The most common file format for finding music on the internet is the midi file format. You can play these files using Windows Media Player or Real Player for practicing. However, if you want printed music, you must open the midi file in a printing program. I have not been able to find a free music notation program that will load midi files and print. The advertised MidiNotate program won’t install on my Windows XP System. Perhaps someone else knows of such a program.

Finale Music has various levels of programs, including the free Notepad which allows you to enter music, but does not read midi files. If you load the free Notepad and then upgrade to one of the next two levels, you can save $10. Both of those levels, Songwriter and Print Music will load midi files, and let you modify them – transposing, reformatting, etc.

You can also find many music files in .PDF file format (but not as much as in midi format) and these can be printed with Adobe Acrobat which can be downloaded free from Adobe. Files in .PDF format cannot be modified like midi files in a music notation program, but can be printed.

For early music, the two best sources are the Choral Public Domain Library, which has much of the music that we play instrumentally that was originally choral, and the Classical Music Archives, which has both instrumental and choral music, but only allows five downloads a day for free. (So plan ahead).

The Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL): Begun in December 1998, CPDL is one of the world's largest free sheet music sites. You can use CPDL to find scores, texts, translations, and information about composers. Searching for Bach takes you to 151 line items for J S Bach, plus pointers to other Bach’s, and to a site with almost all of the cantatas. Some of cpdl’s pointers for unusual file formats will take you to other web sites. Almost all files have PDF versions.

The Classical Music Archives can be found at http://www.classicalarchives.com. The Classical Archives is the largest classical music site on the web: 37,043 full length classical music files by 1,993 composers. Free users are welcome but may only access 5 unprotected files per day after logging-in. Subscribe for only $25 per year to have full access to 1,000 files per month for 12 months! Going to "Bach" and then "midi files" lists 2454 midi files for J S Bach. There are no PDF files. Much of this is vocal, but there is also a lot of instrumental music, much of it for keyboard.

Next newsletter we will cover many of the smaller sites which have collections of Renaissance and Medieval music in various formats. If you have a favorite site you would like included please email it to Brenda Bittner. And don’t forget to tell me about any early music files you may have posted. For example, see Charlie Jackson’s excellent early music site. Charlie has information on designing crumhorns as well as about 70 midi files, from about 1350 to contemporary.

There are many other sites for finding early music on the Internet.  Some of them are small and/or specialized.  Here are six sites that have midi files for listening (and printing if you have an appropriate program).  Many of these have PDF files for printing as well, and occasionally other formats.

The Internet Renaissance Band site is by Curtis Clark.  “My interests lie in the music of the European Medieval period, or "Middle Ages " (ca. 300 - ca. 1450), and the European Renaissance (ca. 1450 - ca. 1620).”  The site contains about 175 Renaissance entries, 40 Medieval entries, and about 25 old carols.  Files are in midi format, and there is a .zip file which contains everything.

The Classical Midi Connection contains the following libraries:  Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Impressionistic, Twentieth, New Composers, Choral Connection, X-mas Connection, Recent Additions, Previous Updates and Composers List. Many pieces here are by Curtis Clark (see above), but this site is more extensive. For example, the Renaissance library has almost 350 entries plus over 50 Dowland pieces.

Musica Viva, the internet center for free sheet music downloads, has 12,507 midi files. Search on Renaissance, for example, shows 279 entries. PDF files require paying a membership fee. GIF files are available (lower resolution pictures of the score). Site has just been relocated and is experiencing some problems. I had trouble losing characters on the left side, and some midi’s were missing.

A site maintained by Christian and Annette Mondrup is specifically recorder music. It has over 300 entries. Midi files and PDF files for the score and parts are available.

The Mutopia Project has 612 pieces with information and multiple formats including midi and PDF. You can browse by composer, instrument, and style. The styles and number of pieces in each are: Baroque [202], Classical [212], Folk [2], Hymn [27], Jazz [17], Popular/Dance [6], Renaissance [14], Romantic [105], and Song [26].

Ciaran’s XPRT Music Page contains mostly madrigals (primarily English, but also Italian), earlier Italian frottola, French chansons and Spanish villancica and Renaissance sacred music. The site provides an introduction to madrigals. It contains over 220 files. Midi files and some PDF’s are available. Also available are Noteworthy Composer files. A Noteworthy Composer Viewer can be downloaded free from the site below and allows printing and playing of .nwc files. (Webmaster note: Noteworthy Composer Viewer in NOT available for Mac systems.)

In the next edition I will list a number of other sites, including several which provide only PDF files.  My thanks to Bob Bowling who sent me a number of sites for this article and the next.

So far I’ve listed nine sites for early music in the previous two articles, concentrating primarily on those that supply midi files. There are many music sites on the Internet, and part of the fun in looking for music on the net is to start with a few good sites and follow pointers to others who point to others …

This last article will list nine more sites (with less description – Sharon limits the size of what I write) some of which have excellent pointers to even more. Remember the Internet is transitory, so if one site is gone, try another.

8notes.com has over 900 entries for midi files with lots of duplicates for different instruments, etc. Everything from the “Four Seasons” by Vivaldi to “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”. Listed by composer.

51 Christmas carols with 4 part PDF’s and midis

Holiday songs for Christmas, Easter, St. Patrick’s Day, and Halloween. About 100 midi files with some duplication.

The Virtual Recorder Site contains recorder midi files from 79 composers including Telemann, Quantz, and Staeps. Some Music minus one files. Pointers to 19 other sites.

Steve Hendicks site has over 800 Renaissance dances and songs including many from Arbeau and Playford. PDF files only. This is a site connected with the Society of Creative Anachronisms. Many sites associated with them have music files. WARNING: Make sure you have the latest update if you are using Adobe Reader 7.

Free sheet music from Johan Tufvesson. Here you can find modern editions of a lot of music from the 17th and 18th centuries. If you would like to print all music (including all versions and parts) on this page, you would currently need 7068 pages. PDF’s with some midis.

Philip Perry site. This site has bass recorder solos. PDF files only.

The Music of Thomas Ravenscroft. This site contains facsimiles of Pammelia, Deuteromelia, Melismata, A briefe discovrse…, and The Whole Booke of Psalmes published from 1609 to 1621. Some modern editions with PDF’s and midis are also available.

Recorder arrangements with midis and PDF’s. Forty early, classical and modern composers.

You now have eighteen sites to get started on, so begin your journey exploring early music on the Internet. Find new music for your group or download a midi file to listen to or practice with. And ENJOY.