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Handel Masterpiece Gets 'Explicit' Label
Fri Sep 19,12:48 PM ET
By MATTHEW FORDAHL, AP Technology Writer
SAN JOSE, Calif. - George Frideric Handel has at least one thing in common with Eminem (news - web sites) and other modern artists: his music was slapped with an "explicit" warning at Apple Computer Inc.'s online iTunes Music Store.
The baroque composer's 1742 masterpiece, "The Messiah," was marked with the red warning that indicates the content might not be appropriate for young children or others with sensitive tastes. It's on a recording by the London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by John Alldis.
The warning, which appeared when the album's tracks were made available Tuesday but disappeared late Tuesday, was most likely a technical mix-up, though "The Messiah" does touch on love, violence and death — in a more profound way than, say, most music produced 260 years later.
"Obviously, there's been some sort of error," said Lara Vacante, an Apple spokeswoman. She said technicians were looking into why it was mislabeled. Other juicy classics, like Giacomo Puccini's murder-and-suicide opera "Tosca," don't carry the advisory.
The online music store, which is now available only to owners of Macintosh (news - web sites) computers, has been criticized in some circles for focusing more on pop music than classical or operatic fare. It's often difficult, also, to find out who is conducting a piece or the names of soloists.
Apple recently introduced a friendlier classical home page that breaks down albums by periods such as early music, baroque, romantic and modern. It also has a category for opera.
Apple's iTunes Music Store has sold more than 10 million songs at 99 cents each since its April 28 launch, and is central to Apple's strategy to promote its computers as digital entertainment hubs.
Fri Sep 19,12:48 PM ET
By MATTHEW FORDAHL, AP Technology Writer
SAN JOSE, Calif. - George Frideric Handel has at least one thing in common with Eminem (news - web sites) and other modern artists: his music was slapped with an "explicit" warning at Apple Computer Inc.'s online iTunes Music Store.
The baroque composer's 1742 masterpiece, "The Messiah," was marked with the red warning that indicates the content might not be appropriate for young children or others with sensitive tastes. It's on a recording by the London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by John Alldis.
The warning, which appeared when the album's tracks were made available Tuesday but disappeared late Tuesday, was most likely a technical mix-up, though "The Messiah" does touch on love, violence and death — in a more profound way than, say, most music produced 260 years later.
"Obviously, there's been some sort of error," said Lara Vacante, an Apple spokeswoman. She said technicians were looking into why it was mislabeled. Other juicy classics, like Giacomo Puccini's murder-and-suicide opera "Tosca," don't carry the advisory.
The online music store, which is now available only to owners of Macintosh (news - web sites) computers, has been criticized in some circles for focusing more on pop music than classical or operatic fare. It's often difficult, also, to find out who is conducting a piece or the names of soloists.
Apple recently introduced a friendlier classical home page that breaks down albums by periods such as early music, baroque, romantic and modern. It also has a category for opera.
Apple's iTunes Music Store has sold more than 10 million songs at 99 cents each since its April 28 launch, and is central to Apple's strategy to promote its computers as digital entertainment hubs.
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