primephonic.com
The classical world is quite distinct from other genres of music. There is very little crossover between it and other forms of popular music. For example, you will rarely hear Beethoven's 5th Symphony performed on pop radio stations. And the same goes for Justin Bieber - he would not be a good fit for a classical concert hall.
These two worlds seldom coincide. And if they do, it is only if an orchestra puts on a special classical arrangement of popular songs. Even so, these performances don't tend to draw out fans of the top 40 radio so much as they do music theory students and instructors, fellow musicians, and curious composers.
Which is why it makes sense for there to be a streaming service specifically dedicated to classical music. Most audio streaming services available are not ideal when it comes to discovering new classical pieces or finding a comprehensive library of the best performances of the works that we know and love. They are just not designed to accommodate the unique archiving structures that classical music demands.
Hundreds of different recorded performances of particular songs are available, many of which are very beloved movements from sonatas and symphonies. For example, the Chopin nocturne has been interpreted by numerous pianists in many different ways, each one offering its own unique nuances.
Every classical musician has their own interpretation of the music, the dynamics, and the expressions in a piece. This is why true fans and students of classical music need a streaming service that makes perusing all these versions as easy as possible.
If you love classical music, you might have had difficulty locating a specific recording of a piece depending on the type of streaming service you use. For example, Spotify focuses more on popular music, while Tidal and Apple Music are designed for archiving and don't feature as many specific performers or recordings.
However, classical music fans rejoice. Today I will introduce you to a streaming service made for and by people who love and understand classical music. Meet Primephonic.
History
In 2014, Primephonic was developed as a way to easily find and strictly download classical music files on popular music streaming apps. There were, at first anyway, no streaming capabilities built into the service.
In May of 2016, Sony Classical acquired Primephonic. In June of the same year (2017), Primephonic reintroduced itself as a full streaming platform in both the United States and the United Kingdom. Today, as of the time of this review, Primephonic offers streaming and downloading of over 10,000 titles, with a streaming quality of 16-bit FLAC (standard CD quality). 10,000 unique titles amounts to about 3 million individual tracks when you take into account the multiple recording factor.
A team of six musicologists conceived the idea for the site and subsequent apps. And a legion of classical music students has systematically archived, categorized, and cataloged all of the songs that are available on the service.
The main objective of Primephonic, according to the Wikipedia article, is to master the richness of metadata for classical music pieces. This is not the case on generalist sites like Spotify or Deezer, where searching for classical music is tenuous or even incoherent. On Primephonic, all pages dedicated to works or artists provide complete information and suggestions based on similarities between metadata.
Finally, there is a credible authority on streaming and downloading classical music the right way - Primephonic.
Design
Each site, the app, and the web player are all expertly designed. All formats of Primephonic are, in my opinion, very easy on the eye. It has an elegant (dare I say classy?) aesthetic. Opting for a minimalistic look, Primephonic can easily compete with the big players in the music streaming space - in fact, some might even prefer the sleek look and feel of Primephonic over the somewhat comparatively clunky designs of Apple Music or Spotify.
The search function of the Primephonic app is marvelous, as it is specifically designed for archiving classical music. Additionally, there is an app which allows users to easily and conveniently find an exact piece, composer, conductor, performer, or performance without having to go through potential hours of cross-referencing and research.
The Discover section of the app is perfect, Primephonic learns what you will like based on your listening habits and accordingly, shines a light on particular classical works, composers and performances that you will be sure to enjoy. This is easily one of the most user-friendly music streaming services available on the market.
Content
As I mentioned before, Primephonic offers nearly three million individual pieces. And as the classical music staff of Primephonic's app continuously adds new titles and performances to the database, the catalog of classical music at Primephonic is perpetually growing, evolving, and becoming more efficient.
Primephonic provides the best in cutting edge audio quality, and this makes it a great source of classical music. The fact that Primephonic offers the best in quality means that you will never have to go through cluttered and messy libraries of subpar classical music recordings on Spotify or Apple Music. This is because you can have an expertly curated collection of compositions at your fingertips any time of the day or night with the Primephonic app.
Desktop and Mobile Experience
Once again, Primephonic's design is optimized, visually appealing, and super user-friendly. The web and app versions of this streaming service is top of the line, simple, and effective at providing a convenient catalog of the highest-quality classical recordings in the world.
Pricing and Plans
Primephonic offers two subscription tiers: Primephonic Premium and Primephonic Platinum. Pricing for these subscriptions is similar to what Tidal offers.
Premium music streaming service Primephonic is offering a $9.99 per month subscription (or a discounted price when prepaid for twelve months at $99.99) that provides full access to its library of 2.8 million recordings (and counting), smart search, new releases weekly, exclusive classical music podcasts and interviews with top artists, and daily recommendations hand-selected by classical music experts.
However, if you just want the best quality streaming experience with no strings attached, Platinum is definitely the way to go.
Then there are the two options: Premium and Platinum. The Premium option offers 320kbps MP3 files for streaming, while Platinum offers 24-bit lossless FLAC quality streaming. There are also a few other differences between these options which include sound quality. If you're somebody who really cares about sound quality and likes classical music, the Premium option will cost $19.99 per month (or $149.99 for a full year commitment), but if you just want the best streaming experience with no strings attached, the Platinum option is definitely the way to go.
Suggestions that I Have for Primephonic
given that this service set out to do something very well and has achieved near-perfect execution, the only complaint I could level against it would be its price point for the Platinum plan.
I find $20 per month to be a bit more than I would want to spend on a streaming service that only provides one genre of music. I'm also indifferent about the addition of video streaming. However, if you were able to watch exclusive recordings of world-class musicians performing classical pieces, that would be an added bonus.
Conclusion
Overall, Primephonic is one of the best audio streaming services on the market. The fact that it is hand-crafted by classical music students and professionals makes it a truly unique service - one that is extremely effective and well worth looking into. If you love classical music, this is the streaming service you deserve.
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