how that works!), and post Static URL's just like the Naxos Music Library.
Here's a screen shot of the "How To" on Clip Creation:
Here's the final clip we've got today. This shows the NVL's "Booklet Download" feature.
You'll be able to save most of the booklets of all available DVD's as .PDF's! So far, this has been one of my favorite features.
Another piece of good news: The Naxos Video Library streams exclusively with Adobe Flash! For more information on Flash, or to download the latest version, click here!
----- That about wraps it up today! Check back often for more information, and please leave your comments below or deliver them via e-mail! We want your input as much as possible!
Cheers, Nick 615.465.3836 (direct) Nick@NaxosUSA.com
I had a great time, and got some great feedback! We appreciate all of the folks who came by and talked about everything from the new iPhone App, to the Naxos Video Library (Look for a post shortly with some great new Developments and Screenshots), to the AWESOME Virtual Haydn.
Here's a clip of the Virtual Haydn we had on display!
(e) - I'm still learning how to format the Aspect Ratio of embedded clips! Please bear with me!
Overall the show was great, and it was nice to see everyone!
Are there other shows/meetings/conventions you'd like to see the NML team at? If so, post below in the comments section, and we'll be sure to try our best to attend!
The Naxos Music Library iPhone App is now Live! You are now able to listen to your personal and account created playlists on the iPhone and iPod Touch!
For more information on the "Nuts & Bolts" of how the app works, see this post.
What a thrilling day for the world of classical music!
---------- Here's a step by step walk-through from finding the app, to synching your device! 1. Enter "Naxos Music Library" ("Naxos" works too) in the iTunes store Search box.
2. Click on "Get App"
3. Enter your Apple ID, or create a new account. Download the App.
4. Once the App has been downloaded, ensure it's in queue to be synched up. I've taken a shot below of everything "as it should be". If you've installed an App from the iTunes store before, it's exactly the same as every App!
--------- Once the App is Installed, it's time to make sure you have some playlists!
1. Visit the NML. If you are an student or member of an institution, you can visit your institutions unique webpage. Ask your Librarian, Account Administrator, or us here at Naxos if you have questions!
2. Any playlist in your personal folder, or account folder will be available. Below is a shot from a University account. Individual subscribers won't need to adjust anything, or log in a second time, to create playlists!
3. Oh, and lest we forget: The iPhone App, synchs both your Naxos Music Library, and Naxos Music Library Jazz playlists! Here's a screenshot of my iPod Touch. The playlist "Allison Wedding " (a very cool Jazz singer) , is an NMLJazz Playlist, while "Bernstien Mass" is an NML palylist.
We'd like to also take a moment and give a very big "Thanks" to our developers!
From all of us at Naxos, Happy Remote Listening! Nick 615.482.5249 Nick@NaxosUSA.com
Below is an interactive e-card which you can share, and embed everywhere! The App is in the final stages of approval, and we'll be sure to let everyone know when it's ready to download from the App store!
- On the e-card page, there are embed links and different embed codes for every social media outlet available!
I've also added the latest question to the Q+A post below!
Q: Who can use the App?
A: All subscribers will be able to make use of the App; Institutions, Orchestras, and individual subscribers! Students at institutions will be able to listen to their personal playlists, as well as those created by the professors and account administrators.
If you require assistance with the "Student Playlist" functionality, please feel free to write! My e-mail address is below!
Also, if you or anyone from your institution, is attending the AMS conference in Philadelphia this weekend, be sure to stop by and say "Hi!" I'll have my iPhone on hand for you to play with!
Happy Listening, Nick 615.482.5249 Nick@NaxosUSA.com
