In the past few months, I've been building up my CD collection by
downloading live concerts from various sites. Not by using any of the
peer-to-peer networks, but by going directly to the source.
Many radio stations now webcast their broadcasts, some even leave them
archived, either permanently or for a week. Audiophiles will say that
webcasts are not as good as can be, and they're probably right. My ears
are too far gone to tell.
Here are a few of my
favorite sources, with comments on what you're likely to find where.
For recording, I use Total Recorder from High Criteria. At $11.95, you'll be ahead with the first CD
you don't have to buy. Mac users tell me that Audio Hijack
from Rogue Amoeba is good.
My main interest is live concerts of classical music, but most of
these sites provide links to a variety of genres.
- Public Radio
Fan A listing of many public radio shows, some local and some
syndicated. Most are streaming audio, so you have to be online at the
time of the broadcast to get it. However, some shows are webcast at
different times by different stations, so you have a choice.
- Allegro Another
listing of public radio shows, specializing in music. Easy to navigate.
- PRI Comprehensive listing of programs
from Public Radio International. You'll have to do some additional work
to find out what stations webcast their shows.
- BBC Radio.
All types of music, many shows are archived for at least a week. Launch
the BBC radio player for an index or to browse by genre. Best to check
this weekly, because many specials are only archived for that long.
- Creators
at Carnegie Live concerts from Carnegie Hall. Archived.
- NPR Try typing a name
or a title in the search box. You might only find a brief story from
Morning Edition,
or you might find an entire concert archived from some other show.
- Internet Archive Many, many live recordings, everything
from Presidential speeches to Grateful Dead concerts. You may need to
download additional (free) software to play the archive format.
- Operacast. Lots of links to broadcasts worldwide, with
schedules, programmes, reviews, and technical tips.
- Radio
Beethoven 96.5 FM, Santiago, Chile. An excellent classical station.
Of course the page is in Spanish, but as you might guess "programacion"
is the program listing, and the button with the Quicktime/Windows
logos begins audio streaming.
- KHUF in
Houston. "Local & national news + classical music nonstop"
- KUSC
Classical music from the University of Southern California.
- WMNR in Monroe
Connecticut.
Happy listening! If you have another favorite source for streaming or
archived audio (any genre), e-mail me at arturner@well.sf.ca.us
and I'll add it to the list.
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