Music for You

Music and books have more in common than you might think at first glance. Both are art forms and like art, we love books and music that speak to us. Books and music can give us that feeling that we are not alone in the universe. Sometimes we want a book or song that complements the mood we are in, that makes us think, raises our spirits, helps our children learn, is from our favorite genre, and sometimes we just want something that entertains us.

Most people think of books when they think of libraries but we also have a variety of choices for free music both to download and to stream. Here are some resources you can search or browse to find music you enjoy.

Download

With Freegal you can download five MP3 songs each week. The songs free and legal to download and the songs are yours to keep. You can choose from a database of over 3,000,000 recordings on Sony and independent record labels. Freegal works with any computer, any portable music player, and iTunes. It has apps for both Apple and Android devices. Download limits are reset early Monday mornings at 12:01 am.

Stream

We also have a variety of streaming music you can choose from as well. Try one of these exciting options.

Music Online. Search across all of the following music products at once. Plus almost 140,000 tracks of rock, pop, punk, new age, metal, holiday music, hip-hop, rap, electronic, film and theater soundtracks, and more.

American Song. Listen to music from America's past. Songs by and about African Americans, American Indians, immigrants, slaves, children, pioneers, and cowboys. Songs of Civil Rights, political campaigns, Prohibition, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, anti-war protests, and more.

Classical Music Library. Choral works, symphonies, operas, vocal and instrumental music, chamber music, and more. Ranges from medieval to contemporary music.

Classical Scores Library. Over 13,000 classical scores from both in-copyright and public domain editions. Scores span all genres and time periods from the Western classical canon.

Contemporary World Music. Reggae, worldbeat, neo-traditional, world fusion, Balkanic jazz, African film, Bollywood, Arab swing and jazz, and other genres such as traditional music - Indian classical, fado, flamenco, klezmer, zydeco, gospel, gagaku, and more.

Jazz Music Library. Listen to streaming music from thousands of jazz artists, ensembles, albums, and genres.

Smithsonian Global Sound. Over 35,000 tracks of animal/nature sounds, dramatic performances, poetry, political speeches, war and protest songs, and traditional music performances from around the world.

Singing with Kids

Did you know that in addition to being fun, singing with young children is a key element to get your child ready to read? Starting from birth, singing songs and saying rhymes increases your child’s awareness of the sounds in words. It helps break down words into syllables that your children hear when a word is sung. This helps prepare your child to sound out words when they read.

Music also exercises rhythm, word knowledge and memory skills, all crucial to becoming a proficient reader. Children of all ages can enjoy music and we have some suggestions for children's music. Have a look at Freegal, Music Online, and American Song for some good selections that you can find by browsing or searching.

Events

Looking to enjoy music with others? We have exciting music events for all ages! Since music is such an important part of getting kids ready to read it's a regular part of our storytimes. But don't forget that we've got great music performances for adults as well.

Holiday Music

With the holidays quickly approaching don't forget to start with Freegal and Music Online for seasonal music. Music is a great way to get into the holiday spirit and to get your loved ones singing together in celebration. Both have fun selections for the upcoming holidays as well as celebrations all the year through.

Find your music beat at MCPL today!

Labels: Holidays, Music, Programs and Events