Music makes the world go round

www.musicsearch.com

Music Search, as you so intelligently guessed, is devoted to music. The site is now three years old and with 20,000 listings, it looks pretty comprehensive. There are plenty of ways to get just what you want. You can search by author, singer, name of song, genre, or simply by the kind of file like MIDI, MPEG, MOD, AU, or WAV. Besides the music itself, you also get music reviews to help you along. Then, if you want complete info about a particlar instrument, you just have to enter its name and hey presto! you get all that you could possibly want. While all the big music companies have their own Web sites, Music Search is independent so you can be sure of a certain catholicity in the listings. As the site proclaims, "Music Search is r by a musician, not just a computer engineer". This only goes to prove that the Internet has taken computers out of mere computing.

www.music.com

A good spread of music and music lore can be had at the site simply called Music. it certainly must have been one of the early birds on the net to have obtained this much sought-after URL. And we don't grudge them the name because from rock to new age, classical to country, jazz to rap, pop to alternative, emerging unsigned artists and more, Music.com promises you more fun from the music you love. The site aims to create an interactive online community for music enthusiasts. These include not only those who enjoy music, but also those who perform, compose, and produce music. We love free-stuff on the Net so we often come here for free downloads. Yes, you can also buy stuff by ordering customised CDs. Besides, you get news of new releases, important dates in music history and birthdays of your favourite musicians.

www.mp3.com

Now this is the site you just must go to for both starting and continuing your foray into MP3 music. MPEG3 (the latest compression standard developed by the Moving Picture Experts Group) is at present the most-favoured format for playing CD quality songs through the computer. You can start by downloading the MP3 player. Then go on to sample some MP3 songs which are available for free. The site offers links to a number of stations where you can listen to and download a wide range of music. Artists can use the site to promote their CDs, concerts and Websites. And if you get totally hung on the format, you can even buy specialised hardware to listen to the music, so you are not tied down before a bulky PC.

www.dhadkan.com/

The Web is strewn with sites focussed on Bollywood music, but most of them are personal Websites. Now Dhadkan is different with its professional approach to dishing out all types of Indian music, whether film music, Indipop, ghazals or classics. Logging in here is a good way of keeping in tune with what is happening on the Indian music scene. There are album reviews, news, artiste interviews, profiles, countdowns to releases, features and contests. Music lovers are also treated to an exhaustive glossary of Hindustani classical music and an Urdu dictionary to help you understand the finer nuances of all those doleful ghazals. And if you want to share your views with others, just get into the discussion and exchange forum.

www.musicurry.com

This site seems to take the phrase 'music is food for the soul' really seriously. Right from its title -- MusicCurry -- to its various sections, it hums with foody names. Thus you have Mirchi Seth, who talks on everything in music; Idli Dosa -- featuring five channels dedicated to all time greats of Tamil Music; Macchi Bazar -- a cartoon series 'dedicated to define hi-decibel noise;' and Ghazals Gravy -- 'a vitamin-fortified section for Ghazal lovers.' There are links to 22 radio channels -- from classical to pop -- which provide you with streaming music while you surf the Net. The site has recently become affiliated to the highly-advertised Indiainfo.com, so you get a link to musicracks.com, enabling you to directly buy music at discounted prises. The site is operated by an organisation with a very enlightened name: Questionable Ventures Pvt Ltd!

www.jandr.com/wbgo.html

For jazz on demand at any time of the day try New York's 24 hour jazz station: WBGO FM 88.3. The station serves not only the NYC metro area, but also Internet listeners worldwide, with the best in jazz, blues and award-winning news. Special programs also highlight Latin jazz and classic soul. WBGO supplements its programming with live broadcasts from clubs and concert venues, and in-depth series that explore the music and beyond. Unlike other Real Audio broadcasts, which take a while to download, the WBGO channel gives you the music almost instantly.

Manuel Fernandes

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