External Resources and Tools
Last Update: 2024-05-13
Table of contents
Music Ownership in Media Reviews
All music that I discuss in this blog I have either purchased as physical CD (the vast majority, actually), or purchased and downloaded from on-line stores. All music acquisitions are through legal purchases. With this, I hope that the artist is getting a share of the purchasing price. I would never even consider gray or black channels such as BitTorrent and the like.
The obvious exception to this are media that I receive for free, for the purpose of getting a review. I’m not soliciting media samples from artists, agencies, or media labels. My capacity for reviewing unsolicited media is extremely limited, see also my separate note.
In general, I’m not a friend of subscription models such as Spotify or IDAGIO. These don’t suit my listening habits & needs, particularly when comparing recordings. However, I still have subscribed to these services. And I do intermittently use them, e.g., when preparing for a concert. It is a possibility for me to listen to a reference recording that I don’t have in my personal library.
Using AI?
Google is constantly revamping / further developing its search engine. I’ll have to deal with AI one way or another. ChatGPT and related AI tools are known as tools for students, pupils, journalists etc. to generate texts and information “out of the blue”, i.e., for people to produce documents, and to pretend it is their own work. However, AI tools are now also proving highly useful for analyzing text for consistency, and to summarize contents, and the like. At this point, I can state the following:
- Under no circumstances would I ever use ChatGPT or similar tools to generate content (posts, pages, or portions thereof).
- I do, however, occasionally use external utilities, such as the spell checker in MS Word, or AI tools (e.g., DeepL Write) to check text for consistency and use of language. In the same vein, I also use software utilities (WordPress plugins) to check my texts for readability (e.g.: paragraph length, use of subtitles) and use of inclusive language.
- For the time being, I see no need to block AI tools from accessing the contents of my blog.
YouTube Videos
I may occasionally refer to YouTube videos as “external references” — assuming that such videos are either legal or would be taken down if challenged for legal concerns. It is entirely possible that there are links to YouTube videos in my blog that have been taken down since my posting. Feedback about such dead links is welcome, of course. I am periodically checking my external links for their validity, but certain dead links may go unnoticed. I will remove dead or inappropriate links when notified.
Music Scores
Wherever possible, I use pocket scores to follow the music I’m listening to. In case I don’t already have a score, and particularly for smaller and older works, I download scores (PDF format) from IMSLP.org, provided downloading is free and legal in Europe (I do support IMSLP with annual donations).
Occasionally, I have added information on printed scores that I used. With this, I merely want to provide information on which score I used. I typically don’t compare different score versions. So, such information cannot mean endorsement, other than stating that the score covered my needs as a listener. Note: I’m not a musicologist.
Note that freely available scores from the IMSLP project are are typically older editions, no longer protected by copyright. They can definitely not serve the needs of a musicologist, or of a serious artist.
Amazon Links
Wherever possible, the “—Find media on amazon.com — (#ad)” and similar / equivalent links point to the media discussed in the blog. There are a few exceptions to this:
- Occasionally, a complete edition becomes available (likely at a better price per CD), while or after I’m discussing individual CDs. Examples: recordings of the Beethoven piano sonatas or string quartets. In these cases, I usually still refer to the individual, partial recording.
- Occasionally, the CD label shown in the linked page looks different. I may have an older release of the same recording. Or, the label may have changed since I purchased the music.
- Conversely, in the case of the “Arthur Rubinstein Complete Album Collection” I’m referring to that collection (which is what I have). Even though individual CDs may also be available for some of the recordings.
- In some cases, a CD is no longer available. Then I select a (supposedly) equivalent recording from the amazon catalog without extra remarks.
- In rare cases, an individual recording may no longer be on the market. If it then becomes available as part of a bigger collection, I mark the link accordingly.
- As the biggest share of the blog visitors reside in North America, the amazon links point to amazon.com, i.e., the U.S. branch.
Note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases through such links.
Concert Reviews
For the vast majority of the concerts that I review, I get a free press ticket (possibly one for my wife, too). This typically is the only compensation. In return for a free concert visit, I spend several days of my time writing and posting a review. With very rare exceptions, I also do not get compensation for travel expenses in connection with concert visits.
Bachtrack
Upon invitation, I started reviewing concerts for Bachtrack.com. I did so between 2014-10 and 2018-09. Bachtrack only arranges for press tickets (no compensation for the time spent writing a review). These reviews were in German, the rights remain with Bachtrack.
I have always written a separate blog review about such concerts, in English. These are not translations of the corresponding reviews for Bachtrack.
Images, Icons, Thumbnails, etc.
- The UPC-A and EAN-13 bar code graphics are created using free barcode generators, such as Barcode Software by TEC-IT.
- There are a few blog posts with animated GIFs. Typically I have done this with collections of moderate quality photos at low resolution. These animated GIFs are created using a free online GIF-building utility. Initially, I used GIFMaker.me (now discontinued), later (as of 2022) EZGIF.com .
- Occasionally, finding a valid UPC-A or EAN-13 bar code fails. This may happen for iTunes / Apple Music, amazon.com or similar downloads. In such cases, I may include QR codes for URLs. Such QR codes are created using an open access QR code generator, such as Barcode Software by TEC-IT.
- The “loupe” / magnifying glass image on the Search pages is based on a design by pngtree.com (free PNG downloads).
- I may occasionally use third party icons. These are either from Google or from free download sites such as iconsdb.com
