The Classical Archives Launches The Ultimate Online Classical Music Destination

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CONTACT: Russ Rowland May 19, 2009

HWH PR/ New Media

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THE CLASSICAL ARCHIVES LAUNCHES

THE ULTIMATE CLASSICAL MUSIC DESTINATION

New Music Store and Service Offers Largest Collection of Classical Recordings

and Most Sophisticated Interface on the Internet

New York, NY – The Classical Archives is about to bring online classical music shopping and listening into the 21st century! The Classical Archives – www.classicalarchives.com – goes live today as the ultimate destination for online classical music and a breakthrough in site navigation that will be welcomed by all. Catering to serious aficionados and eager newcomers alike, the site offers the largest collection of classical music available online as well as extensive background information on works, composers, artists, and much more.

Best of all, the site features a new proprietary navigation and search engine capability that lets visitors search and cross-reference by any relevant criteria: composer, work title, artist, albums, historical period, instrument, genre, and many others that make finding and comparing the best classical recordings easier than it has ever been. In addition to albums from major labels such as DG/Decca, Angel/EMI/Virgin, Sony/Columbia, and 100+ more, the site offers a large collection of free streaming tracks from its own roster of world-class talents.

Pierre R. Schwob, CEO and Founder, notes, "The Renaissance starts here! The Classical Archives will become the ultimate classical music site and a model for music sites in general: where the music you want can be easily and immediately found, and where composers, artists, and works get the respect they deserve. It marks the dawn of a new era for online music sales in terms of its navigation system and the wealth of contextual information it offers. Our sophisticated but elegant system has been developed by our expert team of musicologists, and built by our engineers using the latest advances in web technology. Anyone who has purchased music online, particularly classical music, knows well the current limitations of Internet music shopping and discovery. The Classical Archives is changing the whole user experience."

The newly launched Classical Archives opens its doors as the most complete classical music resource on the Internet with over 620,000 recorded tracks (building to over 1 million!) representing 6,600 composers, 21,000 artists and 100+ record labels representing a unique blend of the majors and independent labels. Tracks are available in high quality DRM-free MP3 for listening or downloading and some in MIDI format for synthesizers. The company's ultimate goal is to offer the complete catalogs of all classical music record labels, as well as independent classical artists in DRM-free format, and to identify the recordings in a proper, consistent, and easily searchable form. Classical Archives will always allow users to keep their downloads for life: they are not tied to any conditions such as staying in a subscription program.

Dr. Nolan Gasser, Artistic Director, states, "We are very proud of the contribution that the new Classical Archives is making to the world of classical music as a whole; for too long, the online consumer has dealt with a broken system, where the music is identified and displayed in an inconsistent, if not inaccurate, manner, making the process of finding and comparing recordings difficult or impossible. Admittedly, it is no easy task to correctly identify the vast repertoire of classical works, and then coordinate their various recordings, but our expert team of musicologists is committed to this goal, and the consumer will experience the music as they have only imagined."

The site provides detailed musicological information for each work: its proper movements and subdivisions, genre, principal instruments, year of composition, and key. Users can then easily compare various recordings of a given work, each identified in a proper and consistent manner – something not possible with any other site.

The new Classical Archives offers unique membership opportunities that allow users to take advantage of its vast resources easily and affordably. Fees are $9.95/month or $99.50/year. Benefits include the ability to listen to music from the whole site (entire tracks or works); a 10% discount on all downloads (which are yours to keep for life!); the first two weeks as a free trial of the service; the ability to access and download MIDI files free of charge.

Free registered members also enjoy great benefits: the ability to listen to any music clips (30-60 seconds); the ability to purchase downloads; and the ability to access and download MIDI files.

For more information, please visit: www.classicalarchives.com.

Dilettantes

Be part of the global classical music uprising - upload your music online now!

Dilettantemusic.com, the first online classical music community, has launched an mp3 uploads tool and Events Calendar, offering its growing network of composers, musicians, orchestras and ensembles the opportunity to showcase their music and publicise their concerts.

mp3 Uploads
Now Dilettantes can enhance their user profiles by uploading mp3s of their own performances or compositions. The upload function gives emerging musicians and composers an opportunity to make themselves and their music heard by listeners and potential collaborators. Those looking to hire musicians for a wedding or other event have a portfolio of talent at their fingertips.

Mp3s are linked to Dilettantemusic.com’s extensive classical music data. This means that users searching for a work in the site’s Music Pages will find members’ mp3s on the page describing that work.

Juliana Farha, the company’s founder says ‘For a musician or composer, the most effective CV is the music itself. We’re looking forward to seeing Dilettantes use this tool to show off their skills and passion.’

Events Calendar
The user-generated Events Calendar provides a unique online diary that brings together a range of classical music events from full orchestral concerts to intimate student recitals.

Dilettantes can upload details of any classical music event that they are organising, participating in or attending, with those events linked to the profiles of Dilettantes who created them. Dilettante calendars are organised by city, although users can switch calendars to search events anywhere they like.

The Dilettante Site
At the heart of the Dilettantemusic.com site is an unprecedented level of integration between the Members’ network and Music pages.

Web 2.0 tools enable classical music lovers and novices alike to harness the power of the Internet for covert exploration and discovery. Members of the Dilettante community create online profiles that showcase their musical lives, from favourite composers to works in their repertoire. They can share news and views in blogs, ‘small talk’ and through private messages.

The Dilettante Music catalogue is enhanced by the web’s most comprehensive data about classical performers, composers and their works, supplied by All Media Guide.

Dilettante Launch
Since its launch in January 2008, the Dilettante community has attracted users from as far afield as China, Argentina and Iceland, joining professionals and organisations such as Tasmin Little and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Rising Stars Webcast Series
The series continues with Matthew Schellhorn performing Chopin’s Scherzo No.4 in E. Musicians are welcome to submit webcasts for broadcast on the Dilettante site.

Classical Club Night Collaboration
Dilettante is launching a collaborative club night series with Blank Canvas, which takes place at 93 Feet East in London’s Brick Lane on Wednesday 9 July 2008. More details can be found at www.dilettantemusic.com/member/blankcanvas.

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