The Music Library of the Future (MLF) is a creation of the Faculty of Music at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. It seeks to house a repository of music, especially Canadian music. According to the MLF web page, the three goals of the project are “i) installation of a 3W server at the Faculty of Music, McGill University specifically for music and audio information ii) development of new browsing and retrieval tools for music and audio iii) implementation of a prototype collection of musical scores, digital audio excerpts, biographical and analytical data, and general information about Canadian music.” The professors involved are working on developing technologies, applying standards, and obtaining permission from record companies to use various recordings. In addition to music, the archive will contain other information on Canadian composers, including images, videos, and biographical texts. It will not deal entirely with Canadian composers, either. For instance, there is a section of works by Handel, including “rare manuscripts and an extensive collection of audio recordings.” So far, though, not much is actually on the website (http://www.music.mcgill.ca/resources/mlf/mlfProposal.html). There are links to a few portraits of Canadian composers, but all but one of them do not lead anywhere (http://www.music.mcgill.ca/resources/composerDatabase/). The one live link leads to information on Bengt Hambraeus, a Swedish composer who is now a professor at McGill (http://www.music.mcgill.ca/resources/composerDatabase/bengtHambraeus/general/home/html/home.html). His life and works are discussed, but there are no actual audio files of his compositions, despite the fact that archiving music is supposed to be the primary function of the MLF.
The Classical Archives (http://www.prs.net/midi.html) contain the works of 978 (to date) composers, all in MIDI format. While MIDI is not a particularly exceptional format for listening to these compositions, it is still an interesting and useful site. According to the page, “some users will take your file and use the ‘score’ for their own live performance,” so the archive is useful in that respect. It can also serve as a reference point for someone who needs to know how a particular piece of music sounds. In addition to the files, the archive also includes brief biographical data on the composers. The recordings can be submitted by anyone, as long as that person follows the appropriate rules. The files should have appropriate filenames, be in the original key, and conform to copyright laws. The pieces are either in the public domain, or the people submitting them have permission to copy and distribute them.
The Arabic MP3 site (http://math.cl.uh.edu/~yacob/mp3/aghany_mp3.html) is a very informal repository. The creator claims to have over one thousand songs in his collection, but only fifty-two are immediately available for download. Apparently, the creator only places a particular song on the Internet when someone requests it, making the site a rather small and weak repository. The files are in MP3 format, which sounds considerably better than MIDI, but also takes up much more space. The page is identified as “the original Arabic MP3 songs {aghany} site on the net,” and the creator claims to have “started the Arabic MP3 revolution on the net.” Whether this information is accurate is certainly questionable, but it is not particularly important anyway. There is little information on the creation and maintenance of the site, but it seems to be simply one person with an interest in Arabic music encoding and posting various songs to the World Wide Web.
The Aria Database (http://www.aria-database.com/) is dedicated, as its title implies, to operatic music. Actual music files are not its major focus, but there are some MIDI files at the site. There are currently 223 of them in the database, according to the site. In addition to the sound files, there are texts and translations for many of the operatic arias, as well as basic information on them. Robert Glaubitz, the maintainer of the site, states that it “is designed to be useful for both singers and opera fans. For performers, the Database provides all the information you would need to know to prepare an aria, including synopsis, range and tessitura, voice part and fach, role, and where to find the sheet music. For music lovers that prefer to sing along with recordings, the Database provides the words of the aria as well as where it happens in the opera and where you could find more recordings of the aria.” As for the MIDI files, they might not give an exact indication as to how an aria sounds (since they contain no vocals), but they can give a basic impression, and help performers to “learn notes and rhythms” (index2.html). Glaubnitz is a graduate student, studying vocal performance. The page was created in 1996, and it received many updates after that, including a search engine and its own domain (personal.html). People are allowed and encouraged to contribute to the site, but generally only if the material is original (in the case of MIDI files, actually sequenced by the contributor) (contributions.html). This seems to be a useful, but highly specialized, music depository.
Digital music depositories are useful projects, which allow users to listen to and learn about various pieces of music. While such depositories in general are not rare, it seems difficult to find ones that appear professional, and which can be classified as digital libraries. In the future, it would be nice to see more high-caliber digital music depositories, offering high-quality music files, with easily searchable archives and data on the works.
“Aria Database” (15 April 2001). Available: http://www.aria-database.com/
“Classical Archives” (2 May 2001). Available: http://www.prs.net/midi.html
“Music Library of the Future” Available: http://www.music.mcgill.ca/resources/mlf/mlfHome.html