Reviews of Digital Audio Vendor Products: Naxos and the Classical Music Library

A Review of the Naxos Music Library--How Library Friendly Is It?Content, Presentation, Searching—

and Various Odds and EndsPresented by

Darwin F. ScottCreative Arts Librarian, Brandeis University

for theElectronic Reference Services Subcommittee

Music Library Association Annual Meeting, VancouverFebruary 17, 2005

E-mail: dscott@brandeis.edu

Bookmark / URL Link(Thanks to Paul Cary via MLA-L)

• Address to enter (for validation):http://blc.naxosmusiclibrary.com/

• Once validated, this automatically changes to:http://blc.naxosmusiclibrary.com/default.asp

• Caveat: a direct link on a Web page tohttp://blc.naxosmusiclibrary.com/default.asp

throws you into the log-in page.

Naxos Music Library — Log-In Page

NAXOS Music Library — Banner and Logging Out

Users must click on this log out box to end the Naxos Music Library session.Merely closing the browser will not end the session—

and this will affect an institution’s simultaneous user count.

Naxos needs to reconfigure its scripting so that closing the browser also logs off the session.

This is a standard feature for nearly all library electronic resources.

Meanwhile, please make this reminder larger and more obvious.

NAXOS Music Library — The Time Out Box

You only get ONE MINUTE to respond—and then, ZAP!Your browser box starts flashing, and you discover that

you’ve been deep-sixed—and must log on again:

More time please—and make the more-time box biggerand more obvious to the listener!

NAXOS Music Library — Homepage

Naxos Music Library — Right Side Bar

NAXOS Music Library — What’s New — Screen 1

Entries on this what’s new pageare not dated.

NAXOS Music Library — Standard Search Page

H

Hmm, haven’t we seen this page before? Yes, it’s the home page.Standard search is NOT a search but a selection of browsable alphabetical lists

under four main categories: GENRES, CATEGOREIS, TEXT RESOURCES, and ALL.

NAXOS Music Library — Advanced Search

Despite it’s name, this is not a typical advanced search box.Searchers familiar with the search interfaces on electronic resources

and even Google will find the Naxos optionsoften confusing, limiting, and frustrating.

A few examples follow.

NAXOS Music Library — Advanced Search

The indexing underlying the search boxes is very tricky. Indexing includes all individual terms and all phrases, but you cannot skip any intervening text. For example, under performing group, all of these searches work:

• Royal Opera House Orchestra, Covent Garden• Covent Garden• even: House Orchestra, Covent Yes, commas are indexed and must be included! (House Orchestra Covent produces no results).

Covent Garden Orchestra does not work, however.The browsable list has an entry under R but nothing under C.

Conclusion: Naxos needs to consult with music catalogers on basic indexing principles.

Only works from prescribed list of terms.

NAXOS Music Library — Advanced Search Strike Out Page

A whole screen for four words. Naxos needs to look how other electronic resources relay this message to users in a more helpful fashion.

NAXOS Music Library — Searching Mozart’s Piano Concerto, K. 414

mozart

414

NAXOS Music Library — Searching Mozart’s Piano Concerto, K. 414

mozart

414

Results:

What’s going on here?414 for K. 414 is not indexed.

But 414, the last three digits of the Naxos CD no., is! In fact, every digit and numerical grouping of the serial no. is

indexed! Why?

Hmm, this note about period and dot after No., Op., K., etc.apparently means just that … OK, let’s try search K. 414 …s

NAXOS Music Library — Searching Mozart’s Piano Concerto, K. 414

mozart

K. 414

Results:

AARGH! What’s going on here? No, it couldn’t possibly be …

NAXOS Music Library — Searching Mozart’s Piano Concerto, K. 414

mozart

major, K. 414

Results:

Success! But certainly there are indeed major indexing problems here!

For opus numbers, the correct search is the phrase op. 57. A simple 57 will not work.

NAXOS Music Library — Opera Synopses

Listed by title, mostly without composers. Many users will recognized that Verdi composed Aïda, but who composed

Alexander?

Oops, that should be George not Gearge.

NAXOS Music Library — Fidelio Opera Synopsis

Opera lite—this is the entire text.

Entire operasummarized in

8 lines

Musical highlights

History and Style in 4 lines

NAXOS Music Library — Beethoven Fidelio Recording

NAXOS Music Library — Beethoven Fidelio Recording — About This Recording

Unlike the dreadful synopsis from the Opera Synopses list, this is quite a good overview of the

opera as well as outline of the plot and musical highlights—perfect for students in a survey

course.

Continued in scrolled text.

Continued in scrolled text.

NAXOS Music Library — Opera Libretti — Verdi Selected

Oops, Don Carlo is here!

NAXOS Music Library — Fidelio Libretto — English Text

NAXOS Music Library — Fidelio Libretto (German Only)

No source given for this German libretto.

German only—no English!How helpful is this for students?

No direct path from the libretto

to the opera recording.

Labels Now Available in the Naxos Music Library

World Music(included in subscription price)

• Celestial Harmonies• ARC• First Editions• Analekta• CBC

Naxos Music Library —— Home Page Footer

Line 4:

Historical, Nostalgia and Jazz Legends recordings are not available to institutional subscribers in the United States, due to possible copyright

restrictions.

NAXOS Music Library — World/Folk List

THESE ARE ARC CDs

THESE ARE CELESTIAL HARMONIES CDs

THESE ARE NAXOS WORLD CDs

Which label is which?

NAXOS Music Library — Selection from World/Folk Genre with Now Playing and About This Recording Windows

Aargh, you canonly scroll downto see the entire

texts of these windows—no resizing option.

The only indication that this is a

Naxos World Recording

NAXOS Music Library — Celestial Harmonies Selection

Celestial Harmonies

No ABOUT THIS

RECORDING—we need notes, texts,

and translations.

Various problems and observations arising from the Boston Library Consortium’s subscription to the Naxos Music Library

(mid-August 2004-present)

BLC Profile:

• 19 institutions throughout Massachusetts, plus the University of Connecticut, Brown University (Rhode Island), and the University of New Hampshire.

• Naxos Music Library subscription activated in mid-August 2004.• BLC Business Office manages the account (controls log-in time, statistics, interactions

with Naxos, etc.); each institution has separate authorizations for playlists.

Problems:

• Individual libraries cannot see the administrative windows and control features.• Closed browsers rather than “official” log outs resulted in all 100 simultaneous user

seats occasionally \used up.• Different institutions use differing proxy servers.• Remote access from Macs.• Statistics still not institutionally based.• Lack of consistent means and responses for communicating problems. Individual

institutions ↔ BLC office ↔ Naxos ↔ individual institutions.• Erratic and delayed responses from Naxos.