Help


 General Enquiries  
 Account Enquiries
 Technical Enquiries


 General Enquiries

What is Classicsonline?

Classicsonline is a dedicated classical music download service, which also offers other genres of quality music, jazz, nostalgia, world and contemporary instrumental.

It is the aim of Classicsonline to offer the widest possible range of classical music so that, eventually, every work of classical music ever recorded will be available from the site.

Over time, we expect to make the catalogues of all important independent classical music labels available. These are at the forefront of repertoire development today.

The service will be launched with the catalogues of BIS, Celestial Harmonies, Chandos, Collegium, Coro,  Haenssler, Hungaroton, Marco Polo, Naxos, Profil, Swedish Society, Vanguard, Wergo and others. We expect many other labels to join in the near future. back


How do I get in touch with Customer Service?

Click here to send an email to our Customer Service. back


 Account Enquiries

Do I need to register before purchasing downloads at Classicsonline? How do I register?

Yes, you need to register before you can purchase downloads. You need to do this because some of the music on the site is not available for download in certain countries. Only after you register can we determine if the music you wish to purchase is available in your country.

To register, click on the “register now” link on the header. This will take you to the registration page. Enter the required information and click on the Submit button. Registration is free-of-charge.

You will then receive an e-mail confirming your request to register at Classicsonline. Upon receipt of the confirmation e-mail, click on the activation link in the e-mail. You will be taken to the homepage where you can start selecting the music you want to download. back

How do I purchase downloads at Classicsonline?

On the album page, click on the blue button to download an album or the green button to download a track. Each item you click on will be added to your Shopping Cart. To revisit your Shopping Cart, mouse over My Account on the top navigation and click on Shopping Cart in the drop-down list. back

What are the methods of payment accepted by Classicsonline?

Classicsonline accepts Visa and MasterCard credit cards payment through WorldPay and Paypal back

I forgot my password. How will I be able to log in again?

Click on the “log in” link and then on the “Forgot your password” link. Follow the instructions there to retrieve your log in details. If you do not remember the email address with which you registered send an email to customer.service@classicsonline.com. Kindly send us as much detail as you can to help us find your registration details. back



 Technical Enquiries

How do I look for a track or an album that I want to download?

You can look for a track or an album using any of the following: Keyword Search, Advanced Search, Music Browser, Genres / Select Genre, Composers or Artists.
  • Keyword Search

    In the Keyword Search box on the header, type any word related to the track or album that you want to search for (i. e., word/s from the track or album title or name of composer or artist) and click on the Keyword Search button.

  • Advanced Search

    Click on Advanced Search in the header navigation. This will take you to the Advanced Search page.

    If you already know the catalogue number of the album that you are looking for, you can fill in the box provided for the catalogue number and click on the Search button.

    Alternatively, you may also fill in any of the other fields (e.g. composer, artist, performing group, instrument, period, country, genre and label) and click on the Search button.

  • Music Browser

    Click on Music Browser in the header navigation. This will take you to the Music Browser page.

    The first 4 boxes will refine your browser result.  The horizontal box below the first 4 boxes will display the music you are looking for as indicated by your choices in the first 4 boxes. 

    Box 1 (leftmost) gives you the choices in music genre. Your choice will show on top of Box 1. For instance, if you chose Classical Music, “Classical Music” will appear on top of Box 1.

    Box 2 will then display Composer, Featured Instrument, Artist, Performing Group, Period and Label. Just the same as in Box 1, click on your choice and it will appear above that box and a set of sub-categories will appear in the next box.

    So, if you chose Conductor, “Conductor” will be shown above Box 2. If you chose Conductor or any category under Artists or Performing Group, Box 3 will display letters of the alphabet representing the first letter of the last name or name of the conductor, artist or performing group.

    Choose letter A and “A” will appear on top of Box 3. Box 4 will then give you the list of conductors whose last name starts with A. 

    Box 5 (the horizontal box below the first 4 boxes) will list the music you are looking for. For example, if you chose Ackermann, Otto in Box 4, Box 5 will give you all of Otto Ackerman’s works that are available for downloading at Classicsonline.

    NOTE: If you selected Featured Instrument, Period or Label in Box 2, Box 3 will give you a list of instruments, periods or labels, respectively, and not the letters of the alphabet.

  • Genres / Select Genre

    On the top navigation, mouse over or click on Genres. A dropdown list of all the genres, as well as sub-categories (where applicable) will appear. Click on the genre or sub-category that you want.

    An alternative is to use Select Genre on the left hand side of the home page. Just click on the genre of your choice.

    Either of these navigations will take you to the page dedicated to your selected genre. Click on your choice of sub-category or album displayed on the genre / sub-category page.


  • Composers / Artists

    If you have a particular composer or artist in mind, you can mouse over Essentials and click on Composers or Artists in the drop-down list.

    In the Composers or Artists page, the letters of the alphabet correspond to the first letters of the surnames of the composers or artists. Click on a letter to display the list of composers or artists whose surnames begin with the letter that you chose. Click on the name of the composer or artist to view his or her biography and available downloads on Classicsonline. back

In what format are Classicsonline tracks available?

The tracks are available in MP3 (MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3) at 320kbps. back


What does 320 kbps mean?

320 kbps (kilobit per second) is the bit rate of each audio file and assures you of good sound quality. In multimedia files, the bit rate is the quantity of data stored for every unit of recording time. 320 kbps is the current standard bit rate for MP3 files. back


Can I listen to the tracks before purchasing?

Yes, you can listen to a 30-second preview of each track that has a play icon  beside it.

You may just click on the play icon  and you will hear the music being played. back


Do I have to download immediately after purchasing?

If you do not have the time to download immediately after making your payment, you can download your purchased album/s and/or track/s on a later date. You can access your purchased album/s and/or track/s for thirty (30) days from the date of purchase. Log in to your account, mouse over My Account on the top navigation and click on My Downloads. back


What is the best way to save my Classicsonline downloads?

Create a separate folder for all your Classicsonline downloads. This will make it easier for you to find all your downloads when you need to play or transfer them later on.

  • To create a folder, you can right-click your desktop and place your mouse over New. On the pop-up menu, select Folder to create a new folder on your desktop. The folder icon will appear on the desktop. Its name New Folder should be highlighted already, so just type the name you want for the folder – for instance, Classicsonline Downloads.
  • Another option is to use the My Music folder in Windows’ My Documents list. You can leave the name as is or rename it to Classicsonline Downloads. The most important thing is you know where you put all your downloads in your computer. back


If there is a break during the downloading, how do I resume?

To restart downloading, log in to your account, mouse over My Account on the top navigation and click on My Downloads. Select the album/s and/or track/s you wish to download. Your purchased album/s and/or track/s will be available to you for downloading and will remain in your My Downloads page for 30 days from date of purchase. back


How long should it take for me to download a track from Classicsonline?

Downloading time mainly depends on the actual bandwidth or the capacity of Internet connection that you are using. The higher your bandwidth is, the faster your downloading will be.

For the average 3- to 4-minute track, downloading time varies from a minute for DSL or T1 users to under 10 minutes for 56K modem users. back


How do I play Classicsonline downloads in my computer?
iTunes
  1. Launch iTunes
  2. Click on 'File' in the top left hand side of the program
  3. Click 'Add Folder to Library' Select your Classicsonline downloads folder
  4. Click 'OK' to import your new downloads
RealPlayer
  1. Click on 'File' in the top left hand side of the program
  2. Click 'Add Files to My Library'
  3. Click on 'Desktop' in the left hand side of the window
  4. Select your Classicsonline download folder or file and click 'Open'
  5. Select the name of the artist you would like to import and click 'Open'
  6. Select the name of the album you would like to import and click 'Open'
  7. Select the file/s you would like to import and click 'Open'
Winamp
  1. Click on 'File' in the top left hand side of the main window
  2. To display files and folders on your desktop, click 'Add Media to Library' symbol next to 'Desktop'
  3. Select your Classicsonline downloads folder or file
  4. Click 'OK' to import your new downloads
Windows Media Player
  1. Click on 'File' in the top left corner of the program
  2. Click 'Add to Library'
  3. Click 'Add Folder' or ‘Add File or Playlist’
  4. Select the folder or file you want to import to your Windows Media Player
  5. Click 'OK' to import your new downloads
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How do I know if I can play my Classicsonline downloads in my media player?

Any computer and music player that plays MP3 audio files can play downloads from Classicsonline. back



How do I transfer my Classicsonline downloads to my MP3 player?

iPod
Windows Media Player
  1. Launch iTunes.
  2. Drag and drop the tracks on your computer’s desktop into your iTunes Library or whichever directory you want to use for your Classicsonline downloads.
  3. Connect your iPod to your computer and add these tracks to your iPod.
Zen
Windows Media Player
  1. Connect your player to your computer.
  2. Double-click My Computer on your desktop. Click the Creative Media Explorer icon.
  3. Click Import Media / Browse Media icon and follow instructions appearing on screen.
  4. Locate the tracks on your computer and drag and drop them to your player.
  5. Disconnect your player from your computer once transfer is completed.

NOTE:You can also use Creative Media Source to transfer tracks to Zen players. Creative Media Source automatically launches as it detects your player once it is plugged into the computer. Simply drag and drop tracks to your player.


The following procedure uses Windows Media Player 10 or higher version. If you don’t have it in your computer yet, you can get the latest version at www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/mp10/default.aspx.

iRiver
Windows Media Player
  1. Open Windows Media Player.
  2. Connect your player and to your computer.
  3. Locate Playlists in the Library and Right-Click on it.
  4. Select Add to - Sync List. Your Sync List will appear on the right side of Windows Media
    Player. Repeat for all the tracks you would like to add to your player.
  5. Click the Sync menu button. On the right side the Sync screen, choose your device from the download list.
  6. Click Start Sync to transfer the tracks from your Sync list to the player.
  7. When transfer is completed, transferred tracks will appear in the Syncronized to Device list on the left side of Windows Media Player.
  8. Disconnect your player from your computer.

The following procedure uses Windows Media Player 10 or higher version. If you don’t have it in your computer yet, you can get the latest version at www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/mp10/default.aspx.

Sansa
Windows Media Player
  1. Open Windows Media Player.
  2. Connect your player to your computer.
  3. Click on the Sync tab and then, select Set Up Sync.
  4. Click on Automatic Sync. Select the playlist you want to transfer to your player
  5. Disconnect your player from your computer once transfer is completed. You can check playlist by selecting Music on the main menu and then, Playlists.
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Can I transfer my Classicsonline downloads to more than one media player?

Yes, you can. Classicsonline does not employ any DRM (Digital Rights Management) technology. This allows you to transfer your downloads to your portable player, CDs and other media for personal use. However, purchase does NOT include file transfer for commercial purposes. back


How do I burn or copy my Classicsonline downloads to a blank CD?

Check if you have successfully downloaded the album/s and/or track/s in your hard drive. Open your CD-burning software.

You can simply drag the audio files to the CD layout and record, or you can also use the wizard program in your CD-burning software. back

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Classicsonline.com – Your Classical Music Download Source
6:11:01 AM Saturday, November 21, 2009  -125-