1. 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 Ends Presented by Darwin F. Scott Creative Arts Librarian, Brandeis University for the Electronic Reference Services Subcommittee Music Library Association Annual Meeting, Vancouver February 17, 2005 E-mail: dscott@brandeis.edu

2. 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 to http://blc.naxosmusiclibrary.com/default.asp throws you into the log-in page.

3. Naxos Music Library — Log-In Page

4. 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.

5. 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 bigger and more obvious to the listener!

6. NAXOS Music Library — Homepage

7. Naxos Music Library — Right Side Bar

8. NAXOS Music Library — What’s New — Screen 1 Entries on this what’s new page are not dated.

9. 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.

10. 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 options often confusing, limiting, and frustrating. A few examples follow.

11. 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.

12. 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.

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

14. 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

15. 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 …

16. 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.

17. 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.

18. NAXOS Music Library — Fidelio Opera Synopsis Opera lite—this is the entire text. Entire opera summarized in 8 lines Musical highlights History and Style in 4 lines

19. NAXOS Music Library — Beethoven Fidelio Recording

20. 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.

21. NAXOS Music Library — Opera Libretti — Verdi Selected Oops, Don Carlo is here!

22. NAXOS Music Library — Fidelio Libretto — English Text

23. 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.

24. Labels Now Available in the Naxos Music Library World Music (included in subscription price) Celestial Harmonies ARC First Editions Analekta CBC

25. 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.

26. NAXOS Music Library — World/Folk List THESE ARE ARC CDs THESE ARE CELESTIAL HARMONIES CDs THESE ARE NAXOS WORLD CDs Which label is which?

27. NAXOS Music Library — Selection from World/Folk Genre with Now Playing and About This Recording Windows Aargh, you can only scroll down to see the entire texts of these windows —no resizing option. The only indication that this is a Naxos World Recording

28. NAXOS Music Library — Celestial Harmonies Selection Celestial Harmonies No ABOUT THIS RECORDING— we need notes, texts, and translations.

29. 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.