Classical Music Library

classical music library

“A breakthrough resource”  ‒ Best Reference Database of 2004, Library Journal 

"Highly recommended" ‒ CHOICE

"Academic libraries that support even small music programs should strongly consider subscribing." ‒ Reference Reviews

“Familiar and exotic labels blend in an impressive and remarkable list... Eminently searchable and browseable—this is the key to a good music service.” ‒ Reader’s Choice Award, Charleston Advisor

Classical Music Library is an award-winning, comprehensive streaming audio collection of classical music. It currently provides streaming access to more than 252,000 tracks, including almost 50,000 recordings from EMI, and is growing monthly as new recordings are added. 

The Most Comprehensive Audio Collection Available

Classical Music Library provides coverage in breadth and depth for classical music, and is relevant to a broad range of studies, including music history, music appreciation, music performance, analysis, and theory:

  • All major genres and time periods from medieval to contemporary, from choral works to symphonies, operas and the avant-garde.
  • More than 25,000 unique classical works that can be browsed by composer and the results sorted by title, date of composition and genre. Unique access points to drive discovery for users.
  • More than 400 distinct instrument categories.
  • More than150 distinct classical genres and sub-genres.
  • Data on more than 10,000 individual composers and 100,000s of artists and ensembles.

The Highest Quality Publishing Partners

We work with a wide variety of organizations to ensure our collection incorporates the best recordings.

View a list of publishing partners.

The Greatest Artists

Here is a sample of the acclaimed performers that feature in our recordings:

  • Artists: Glenn Gould, Placido Domingo, Maria Callas, Itzhak Perlman Thomas Hampson, Natalie Dessay, Sarah Chang, Maria Callas, Julian Bream, Dinu Lipatti, Christa Ludwig, Sviatoslav Richter, Kiri Te Kanawa, Maxim Vengerov, Claudio Abbado, Olga Borodina, Ileana Cotrubas, Hilary Hahn, Thomas Hampson, Radu Lupu, Karita Mattila, Margaret Leng Tan, Mitsuko Uchida, Pinchas Zuckerman, and many more
  • Ensembles: The Eroica Trio, Les Arts Florissants, English Consort, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Taverner Choir, Vienna Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, The Tallis Scholars, King’s Consort, and many more.

Powerful Teaching Resources

Our collections include a playlist functionality to enable educators to create, annotate and share thematic playlists of recordings to support their teaching needs.

Hundreds of Playlists Based around Key Musical Concepts

  • Instruments e.g., "20th Century Piano Classics"
  • Genres e.g., "Concert Overture"
  • Artistic Movements e.g., "The Spanish Renaissance"
  • Composers e.g., "Bach Flute Sonatas"
  • Artists e.g., "Anne Murray"
  • Related themes e.g., "Borrowed Music: The Art of Emulation!" and "Faust and the Diabolical"

Playlists of Music Referenced in Popular Music Textbooks

  • Kamien: Music: An Appreciation
  • Wright: Anthology for Music in Western Civilization
  • Stolba: Development of Western Music
  • Schulenberg: Music of the Baroque
  • Kerman: Listen
  • Hoffer: Music Listening Today
  • Burkhart: Medieval and Renaissance Composition
  • Bonds: History of Music in Western Culture
  • Yudkin: Understanding Music

Key Features of Classical Music Library

  • Advanced Search: Additional options include work/opus #, genre, instrument, time period, artist/ensemble, date of recording, label, and catalog number.
  • CD Quality: Audio streaming up to CD quality (320kbps) at no extra cost.
  • Mobile Access: Stream to your mobile device/smartphone.
  • Liner Notes: Available where possible.
  • Custom Audio Clips: Users can create, and share clips from all audio tracks.
  • Embeddable Audio: All audio can be embedded into third party websites.
  • Related Reference: Includes composer biographies and links to related information in Grove and Wilson (subscribers only).
  • Custom Playlists: Create, annotate, and share playlists. Access a library of more than 200,000 playlists including playlists themed around the recordings used in the most popular music textbooks.
  • Permanent URLs: All albums, tracks, clips, and playlists can be cited on permanent URLs.
  • Cross-search: Audio can be cross-searched alongside our related video, scores, and reference material to provide a powerful tool for music research.