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Apple Failed to Release a Classical Music App in 2022

I am thinking that if an app risks getting too bloated, it may be better to break it up into numerous smaller apps instead. Like what Apple did with iTunes.

For example, I am aware that I can access radio stations inside Apple Music, but I prefer playing it via a third part app (currently using broadcasts).

There are also a number of third party Apple Music skins which offer different layouts and functionality. Soor, for instance, has widgets that let me pin favourites and smart playlists to my homescreen. I can also use the shortcuts app to quickly launch playlists from my Apple Watch. Then there are apps that let me track upcoming album releases etc. And Siri support as well.

I guess in this context, I can agree that the Apple Music app probably could use a redesign, yet at the same time, there's enough flexibility in the form of third party clients that make me not need to migrate to Spotify.
 
Why is a separate classical music app needded?
do you need a separate subscription and app for every genre?
 
tubular said:
By coincidence it's literally less than six hours since I listened to exactly this work (in a recording from Helmut Walcha from DG's 120th anniversary boatload-o-discs box set), because -- well, making a Steam Deck boot video parodying the opening credits of "Rollerball," which even as I type it strikes me as a perfectly unhelpful explanation.

So tell me that other story.
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The story of BWV 565 (possibly the most well-known organ piece of the 18th century) is both slightly complicated and quite typical.

There are very few Bach's original manuscripts in existence and relatively few Bach's works were published during his lifetime. What we know about Toccata and Fugue in d minor is that Johannes Ringk made a copy of the piece somewhere around 1740 or 1760 and attributed it to J.S. Bach. Felix Mendelssohn published the piece in the first half of the 19th century and he may have used another copy by — possibly — C.Ph.E. Bach. Or, rather, a copy of a copy of a copy. While it is likely BWV 565 has originally been an organ work, even that is uncertain (harpsichord or even lute).

So, there is no hard evidence the piece was composed by J.S. Bach himself. This, however, is no proof of the opposite, as the same applies to a large number of (even most?) Bach's existing works. The real reason why several musicologists think BWV 565 was not composed by Bach himself is its style; it is not similar to his other works, there are certain elements which are not typical of North German organ school.

A lot of research has been published on this topic. Even computational musicology has been applied. The work does not quite fit Bach's style, but it is not very far from it, either. One composer who's been suggested is Cornelius Heinrich Dretzel. He was possibly Bach's student around 1716 and had connections with Bach's music.

Of course, it is still possible that the piece was indeed composed by J.S. Bach himself. It may be one of Bach's early works which may explain the stylistic differences. Bach may also have been experimenting with new style. One of the themes in the fugue is anyway borrowed from Johannes Pachelbel (a common habit during the time).

BWV 565 is not the only Bach's organ work which may not be from Bach's pen. It is commonly accepted that BWV 897 (Prelude and Fuge in A minor) was composed by Dretzel.
 
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What about a dedicated rock app, hip-hop app, country music app, etc…? Why do we need individual apps per genre—can’t this all be built within the same app? Silliness.
 
ThisBougieLife said:
The Music app has barely changed since it was first introduced. It has many vestiges of iTunes. Surely there’s more they can do with it than what it is currently.
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As a paying Apple Music subscriber I agree. And it’s very similar to Siri in this regard. Same ol, zero improvement, so much potential.
 
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I guess it's better than releasing a half baked service and ruining their reputation for classical music worldwide. Learn from Apple Maps and release a good service from the start, or at least clearly label it as a beta until it's good. Would have been nice to tell us it was delayed though.
 
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cbsnbiker said:
Demographically speaking, they tend to be wealthy.
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Doesn’t matter how much money that small demographic has. If 1.1% of Apple Music listeners are subscribers (and that’s probably a high number)…..that’s roughly coming out to $116 million a year if you charged them $9.99 a month. To Apple that sells categories in the billions it’s likely not worth the effort. That $116 million starts dropping real fast when you start applying payroll, marketing, studio deals, and other stuff. Seems like a poor investment at Apples scale. Would be easier to just fix the Music app to solve these issues. They probably made more selling Shake and iPod Hi-Fis LOL.
 
DrV said:
While it is likely BWV 565 has originally been an organ work, even that is uncertain (harpsichord or even lute).
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Which instantly made me look for a harpsichord performance -- found one on pedal harpsichord from E. Power Biggs that doesn't seem to have ever made the leap to CD.

Thanks for taking the time to explain!
 
Sorry, but :apple: Music is 🗑️.

I really wish it wasn't because I could save money bundling a few services, but in 2023 it is still just a reskin of Beats Music from when Apple bought Beats.

Forgetting the awful look and feel of the interface, it sucks at music discovery and recommendations due to Apple's complete suckfest as AI. Then this whole need to fragment everything into different apps... Podcasts, music, and now classical.... is comical.

I recognize their AI failures are mostly due to their privacy stance (grossly why Siri is still almost unusable....) but there are ways they can maintain your privacy without sacrificing good AI use. When it comes to music, my musical data is not very valuable to a hacker so Spotify can have at it, because it does a stellar job with all of this in one app.

I have given it several shots over elapsed periods of time and never go past the free trial. Apple music (and Siri for that matter) should be the BEST platforms out there given they were the first and had so much more lead time over competitors but simply don't. If you counter argue, you likely haven't used another service.
 
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xdmys said:
What kind of loser is gonna pay for this trash lol
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I’m a ’loser’ who is waiting to pay for this. I like classical music. I can afford another subscription. My current classical music collection is in old time CD’s and records.

I assume *you* do mot like classical music?

Tom
 
If Apple Music just incorporates a sophisticated search function in it as an option in the search (Search Deeper or something like that) they wouldn’t need a separate app and Apple Music would be even better
 
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Kraszim said:
At this point it starts to look like a hostile takover. Buy it and shut it down. Otherwise they could have just let the original run, until they get their own version ready.
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Yes, maybe Apple got scared of the excellent payout structure Primephonic had for classical musicians. I am sure Apple didn't want to pay the same generous sum to the classical musicians. I really hope Apple proves me wrong, but I am not holding my breath, either.
 
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Apple also failed to release new running shoes or a smoothie machine in 2022.
 
What Apple should do is look at the Naxos Music Library and emulate it as closely as possible, for every imaginable genre across all the performing arts. Then, integrate Siri search queries so we can ask for specific modern performances (or performers) of compositions from now all the way back to ~800 A.D. Then Apple Music would be a real powerhouse. The catalogues are already out there, someone just needs to import them into a database and then link published recordings to the catalog entries. Then build a payment structure that compensates living artists fairly. Can't be that hard for a trillion dollar company who claims to be for the creatives and artists of society!
 
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Enzo Morocioli said:
What Apple should do is look at the Naxos Music Library and emulate it as closely as possible, for every imaginable genre across all the performing arts. Then, integrate Siri search queries so we can ask for specific modern performances (or performers) of compositions from now all the way back to ~800 A.D. Then Apple Music would be a real powerhouse. The catalogues are already out there, someone just needs to import them into a database and then link published recordings to the catalog entries. Then build a payment structure that compensates living artists fairly. Can't be that hard for a trillion dollar company who claims to be for the creatives and artists of society!
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I agree. Maybe if Apple Music did not try to push rap and today's pop in the search results it would be better. Many times, I shazam or google the song then I find it on Apple Music by clicking on the link.
 
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MacFan23 said:
I personally went the other way, very early Spotify user to Apple Music.

I honestly don’t understand the strong feelings either way.
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I love Apple Music. It really does know me very well. I use it primarily through the HomePods scattered around my home and within weeks of using it, I could just ask it to “play some music” and every time with very few exceptions, it’s played not only music I like, including music I’ve never heard before, it’s also played music appropriate for the time of day.

What do people like about Spotify? The curated playlists? Apple’s are very good.

The improvement I can see possible is being more plugged into pop culture. I’ve seen the “President’s Playlist” (Obama has some good taste in music) circulating and Apple didn’t have anything like that. Apple needs to sponsor more music festivals and get more earned press mentions the same way Spotify does.

(Edited to add that Apple indeed seems to be doing that. They’re sponsoring the SuperBowl Halftime, a big move since Pepsi has owned that space for as long as I can remember. The earned press and pop culture references are going to be monumental)

On Apple Classical, I see the reason for a separate app, but I think it would be a better user experience to have a toggle in Apple Music to switch the search, browse and suggested playlists to work for classical music listeners. I guess a separate app is more easily marketable, specially since it’s becoming clear it’ll be a separate subscription.
 
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chucker23n1 said:
Hmm.

Good Apple Stuff from 2022
AirPods Pro 2
Apple Watch Ultra
iPhone 14's emergency satellite connection
iPhone 14 Pro's Dynamic Island
M2 MacBook Air
Mac Studio

Meh
A16
iPad line-up
iPhone 14 non-Pro
Mac mini is once again long in the tooth
macOS Ventura's System Settings
Stage Manager
Studio Display
watchOS 9

Failures
Apple Music Classical
Apple Pay Later
Mac Pro

Overall, not their strongest year, but I wouldn't call it a failure.
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No “AirPods Max 2” either? That’s not a failure as such but at least disappointing. I was ready to buy but now the moment has passed and I bought a (used) new pair of wired open back headphones - Audioquest Nighthawk.
 
4LSD said:
No “AirPods Max 2” either? That’s not a failure as such but at least disappointing.
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A bit disappointing, yeah.

I was only listing things off the top of my head. There's probably more in each column. Also, I don't expect AirPods Max to get frequent updates.
 
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