Music Just the Way You Want It
Tired of the same old tracks? Today's new technologies get to know your musical tastes and play tunes that somehow sound just right—time after time.
From niche radio to specialty Internet stations to personal MP3 playlists, we're becoming our own DJs.
Some technologies go even further, learning our musical preferences and playing only what we want to hear. These virtual DJs may know our tastes better than we do.
Custom-tailored radio
Pandora.com presents truly personalized content. Here, you create your own "stations" based on the artist or music you like. Each station becomes a playlist of sorts—with an element of discovery.
Your Pandora® "Bruce Springsteen" station, for example, plays songs by him and others like him, taking you on a customized listening journey that expands your musical horizons along the way. You never know what's coming next, but odds are you'll like it.
Springsteen might be followed by Van Morrison, Bob Dylan and someone you never have heard, but probably will like. These associations are based on hundreds of musical attributes compiled for each song by the Music Genome Project. Characteristics such as "dynamic male lead vocal" attempt to explain the inexplicable—why certain songs resonate with us on a personal level.
Variations on a theme So, how are radio and the web joining this trend toward specialization? |
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• For a fee, SiriusXM Satellite Radio offers more than 130 channels in highly specialized formats. Love Springsteen? You've got him 24/7 on the E Street Radio channel. Similar stations all over the Internet offer free computer listening. |
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• Last.fm offers personalized stations with an emphasis on MySpace/Facebook-style social networking. So you can share and discuss your preferences with others. |
Master of your own musical universe
But what about that big CD collection you're so deeply invested in? The Bose® uMusic® intelligent playback system, found in premium Lifestyle® or 3·2·1® GSX systems, helps you enjoy it in an innovative way.
Once loaded into the system, your CDs are analyzed and categorized. As you interact with the uMusic system, by approving or rejecting songs, those you like get played more often. They, in turn, unearth similar tunes you never paid much attention to, but—surprise—also enjoy.
So you weed out the deadwood in your collection by keeping the songs you prefer in rotation, both old favorites and newly discovered gems. It's like continually rediscovering, even expanding, your own music collection.
As new artists emerge, the musical universe keeps expanding. While the online sites let you push its boundaries, the uMusic system offers inward exploration within your own finite collection. Either way, it's all about connecting with your music. And maybe your own personal history.
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