Apple launched Classical yesterday, its new streaming app that wants to be the great reference in digital classical music. The new channel, free for Apple Music subscribers, is the result of the purchase of the prestigious classical music platform Primephonic by the Cupertino company in August 2021. Classical is the largest classical music repository in the world, with five million pieces that can be selected by composer, repertoire, instruments, performers and several other categories. Since yesterday it is available to iPhone users with iOS 15.3 or later by downloading the app and Apple assures that Android users will also be able to use it “soon”.
The new Classical wants to be a reference not only in its catalogue, which includes historical recordings, but also in quality, which is why the musical pieces are available in high-resolution lossless audio up to 24 bits/192 kHz. In addition, many of the tracks are compatible with Dolby Atmos spatial audio, which brings sound to the user in an immersive way. Apple has announced that every week it will add new albums, many of which will be legendary recordings and others contemporary interpretations adapted for spatial audio.
Every time the user finds a searched piece, all available recordings can be accessed. In many cases, there are hundreds of the same work. Apple has organized complex classical music searches, with all kinds of keyword combinations, taking into account the special classifications of many classical composers. For this organization of the searches, composer, work, opus number, director, artist, instrument and also possible nicknames or translations of a work are used.
Once a piece of music is selected, numerous data are offered in the Classical interface, such as the name of the work, orchestra, director, collaborating artists, year of recording, and label. The user can organize their favorite music by albums, playlists, tracks, artists, recordings, works and composers. Among the genres, there are the categories of orchestral, chamber music, vocal music, stage works, solo instruments, film music and experimental classical.
Apple Music Classical’s vast catalog can be selected by composers, periods, genres, conductors, orchestras, soloists, ensembles, and choirs. The platform also offers recommendations based on categories, moments, instruments, times of the day, and even moods. There are also classic soundtracks based on video games. Music can also be selected by instrument and by type of singing voice (soprano, mezzo-soprano, countertenor, tenor, and bass-baritone).
Classical has more than 700 playlists from day one. There are audio guides that combine the works with expert commentary introducing composers, periods, instruments, and key classical terminology. The app also offers hundreds of unique high-resolution digital portraits and playlist covers of the world’s greatest composers. The images have been commissioned from a group of artists who have taken into account the historical research of each composer and the color palette referring to his historical period.
Apple Music has struck deals with some of the world’s greatest orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Metropolitan Opera, New York Philharmonic, National Opera of Paris, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony and the Vienna Philharmonic to offer users new recordings and performances that will be offered live. The company also has the collaboration of artists such as cellist Yo-Yo Ma, violinist Hilary Hahn, contemporary classical musician and composer Jonny Greenwood (also a member of the rock band Radiohead) and composer Gordon P. Getty.
