Update the Unheard Beethoven
Donation protected
For the last seventeen years, since 1999, The Unheard Beethoven (http://unheardbeethoven.org) has worked to bring you the sounds of unrecorded and unpublished compositions by the great Ludwig van Beethoven. This has always been, and always will be, a completely free, nonprofit service. We are devoted first and foremost to getting Beethoven's unheard music heard, performed and recorded. It shouldn't be locked up in musty libraries (though we love musty libraries, and many of them have kindly provided materials to us), or left to be known only by scholars and specialists. Beethoven was a great lover of humanity and it's wrong to hide his unknown music away.
So to remedy that, we have been synthesizing Beethoven's unheard works for close to twenty years now. Initially, we provided MIDI files that were dependent on sound files that were (hopefully) located on the user's computer. A few years ago, when we revamped our website, we began making mp3 files of the music available so they could be used by anyone. These synthesized files made use of sound samples that we'd acquired over the years, and they were a big improvement.
But while our music samples were decent, they weren't great. They definitely show their age and could be much, much better than they are. So we've slowly been adding better samples as we can from the Vienna Symphonic Library of world-class samples. Unfortunately, first-class samples are expensive. So we turn to you, the Beethoven lovers, to ask for your support in turning out better-sounding mp3s of Beethoven's unrecorded and unpublished compositions.
Two licenses for the remainder of the Vienna Symphonic Library will run about $7000, so that's our end goal. But VSL thankfully allows piecemeal purchases of their sound sample library. We don't need to raise the entire amount all at once, and if we don't raise the entire amount we can still add to our sound arsenal in smaller pieces.
Our first goal is adding the solo human voice libraries, which at normal prices are around $450 per license [VSL is priced in Euros, so the dollar value fluctuates regularly]. Imagine the ability to use actual human voices for unheard Beethoven songs (including the song 'Liebe' Hess 137, which we discovered after being lost since 1822!) After that, we'd like to add human voice choirs, better string libraries and brass. Our woodwind libraries are already pretty good for the most part, so they'd be the lowest priority to upgrade. The more sample licenses we can get, the more flexibility we will have to be able to bring you the best-sounding unheard Beethoven possible.
If we can raise $750 by October 30, 2016, we will be able to take advantage of a sale at VSL for the solo voice libraries (two licenses), so your money will go farther if you donate sooner rather than later.
No one at The Unheard Beethoven gets paid one cent for what they do; this is strictly a labor of love. Any net proceeds of this GoFundMe will go directly to acquiring the necessary sound samples so we can upgrade the sound files on our award-winning website.
Thank you so very much for your consideration.
The Unheard Beethoven, Inc. is a Wisconsin nonstock, nonprofit corporation.
So to remedy that, we have been synthesizing Beethoven's unheard works for close to twenty years now. Initially, we provided MIDI files that were dependent on sound files that were (hopefully) located on the user's computer. A few years ago, when we revamped our website, we began making mp3 files of the music available so they could be used by anyone. These synthesized files made use of sound samples that we'd acquired over the years, and they were a big improvement.
But while our music samples were decent, they weren't great. They definitely show their age and could be much, much better than they are. So we've slowly been adding better samples as we can from the Vienna Symphonic Library of world-class samples. Unfortunately, first-class samples are expensive. So we turn to you, the Beethoven lovers, to ask for your support in turning out better-sounding mp3s of Beethoven's unrecorded and unpublished compositions.
Two licenses for the remainder of the Vienna Symphonic Library will run about $7000, so that's our end goal. But VSL thankfully allows piecemeal purchases of their sound sample library. We don't need to raise the entire amount all at once, and if we don't raise the entire amount we can still add to our sound arsenal in smaller pieces.
Our first goal is adding the solo human voice libraries, which at normal prices are around $450 per license [VSL is priced in Euros, so the dollar value fluctuates regularly]. Imagine the ability to use actual human voices for unheard Beethoven songs (including the song 'Liebe' Hess 137, which we discovered after being lost since 1822!) After that, we'd like to add human voice choirs, better string libraries and brass. Our woodwind libraries are already pretty good for the most part, so they'd be the lowest priority to upgrade. The more sample licenses we can get, the more flexibility we will have to be able to bring you the best-sounding unheard Beethoven possible.
If we can raise $750 by October 30, 2016, we will be able to take advantage of a sale at VSL for the solo voice libraries (two licenses), so your money will go farther if you donate sooner rather than later.
No one at The Unheard Beethoven gets paid one cent for what they do; this is strictly a labor of love. Any net proceeds of this GoFundMe will go directly to acquiring the necessary sound samples so we can upgrade the sound files on our award-winning website.
Thank you so very much for your consideration.
The Unheard Beethoven, Inc. is a Wisconsin nonstock, nonprofit corporation.
Organizer
Mark Zimmer
Organizer
Madison, WI
