Apple’s Classical App Explained: What’s Fun - and What Falls Flat

[@nth460]

CNET is becoming one of my favorite sources of tech news. Bridget was fantastic and the video was well composed as always

[@witness1013]

She's terrible

[@nth460]

pun intended

[@nyasham1]

Same here. I unsubbed from CNET years ago, but came back recently after Bridget started popping up on my recommendations

[@McLort]

Agreed, Bridget is fantastic host, great positive/comedic energy!

[@mutantbaby1672]

Bridget Carey is the Nicolas Cage of Cnet. I can't believe I'm the first one to say this.

[@putarmstrong9736]

It’s a good start, I just hope Apple continues to develop it. It definitely needs to run on the Mac and natively on the iPad. I’ve listen to the introduction to classical music, and the Baroque review. It brings back things I’ve long forgotten and/or teaches me new things. There is an amazing amount of music, we just need to be able to find what we are looking for. Keep improving it, Apple!

[@mr88cet]

This is the most useful description of the new app so far! Thanks. In most pop-oriented music platforms, if you say, “I want to hear Mozart’s Gran Partita in Bb,” they basically reply, “huh?” or point out a bunch of “close matches” than any Classical nerd can obviously see aren’t very close! The Classical app instead responds with “whose interpretation do you want to hear?” and “here’s the history of this composition and this recording.” That makes a huge difference in the experience! Roger Norrington and Herbert von Karajan interpreting Beethoven’s Ninth are very-different musical adventures! I was not previously subscribed to Apple Music, but Apple Classical was enough to tip me over the edge.

[@djat7933]

Honestly, KZbin is my go-to for classical music. I like seeing the musicians create the music I'm listening to. I personally feel like classical music deserves my full attention; it's not something I'll just have in the background just to have music. That's just not being appreciative of the magnificent melodies that bless my ears.

[@Azian2DaMax]

As a classical enthusiast, I really appreciate a mainstream tech channel taking the time to give a real, knowledgeable explanation on purpose of this app. I've seen many videos by tech KZbinrs about this app and they really have no idea what they're talking about, which I understand, but they could at least do some research on how cataloguing classical music is different from all other genres!

[@mikecoshan3752]

Always such a real pleasure to watch Bridget presenting CNET, she is such a brilliant presenter & her humour is second to none.

[@robertmorin5215]

Unfortunately, no album booklet so far. Were available in Primephonic

[@almuel]

Being a huge apple fanboy and also being a composer. I'm so happy to see my professional world and my favorite past-time (because I spend a lot of time consuming Apple news and meddling with their products) come together. I really love how Bridget divided the sections of the video in the sonata form. So glad to see my favorite tech channels talking about classical music. So far this was the best.

[@benjaminniemczyk]

Bridget is the best. Over the years she has produced some of CNET's finest and most memorable videos. This one is among them. Cleverly filled with what she calls 'cringe worthy' puns, she claims to be an outsider but actually presents the new app with authority. No small feat given the more than one hundred years' worth of classical recordings available. I look forward to checking out the app.

[@phddudlexxx]

Bridget did this app beautifully.

[@TPainWhatitDo]

A separate app for classical music makes a lot of sense, because all existing music apps, at least since iTunes, organize music by Artist>Album>Song

[@selewachm]

Why not on MacOS? Doesn't make sense. Do I need to plug my phone into my stereo rig? Bluetooth doesn't have t quality (bandwidth) required for excellent sound.

[@jrock2720]

Pro Tip - you can Airplay audio from your iOS device to your Mac and the bandwidth for Airplay is wide enough to handle a lossless audio stream (as opposed to Bluetooth, which is a much narrower pipe). Bit of a workaround for certain, but I can use my fancy headphones that plug directly into my Mac for listening to Apple Classical.

[@NickDorogavtsev]

One of the best things with CDs and BluRays is getting a booklet with beautiful background stories about the music and the musicians. And we are still missing it with this app

[@dentheplodder]

Nice nod to Aaron Copland towards the end. 😉👍

[@1972adamw]

Having just poked around the app a bit. I think it's quite an improvement from previous presentations of classical music. Apple music interface is familiar, but this feels like wandering into a record store and able to peruse collections. The curated playlists are nice (personal preference Classical Sleep) Can't wait for Apple Music MacOS integration

[@garynewman2276]

Nice review. Another thing needed: playing back a play list needs ‘shuffle by work’ as well as by track. A complete work often has multiple tracks.

[@housepianist]

I’ve been an Apple Music subscriber for some years now and I listen to classical music quite often. I did download the new Classical app and I really like it. I still prefer how I have it arranged on Apple Music but I’m learning to navigate the new app and so far, I approve. The only thing Apple needs to do is to format it for iPad. I stream/listen to all my music on my iPad (and MacBook) and it would be nice to have a full screen version of it. And it’s all available in a lossless format too!

[@VSV659]

Find this review spot on and humorous. On the serious side, I find the spatial audio in Classical to be a definite improvement over listening to the same piece in Apple Music - example is Rachmaninoff’s second symphony’s prelude in c-sharp minor. Reading the macabre mindset of the composer when he composed this piece at the age of 19, and listening to it in spatial audio gives me the goosebumps.

[@tylernichols9650]

So far, I really like Apple Music Classical. A a collegiate music major, this has been huge for me and really helpful for discovering new music. Only two notes from me, that I believe are linked: (1) When I'm listening to something in AM Classical, it doesn't let me control the song from the lock screen and makes me unlock my phone and open the app; (2) I also can't control playback from my Apple Watch as it doesn't show in Now Playing. While this may not be everyone's experience, it has been frustrating for me. Also, I would really LOVE to see a Mac version for the exact reason Bridget said. Overall, really like the app, room for improvement, but still so much better than the pre-existing options.

[@TheFurlock]

Asia needs a presence on classical

[@JoshuaVarghese]

The lack of shuffle as an option, at least in playlists, is absolutely absurd. Playlists NEED shuffle. I might like the style of a playlist but there is likely not a story or any flow between pieces. So if I return to the playlist that I like, I won’t want to keep hearing the same 10 songs over and over when there is so much more in there to hear

[@louismartini6983]

Absolutely AWESOME Production Bridget!!!!! Well Done! Your training at the piano definitely served you well for this video. This opus was outstanding.

[@arthurerickson5444]

:D LOVE how Bridget put all the music vocabulary into Apple's news!!!

[@remic2902]

I loved your video. Thank you. For me, it’s a great app, good idea, but on iPad, the app is shown on a small screen (iPhone format). So sad and I can’t understand why.

[@eddieg9032]

Search function does favorably compare to Idagio and really appreciate the large selection of hi-res. However there is little to no mention of AMC’s lack of album booklets. If Tidal & Idagio can do it, so can Apple.

[@ethanmenzel]

Are you saying search is better than adagio or on the same level or worse

[@eddieg9032]

@@ethanmenzel I think that apple’s was pretty well conceived for a first go. Still not the same level of granularity as Idagio, such as filtering from a list of instruments, etc.

[@Terry.W]

I don't have any Apple products ...but I could watch Bridget all day..She can Handel anything..

[@Billlakeview]

I love it so far….Listen Now is a great starting place when you don’t know what you want to listen to…Spatial suggestions…better search…knowing that a track is likely a movement of a complete piece…complete titles that aren’t truncated by the screen size…other streaming services just don’t measure up to classical requirements….even Roon and Tidal have their problems.

[@benfarrow9498]

Great to see more support for classical music lovers. How does this compare to Idagio?

[@benpayne677]

Stumbling on college marching band performances was a surprise. There seems to be more content than the music app had at all, not just the formatting and search engine. “Non-classical” music could benefit from the information also for covers of songs. It seemed like the truncation issue was primarily due to the music app being in portrait mode and would be easily solved be flipping to a landscape mode for the full title.

[@isai76]

I don't have anything Apple that I could access this Classical app. But Bridget Carey is so good I watched the whole video. I even gave it a like. Please have Ms. Carey review everything.

[@cesarbattistini]

If you like classical, they have the biggest highest quality catalog in the world.

[@isai76]

@@cesarbattistini That's great and all but I don't have an iPhone or an iPad.

[@kamaluchika6656]

@ 6:50 made me smile hahahaha creative expression

[@mauriciouieda]

I'm glad it works on my dear iphone 7. Loving it so far

[@cesarbattistini]

Remembering this is the first version. It will improve a lot.

[@wishingonthemoon1]

I’m so grateful they came out with this app! I hope they Continue to develop it. Being able to search by conductor is nice.

[@sudipchatterjee]

The production value of this video is crazy good! Excellent work, team CNET! I enjoyed this video as much as I enjoyed the launch of the Classical app! Kudos! 🙌

[@illusionsnc]

Bridget is bringing me Molly Wood vibes and I’m honestly here for it. Humor and also nerdery and specificity is the lane where CNET should live on the internet. Great job!

[@danopticon]

Are you sure about the point raised at 5:48? The minute Apple Classical went live, I searched for and then played Leonard Bernstein conducting/narrating Camille Saint-Saëns’ _The Carnival of the Animals_ (a 1960s recording and beloved childhood favorite) through my HomePod speakers, and it worked fine. Granted, I first brought it up on my iPhone and then directed it to my HomePods, rather than asking Siri through my HomePods to retrieve it. In any case, I hope your audience understands Apple Classical recordings *can absolutely* be played through one or more HomePods!!!

[@wayneamelung]

Bridget, you are a character. Keep it up. Bring on more! I sometimes borrow a few of your bubbly expressions in my own videos on my KZbin channel. Mixing some hi-tech with some fun! 💻🕺🎉👏

[@EmDzei]

This woman is just such a captivating person. I hope CNET keeps him around for a long time and his paycheck is remembered. The next videos of this woman are eagerly awaited! Oh yeah, the pacing stick is fine with you.

[@davidjacobs6244]

Him??

[@fbcpraise]

@@davidjacobs6244 trying to mess with our reality. Ignore.

[@EmDzei]

@@davidjacobs6244 Oops. Google translator. We do not he or she our language.

[@HowardS185]

Also, I understand that Apple Music classical will work with your current library of classical music. Does it require you to pay a monthly service charge for streaming?

[@d.d.jacksonpoetryproject]

“If you have the speakers to enjoy (Spacial Audio)”? You might want to remind people that Apple Classical’s Spacial Audio tracks also work extremely well with many headphones especially things like the AirPod Pro.

[@ethanmenzel]

I notice a difference in sound quality between apple music and apple music classical, and it’s not because I had spacial audio turned off and I didn’t notice

[@HowardS185]

So every demo I see of the classical music app is on an iPhone. I have an iPhone 7 which is way too small to do much on; so my question is the following: "is the there a classical music app for macOS and the iOS?".

[@amorylazlo9579]

As an avid music lover, I am always on the lookout for the latest and greatest music streaming apps. So when I stumbled upon the CNET KZbin video review of Apple Classic Music app, I was instantly intrigued. And let me tell you, the clear presentation and infectious enthusiasm of the presenter truly won me over! It was evident that the reviewer was genuinely passionate about the app and the experience it offers to music lovers. Her high energy and positive vibes made me want to dive right into Apple Music, (especially classic) and explore all that it has to offer!

[@All_Things_Band]

She is so cool. Whoever let her get away with all these puns and tone needs to keep doing it!

[@royclarke4734]

Who is this person? This video is great. I have to figure out how to get more of her videos without getting a bunch of other content that does not interest me. I have poked around the Apple Classical Music app since it came it out. After total frustration with classical music on various music services over the years, my initial impression of the new Apple classical music app is pleasant surprise.

[@adstix]

Fascinating! Anything similar to this on Android?

[@fedecx]

Apple says it's gonna come to Android soon

[@StevenLenos]

I’m in love. With Apple Classical Music and this woman.

[@hhz246]

So nicely said about classical music. I’ve downloaded the new app but haven’t tried it into details. Thanks for your review, it’s helpful👍

[@PatrickWattsFamily]

Legit impressed with Bridget’s baton technique… this isn’t your first time delivering a tactus, is it?

[@Clivesharrison]

Great presentation Bridget, as ever. It’s a great app for finding music and performances I had lost touch with over the years, the collection is immense and search works brilliantly. That said, actually playing the music is a bit clunky, like restarting if I take a phone call, changing my mind and backing out to listen to one of the other performances that came up in my search just doesn’t work, and sometimes it just hangs. Sound quality is great on my AirPods Pro 2. Thanks for the tip for downloading through the Music app. Good enough already for me to subscribe for the first time and I’m sure the bugs will be sorted in no time.

[@BillMerchantVideo]

Another Classical lacuna is Car Play. You can easily select Music, but Classical isn’t available. The work-around of making a Classical playlist that can be played in Music is cumbersome. I realize that Classical has just been released so I have high hopes for the future.

[@Jad4683]

Bridget you are awesome

[@ethanmenzel]

I love the app. I was is was using concertino before, which is very similar. Their are a few bugs in Apple Music Classical where the music will randomly pause, restart the music from the beginning, or clears what I was listening to, making me have to refind the music. Very frustrating, but with Apple music, and this is easily fixable. I am. Pleasantly waiting for apple music classical to come to mac as I am a massive fan of classical music and am discovering new music I never thought I’d listen to or find. I also wish places like playlists had a shuffle button and the app had liking entire pieces or albums, but it doesn’t. Everything I have issues with or feature suggestions can be easily avoided by going to the main apple music app to do it.

[@rafael.a.aponte]

Love the humor in this video. See? Not all classical music lovers are overly serious and humorless!

[@ethanmenzel]

I can kind of see apple combining the two apps in the future and having an advanced search for classical music and having the classical music info when you click on the lyrics for a classical music piece

[@scummymummy2548]

RIP TO JAMES KIM. you still live in many of us. Oregon may have taken you, but you will always live on.

[@DjdMenis]

I'm enjoying the new App. Only issue so far is that their is a 10 second delay before the music starts to play.

[@cesarbattistini]

The story of classical is worth it alone. Really good starter.

[@euphony93]

I appreciate Apple creating this app! Also it would be interested to see how this sort of approach could be applied to folk music from around the world and samples and covers in pop music. Let’s get the history and layers behind the music. How many times has this one song actually been recorded?

[@kmannewyork]

I love it Hopefully in the next update we will have a integrated classical Siri

[@Daniel_Ilyich]

This was really well produced and presented. Bridget is great. Regarding the app...it's a nice search engine at this point. Finding works, recordings, etc. is more convenient on the new app. However, looking through your personal library is a pain and I'm forced to go back to the main app.

[@mypradasatthecleanerss]

The playlist ‘Busted essentials’ showed up in my Apple Classical library 🤷‍♂️

[@tcu1099]

Thanks CNET and Bridget for helping me learn more about the app. This is a really great video! My one note, other than what was mentioned, was that shuffle wasn't enabled when I opened a playlist.

[@ethanmenzel]

Shuffle is off because playlists are not a go to for classical music listeners, but I agree. bring what you can from apple music to apple music classical if relevant. Don’t bring shuffle to albums, but definitely playlists

[@MagnusElpron]

Wished they just integrated that in the classical category of the Music app

[@noahknows25]

You make some of the best tech news videos out there. I enjoyed every bit of this video and the script and host are amazing. Please never stop!

[@Soap-sk5mc]

The searching and browsing (and finding new stuff) is great. I add a lot of albums to my collection - so many I lost track (!). So I turned them into playlists and folders in AM. Cumbersome workaround. If only we could put albums into folders in our collections. One folder for my Saturday morning chill favs, one album for Beethoven, one album for my music video project, (whatever) etc. Then it would be perfect and we would need just the one app. Oh and downloads of course.

[@paddyknits]

Enjoyed your cheeky music puns! Thanks for reviewing and yes I agreed with most of your comments especially about lack of integration with Siri. I do like the classical music app though as it is a step forward especially for us professional musicians and teachers !

[@KC-bi9jw]

I like this comeback CNET is making.

[@lrodriguez34]

What a fantastic video! You were awesome! Enjoyed the content and all the puns!

[@Maximillieeee]

I had no intentions of downloading this app until this video. Brava 👏

[@montefullmer1120]

Need this for us Android users. We're not Wrapple fans..

[@linusimbayi7918]

What is the name of the piece that opens at 3:39?

[@mohammedabdullah4618]

I want to see more of Bridget!

[@JoshuaEssary]

Android user and non-Apple music subscriber. This is a service I've been looking for. All of the problems they are trying to solve are real! I would pay for a stand alone subscription for Classical on an Android app.

[@fedecx]

Apple says it's gonna come to Android soon

[@brightmanfan]

Yes, the official Apple press release under "Availability" says "Apple Music Classical" for Android is coming soon"

[@ethanmenzel]

iOS 17 might have some apple music stuff up it’s sleeve

[@saisibi6708]

Bridget is doing a great job as a host. Don't know whether she writes the script as well or does the research herself?

[@2104T34]

To me the classical app is the first worthwhile addition since the introduction of the Apple Watch There is a lot that could be done with it to make more relevant to Apple users I hope they move some of these designers that come up with bigger batteries and better cameras on this project I think podcasts could be great addition I still miss all those classical radio stations that we used to have or even tv shows back in the days dedicated to classical music

[@yoniman88]

I wish they would add sheet music so we could follow the notes.

[@JenniferNg0529]

Bridgette is always amazing! I love the baton and the music puns! This video brought a smile to my face

[@gameon3602]

Bridget could easily pass as a Hollywood celeb, love her ❤❤❤❤❤

[@mangoldm]

Very glad that classical is getting the attention it deserves but I think we can all see the day when the Classical app is discontinued and its functionality is rolled into the Music app as it should have been from the beginning.

[@Yestopeace365]

A comical and informative presentation 👏

[@cassio-fm]

Ahaha very good and funny. Agree with everything. I’ll add the podcast/lesson is really good but should have a proper rewind button (like podcast!) since they are so long

[@soniaalvarado5372]

Thank you! I enjoyed the puns and being introduced to this app! Just downloaded.

[@jsjxyz]

Looking for Radio and Podcast features in this Classical apps.

[@phddudlexxx]

Bridget, that was exciting, all the classical jokes. Job well done. I watched this on the Apple TV and came to my phone to simply comment how great this was…

[@thinukawijerathne]

This is a great idea from Apple. We love classics

[@REALTORSAMMY]

Hi Bridget I am glad to know we enjoy every good CLASSICAL TOGETHER. GRAZIE MILLIE BRIDGE TE(SUN) ELLE~

[@os2171]

I liked. I thought I would be fragmentation. It seems to be the classical solution for classical music… to be a class apart.

[@zhangmxin]

What amazing app, Apple make difference again! I believe that classical music should listen in the right moment and paying attention, not just listen randomly. Thank you, Apple ❤

[@garybonas5366]

As a user of this app, there are 2 very big problems: first, I am unable to add any albums to my Apple Music Classical library from within the app; second, thy are NOT streaming at the advertised quality level - it is normal lossless and not the promised high-res lossless (my external DAC tells me the kind of streaming quality that I am receiving). Disappointed the Apple would release an app that’s not really ready for prime time.

[@jkade]

I see Bridget, I click. bravo 👏

[@clevelog]

Great review. Thank you.

[@TheBurdened]

Loved the video. Thanks.

[@juanfragueiroaramburu]

The bought Primephonic’s data base but didn’t keep its radio feature which was by far one of the best characteristics of the platform.

[@PerpetualPreponderer]

KZbin & KZbin Music is WAAAY better for classical, and honestly you won't need more than that. If you're a pro listener you already know what to search for, and if you're a beginner or a casual listener you can search for playlists & start from there. In both cases, the excellent recommendation algos have got you covered therefrom.

[@davedevries5866]

I am really enjoying this app.👍👍

[@jonathanleach3914]

I’m very pleased with the app. The classical music experience on Apple Music is poor and woeful on Spotify. I like the interface and and also the quality of reproduction on decent headphones. More recent recordings generally have better quality- not a surprise really. I’m assuming it will come to iPad and Mac in time, which will be nice. Thanks for your film. V good.

[@simonlloyd100]

No liner note PDF'S 😢

[@eimbier]

Thanks Bridget, for the punny review. The Classical app seems to share the same difficulty in finding things, just like in mail apps and the Mac Finder, where tons of mail, articles, and files archived and categorized. Truncated descriptions or not having a large enough view of the text when searching for that elusive thing you are looking for is a problem.

[@Igor_Itkin]

Audiophiles will use a dedicated DAP, wired headphones and if available, recordings in DSD.