Search & filter Spotify for classical music

classical music I switched over from Naxos Music Library to Spotify for some time ago and since then tried to get better at finding classical music. I used to use Naxos Music Library, which is a good service, however, it is limited to Naxos productions. There are lots of talented artists that use other labels then Naxos.

I gave Spotify another chance after giving up on several tries. I was blown away by how much classical music has been added for the last 12-18 month.

Here are some useful tips and tricks for searching and filtering. Click on the titles you find interesting and read on.

Search phrase tips

Type the typical words in English. For example; Symphonie, Concerti, Partiture etc. Using the English words or spelling will work as well. I found it quicker and as accurate to leave some words out. For example: Albinoni oboe 2 will give you Albinoni: Oboe Concerti, Vol 2.

Search vs. filter

The shortcut key for searching for music:
Mac, CMD+ALT+F
Windows, CMD+ALT+F.
Once you have your search done, you  want to filter out the irrelevant.

Mac, CMD+F
Windows, CMD+F.
Here is an example:
Search for: Rossini Overtures, this will return a long list.
Filter the list with: siviglia.
Now you get the right overture albums. Note the trick of the Italian filter name. If you know the spelling it will give you the exact track!

Searching for labels

The shortcut key to filter your search for specific labels is to add the Labels keyword.
For example: label:naxos year:2012
Adding year will limit the list. Good way of looking for the latest releases. Some of the labels with classical content are: EMI, Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Naxos, Harmonia Mundi, CPO, Mode, virgin classical

Searching for Year/Artist/Album

Two relatively good keywords for searching are Year and Album.

For example:  "diva divo" artist:didonato year:2011
Note that it is better to have the name of the album first. You can add more search details and combine with the above search hints.

Searching for artists

The shortcut key to filter your search for specific artists  is to add theArtist  keyword. Works just fine without it but there is a benefit!

For example: artist:"Angela Gheorghiu"
You’ll get almost the same result if you don’t use the artist keyword. However, using it will give a list of full albums first. Without it you’ll get compilation alums as well.

Combination hints

Here are some good examples in combining the above keys.
For example: label:Naxos year:1990-1995  mozart track:sonata 2
This narrows down the search to only albums and tracks with sonata no.2 included. Also, If you want to really listen to different recordings from naxos for the same sonata, this is excellent search.
For example: label:Naxos year:1990-1995 track:sonata 2 mozart OR beethoven
Here we have extended the search to include Beethoven as well as Mozart. Still the same label and years and sonata 2. You can add as many OR you want.
The list above is just a couple of hints to get you started. Here is the official advanced search page from Spotify. Make sure to have a look at that as well.

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One Response to Search & filter Spotify for classical music

  1. Nick D'Angiolillo October 17, 2012 at 20:45 #

    Hi Shahram,

    Just as a point of clarification – NML includes over 600+ labels (not just the Naxos titles!). Perhaps you had a Naxos.com subscription, which is most definitely limited in scope.

    In any event, we’re just happy you’re enjoying music and give us a shout if you need anything!

    Nick
    Licensing Representative
    Naxos of America, Inc.
    MusicLibrary@NaxosUSA.com

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