I don’t stream as I like to own physical media, for me streaming is only good for me to discovering new music then if I like it I’ll go out and buy it.
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Me, too. This is how I would use both Spotify and iTunes. However, I've noticed that I can't use iTunes to "audition" music in this way anymore, without signing up with them. As an avid music fan, and always on the lookout for new material (within my preferred genres) these streaming sites can be a great resource where their algorithm will suggest new artists within the same vein.
Then, I'll hop on Amazon for used CDs. Or go to CDBaby to pick up a new CD if what I've just discovered isn't available anywhere else. (Or, if it's just come out). CDBaby is a good resource for checking out new (but similar) artists that you might be interested in.
The last really good used bookstore with the largest selection of used CDs in my immediate area (with the CDs taking up about half of their floor space) has just recently closed.
I need to check out Tidal to see if their catalog is extensive enough that would make it worth it to go digging around in there.
Problem is, if you have people who are streaming their music through a phone with headphones attached, then these aren't the people who you would consider "serious listeners" who sit. And listen. At home. (And through a fairly nice and better-than-average resolving rig), but these are people listening "on-the-go." And most of these people are interested in "what's hot" and "what's trending."
The streaming service that I would like would have to be fairly extensive and go much deeper than the latest popular stuff in order to get me interested.
I've come across a couple of new musical artists that I've liked recently, but who only release their music via digital download. Becki Biggins is a younger jazz singer that I liked, and came across a YouTube video of her. Went searching, and found out that she didn't even have a physical CD for sale. It was all digital download.
Am I becoming an old geezer? Probably.
Most of the music that I'm interested in is available on CD (newer acoustic singer-songwriter type stuff, acoustic trio jazz, string quartets) but as HsvHeelFan just alluded to, it's looking like the days of new music being released on CD format may be numbered.
But, I'm 55 years old. By the time this happens completely, it probably won't matter to me. Thing is though, that even considering the care and the effort that I've taken to carefully compile a CD collection over the years (that is very important to me), once I'm gone all these CDs will probably hit the landfill!
"Some people know the cost of everything and the value of nothing." True. My music collection is very valuable to me. (But in absolute dollar amount?)
If both myself and HsvHeelFan are lucky enough to be around years from now, we both might be streaming and downloading because there won't be any other alternative to reproducing just-released music in the home.