FREE/BARGAIN — Media Deals (non-eBook/non-audiobook)

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

Thank you VERY much, GtrsRGr8, for your work on searching out music downloads and for the interesting research and thoughtful posts you make.

I don't download every item, of course, but I do read through all the items you post, and then go to the site to see if it might be something I wish to download and add to my collection.

Again, thank you so much for your dedication to bringing this information to Mobileread's members and to myself, as well.

The check is in the mail. ha

[GtrsRGr8]

I had pretty much "sworn off" posting eMusic daily freebies, for a variety of reasons. But I committed myself to posting ones that I thought were exceptional.

Today's, I think, is exceptional. And, I say that, not even liking the style of music. The group sounds professional, not like newbies or even up and comers. I don't know who wrote the music--if the artist (Homeshake) did, they apparently have quit a bit of talent there, too.

EMusic says that it is of the genre "Alternative/Punk." If it is punk, then I don't know what punk is or it has changed a lot since I listened to some of it in the 90's. "Alternative" probably does fit. It is close to Pop. There is a better way of describing the genre or subgenre, but my knowledge of such things is so weak . . . . MobileReaders, if you listen to it, help me out!

Anyway, here's the link to the eMusic webpage with the download link. The song is in MP3.

[GtrsRGr8]

This post will probably be of a lot of interest to audiophiles with high-end audio equipment, but I think that just about everyone will be able to hear the following pieces on whatever player that they've got, albeit with a lesser sound quality than the files are capable of providing.

I've learned of some freebies of high quality classical audio pieces. There's a lot that I don't know yet, but I think that I know enough to tell you about them, and for you to download and listen to them.

They come courtesy of Channel Classics Records, a music publishing business. It appears that they offer these freebies periodically--they call a download of this kind the "free (test) download of the moment, in 44.1, 96, 192 kHz & DSD." It will be necessary for other MobileReaders to do any explaining of the latter part of that might be necessary--it's way above my pay grade. But one thing that I do understand is that it's talking about high-quality audio.

You may see something about this being a free "track." This is not talking about a sample, excerpt, preview or anything like that--the free track is a complete piece, that comes from an album. It's just like the other free classical music pieces that we get and are posted on this thread, in that regard.

I don't have any idea how long a "download of the moment" typically lasts, but at this moment the download is of a J.S. Bach piece - The Art of Fugue, performed by Rachel Podger (on the violin), and is described as "track one," which possibly means the first track of the album. I may have to monitor the website to find out about when a "download of the moment" changes. The information also may be included in a newsletter that Classical Records will offer to sign you up for.

The download is in zip form. Let me list the files that I now have on my hard drive, after unpacking the zip file:
01_Bach Art of Fugue-Contrapunctus 1-192.flac
01_Bach Art of Fugue-Contrapunctus 1-44.flac
01_Bach Art of Fugue-Contrapunctus 1-96.flac
01_Bach Art of Fugue-Contrapunctus 1-dsd.dff
So, you get the same Bach song, with the same violinist performing and all that, only that Channel Classics gives the song to you in four different qualities of sound (I suppose that that is why Channel Classics Records calls this a "test" track--it is for you to test and see which one sounds the best to you on the equipment that you've got). In addition, there is, in the zip file, a PDF of a booklet that is chock full of information about the artist and other stuff.

Here's how to download the zip file for yourself:
1) Navigate to the Channel Classics Records homepage.
2) It will help you if you will expand your window fully, if it isn't already, to fill up your whole screen.
3) On the righthand side, you should see a dialogue box about the download. It may look attached to the main content of the webpage, or it may partially cover it. Either way, I don't think that you can miss it. It is possible that all that you will see is a vertical column of four plus ( + ) signs; if so click on the top plus ( + ) sign.
4) You should see a bright red button that says, "Free (test) Download of the Month." Click on it. The download should begin immediately.
5) Unzip the file. You should see a list of the four pieces, along with other things that you might be interested in.

BTW--Channel Classic Records says that they will send you other free download offers if you sign up for their newsletter.

Hope this is helpful to one or more MobileReaders. If you run into any problems, let me know and I will see if I can help fix them.

[Dr. Drib]

Downloading now as i type, holing an applein one hand and a cup ofcoffee in the other ha nd.

[Dr. Drib]

Well, that was a disaster. Don't ever try to type with your feet.

Always, always use someone else's foot.

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

This post will probably be of a lot of interest to audiophiles with high-end audio equipment
<snip>

Oh, I forgot to mention . . . I am almost certain that I did not have to set up any account, or even give an email address, in order to get the downloads. You might want to register for their newsletter, however, and to do that you will need to give only an email address.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

...ofcoffee...

Is that a Peruvian blend?

[GtrsRGr8]

I may have to start posting (or posting more, anyway) the eMusic free daily downloads, again.

Yesterday's was the first one that I had posted in a great while, because I thought that it was exceptional. But today's is great, too, in my opinion.

For about a week, until yesterday, there weren't any daily free downloads from eMusic. I got an error page instead of a webpage with a new piece. I assumed that they had quit doing the free daily downloads. It may be that they spent the time soul-searching and ending up making a commitment to post better stuff. I dunno. But, it seems like it's got to be more than coincidence.

Anyway, here are the esentials of today's freebie, according to eMusic . . . .
Artist: Greenleaf
Album: Agents Of Ahriman
Label: Small Stone Records
Genre: Rock/Pop
Styles: Rock

I've never heard of the group before (Green Day, yes; Greenleaf, no. ha). But they sound really good--like professional good, not like newbies or even up and comers! The song was very good, too--if one of the group wrote it, the group has a talented songwriter on their hands.

One issue that I have with the description above, and this may be more because of ignorance on my part than a less-than-accurate description on eMusic's part. "Rock" is a suitable description for the genre; "pop" it is not, in my opinion. The rock gets close to metal, it seems to me, and I seem to hear some grunge at times. I'd say that it's a little bit eclectic, with rock--metal at times--and grunge a part of the mix.

The webpage where you go to download it.

[GtrsRGr8]

EMusic's daily free download made the cut today, too. The title is Marvelous Light.

Here's other relevant information:
Artist: Mark-J
Album: An Everyday World
Label: Gozpul Music Group / Syntax Distribution
Genre: Hip-Hop/R&B
Styles: Hip-Hop

When I see "Hip-Hop" or "Rap" describing a song, I immediately start looking around for an "Explicit" warning. So much of that genre has extreme vulgarity, as it is defined by the standards of most communities in the United States. There's no need to be concerned here, however--the lyrics sound squeaky clean and, in fact, I think that the song has a religious theme.

Hip-Hop/Rap is not one of my favorite music genres. So, I am thoroughly unqualified to judge the music quality of Hip-Hop/Rap performances. However, to my ears this piece sounded almost professional, just as the last two days' eMusic free offerings have done. The description above notes that there is R&B (Rhythm & Blues) in the song, also; however, it is more subdued than the the Hip-Hop/Rap part.

More and more I'm thinking that eMusic used their recent hiatus of about a week or so to ratchet up the quality of their daily free downloads.

This freebie will stay on my hard drive.

http://www.emusic.com/dailydownloads/toolbar/main.html.

[GtrsRGr8]

The lead-off free classical music piece for the week (M-F) from YourClassical is a Claude Debussy piece, Suite bergamasque: Clair de lune.

This free rendition of Suite bergamasque: Clair de lune comes from a Naxos album, Debussy - Clair de lune and other piano favourites - Arabesques - Reflets dans l'eau. The front of the album cover attributes the piano performance (which I think is all that is on the album) to Francois-Joel Thiollier. Find out much more about the whole album from Naxos's dedicated webpage for the album.

The free piece is stated to be 5 minutes, 12 seconds long. Listen to it by accessing the streaming feature located on this webpage. Additionally or alternatively, download the free MP3 from that webpage, also, by clicking on the link which says "Direct MP3 download link." The download should start immediately.

You know how you hear a classical music piece throughout your life, but never know the title of it? Well, that is the case with me, and probably will be with you, too, with YourClassical's free piece for today. I think that when you start to hear the song, you will instantaneously recognize it. Oh, BTW, the piece sounds nice, and I'm one who often doesn't like piano classical music.

[GtrsRGr8]

Today's free eMusic download makes the grade. The group has a performance and song such that I could see them moving up in the music world. But the field is so crowded . . . .

Important facts:
Artist: Moon Duo
Album: Occult Architecture Vol. 1
Label: Sacred Bones Records / S.C. Distribution
Genre: Alternative/Punk

The song is called Creepin'.

Download it here.

In addition to the alternative and punk genre, there seems to be some of the rock genre in the song, too. It's pretty much my kind of music, even if I don't know exactly how to describe it . . . .

[GtrsRGr8]

I learned that Classical-music.com's free download of the week is now available.

The name of the piece is Saint-Saens Elegie, Op. 143.

This week's download is Saint-Saëns's Elégie, performed by violinist Rosanne Philippens and pianist Julien Quentin. It features on their recording of French music, Dedications, out now on Channel Classics.

'Philippens's brilliantly focused expressive sound is coupled with an inspired programme,' wrote Elinor Cooper in the January issue of BBC Music Magazine. 'An absolute joy from start to finish.'

Downloading it is easy peasy. If you're a registered user, and have logged in to your account, navigate to this webpage. You should see a button, in bright red, partially covering the thumbnail image of the album, Dedications, from which the free piece comes. Click on it. Your download should begin immediately!

As the blurb above pointed out, the free piece comes from a Channel Classics album. I've come to know Channel Classics as a provider of very high quality music but, alas, this one is just an MP3. FYI--Channel Classics does sell an MP3, of all tracks, for $9.76 (http://www.channelclassics.com/philippens-38516.html), but I don't know how the specifications compare with those of the free piece that we get. (BTW--the webpage which I just referenced is Channel Classics' dedicated one for the Dedications album, and there's lots of great information, on the webpage, about that album. A heads up: I found the webpage referenced in the two previous links to be very, very slow to load. I noticed on ChannelClassics.com's homepage that they were revamping the site--perhaps that explains the issue).

My opinion of the piece, should anyone be interested . . . . I don't care for it. I don't like the song, and the violin is grating to me. Whether or not it stays on my hard drive is very much in doubt. YMMV.

[GtrsRGr8]

Frankly, I haven't given iHeartRadio much thought since . . . well, never. I've got my little free Spotify account when I want to listen to one or more songs, and I just deal with the ads (which seem like they're more common than they used to be on Spotify).

None of the music subscription services are perfect. For example, did you know that none of Taylor Swift's albums appear on Spotify? Nor any of her singles, except for ones that she performed for movie soundtracks, and other miscellaneous things like that.

Prince's albums and ordinary singles aren't on Spotify, either. And, he was one of my favorite singers in mid to late 1980's. But, iHeartRadio apparently just now has put Prince's "full catalogue" (that sounds a little nuanced to me--I'm not sure that that means his absolute entire body of work), to stream, on their service.

iHeartRadio has a 30 day free trial offer, which you can use for their "Plus" (basic) service or their "All Access" (I don't know why you would want to get a trial of their basic service, when you could get a trial of the full monty, but anyway . . . .).

Here are the features for the plans. The "Plus" acccount has all of the first four below; the "All Access" account has all seven:
- Play any song
- Unlimited skips
- Save songs from radio to your playlist
- Instantly replay songs from the radio
- Listen offline
- Unlimited access to millions of songs
- Create unlimited playlists
Note; the "Plus" account is available only for devices with iOS or Android.

You can sign up for one of the free trial offers here, on this webpage.

Want to listen to some Prince music to whet your appetite for this service? Well, the whole time that I've been researching and writing this post, I have been listening to Prince's songs nearly nonstop (there was a brief three or four commercials, mainly early on), free--on iHeartRadio (in a part of their website called iHeartPrinceRadio (cute, huh?)). They seem to have been playing at random or according to a preset order. I see no reason that you can't do it yourself, by going to the website above. I have to believe that this free feature will be available for a limited time only, however!

I listened probably to at least a three or four dozen Prince songs while creating this post. Don't let anyone fool you--this finding beautiful free music and listening to it is a terrible job! I just hate it! I hate it, do you hear? I don't know if I can stand it any longer . . . .

[Conan46]

iHeart has been my primary music service lately. They have very few ads on their free service. On the Roku through my TV and soundbar I get one video ad and can listen for hours with no other ads unless I change stations. On my phone I rarely get ads with their free service. I moved to them when Pandora started playing an ad for every 3 songs. I'm not sure how much more you would get with paid service beyond the ability to download music and unlimited skips. In any event iHeart is excellent.

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by Conan46

iHeart has been my primary music service lately. They have very few ads on their free service. On the Roku through my TV and soundbar I get one video ad and can listen for hours with no other ads unless I change stations. On my phone I rarely get ads with their free service. I moved to them when Pandora started playing an ad for every 3 songs. I'm not sure how much more you would get with paid service beyond the ability to download music and unlimited skips. In any event iHeart is excellent.

Thanks for the info. I don't know what I'm going to do, yet, so what you said should help me.

I highly suspect that Spotify, Pandora, et al. will bring out a catalog of Prince's works very soon--iHeartRadio just beat them to the punch. So, what would be the point in moving to iHeartRadio, except for getting the fewer ads that you felt iHeartRadio has? I am happy with Spotify (not giddy, but happy. ha), in part because I know how to use it, and I don't really want to deal with the learning curve with a new service unless there is some compelling reason to do so.

BTW--I wonder if the "Plus" account at iHeartRadio has the Prince catalog. iHeartRadio says that the "All Access" plan has "unlimited access to millions of songs," where it doesn't state that about the "Plus" account. That stuff is a little fuzzy to me. Of course, a person's got a free 30 day trial, so if it doesn't have what he/she wants, said person can dump it anytime he/she wants to within the 30 day period. If a person wants to see if Prince is on the "Plus" account level, he/she might have to sign up for the "Plus" trial account, instead of the "All Access" one.

Another question that I couldn't find the answer to . . . . What is the cost of the "Plus" plan and what is the cost of the "All Access" plan? I never did find that anywhere. But if a person signs up for a trial, iHeartRadio surely would let that person know, then.

You may love iHeartRadio, but they don't seem to speak quite as forthrightly as I would like for them to, and they do leave out--or, at least, make hard to find--some information that I would like to have before signing on, even for a trial offer. (Another piece of information that I would have liked to have seen--how easy or difficult it is to cancel the trial membership, should a person decide to do so).

But your recommendation means lots. Thanks, again.