ECM now available for streaming on Qobuz and TIDAL - too good to be true?

[Musicophile]

In the past, ECM albums were never available for streaming to my knowledge. 

All over sudden, I can stream recent ECM releases (e.g. the new Anouar Brahem) both on Tidal (here even in MQA) and Qobuz using Audirvana.

 

Is this a temporary bug or should ECM really have changed their mind about streaming?

[Charente]

Yes, I noticed two new ECM releases on QOBUZ streaming that popped up this week ... took me by surprise as well ! 

[AnotherSpin]

I was lucky to grow on a diet of ECM LPs in 70-80s. Some of my first purchased jazz LPs were from ECM catalogue. Keith Jarrett, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Terje Rypdal, John Abercrombie, Ralph Towner, Eberhard Weber, Chick Corea, etc., etc. It was a paragon of the sound quality which was not equaled by any of other recording labels of the time. Unfortunately, this pristine ECM sound was never quite reproduced by later CDs. This may be the reason that Mr. Eicher is not in a hurry to embrace current digital formats, for old recordings in particular. 

[davidovada]

I've noticed several, as well. I thought it was limited to new releases but I just found Siwan (2009)...some new releases are still off limits. Perhaps it's just a screw-up or perhaps there's been a change of policy.  

[matthias]

This one has been offered for streaming on Tidal since months:

 

https://www.ecmrecords.com/catalogue/1461051533

 

Matt

 

[kirkmc]

I stumbled on an ECM New Series record on Apple Music the other day; it was a string quartet playing music by John Cage. It's the first I've seen, other than a compilation that was on Apple Music for a while then removed. I wonder if they have allowed some artists to opt for streaming. They certainly don't let any Keith Jarrett albums on the streaming services. 

 

I've long said that I'd pay $5 a month to stream the ECM catalog.

[tomatom]

There are now a number of albums available on Spotify and Amazon Music Unlimited. I don’t see anything of last 8 years or so but it could be as much as half of the backlist before that. Ten of the Rarum compilations for example. Lots of things to explore!

[kirkmc]

I've gotten some reports of ECM availability on Apple Music, but only in certain countries. I'm not seeing it in the US store - with the exception of the one I mentioned above - but someone in Ireland said all the older Keith Jarrett albums are available. 

[R1200CL]

This one ?

 

 

[firedog]

I see seven albums on Tidal, 6 of which are some kind of  anthology/collection. So maybe a small change in policy, but not something groundbreaking. Not like they made Keith Jarrett's ECM catalog available for streaming. 

[matthias]

2 hours ago, firedog said:

I see seven albums on Tidal, 6 of which are some kind of  anthology/collection. So maybe a small change in policy, but not something groundbreaking. Not like they made Keith Jarrett's ECM catalog available for streaming. 

 

According to the information on the other thread here the groundbreaking will happen at the end of November, I hope it is true.

 

Matt

[miguelito]

On 11/5/2017 at 9:07 AM, Musicophile said:

In the past, ECM albums were never available for streaming to my knowledge. 

OMG!!! Love.

 

https://www.ecmrecords.com/catalogue/1501068700/blue-maqams-anouar-brahem

 

https://tidal.com/album/79640505

[miguelito]

You guys prob saw this, but Keith Jarrett IS on TIDAL, and both redbook and MQA btw...

 

https://tidal.com/album/30045294

https://tidal.com/album/77619193

[miguelito]

Koln Concert:

 

https://tidal.com/album/10843697

https://tidal.com/album/77620365

[Charente]

Keith Jarrett ECM also well represented on Qobuz !

[firedog]

Wow, now I see albums I couldn’t see earlier today. Even some fairly new ones, that haven’t been made available for download yet (typically 6 months after disc release for ECM, but maybe this will change now, too).

 

Looks like the full Keith Jarrett ECM catalogue is at Tidal. Could be some country differences, I guess.

[miguelito]

22 hours ago, firedog said:

Looks like the full Keith Jarrett ECM catalogue is at Tidal. Could be some country differences, I guess.

Unfortunately not exactly... Eg The Köln Concert is tagged and there but the tracks are "unavailable". It seems though that it is moving forward.

 

[miguelito]

Just now, miguelito said:

Unfortunately not exactly... Eg The Köln Concert is tagged and there but the tracks are "unavailable". It seems though that it is moving forward.

Spoke to soon! It's there now! And in MQA! Interesting. Not that I don't own a bazillion versions of this album... 

[realhifi]

On the Roon forum it is being reported that ALL of ECM’s catalog will be available on Tidal with many of the newer releases in MQA also.  This isn’t just good news, this is FANTASTIC news!  

[Enrok]

curiously, ECM is not available in streaming Hi Res on Qobuz only FLAC but on Tidal ECM commes in master quality.

[firedog]

49 minutes ago, Enrok said:

curiously, ECM is not available in streaming Hi Res on Qobuz only FLAC but on Tidal ECM commes in master quality.

Not at all curious. Just a sign of what a lot of people have been predicting about MQA: part of the idea is to limit consumer hi-res access to MQA. 

It may also have something to do with Manfried Eicher's dislike of the streaming model: he doesn't want to put his best versions on streaming. 

[Enrok]

Well the thing is a bit more complex, on Qobuz ECM albums are tagged HiRes and with the "sublime+" subscription you pay to have access to illimited HiRes streaming, so you expect to obtain ECM album at HIRes, in this case to be honest  Qobuz must remove the tag HiRes .

As to compare with Tidal, Qobuz quality was always  better than tidal, it is the first ocurence where Tidal gives a better sound.

[MarkoF]

Here's the press release from ECM

Quote

PRESS RELEASE: ECM AND STREAMING

Over the past week we have begun the process of entering the world of streaming, and from November 17th, the full ECM catalogue will be available to subscribers to services including Apple Music, Amazon, Spotify, Deezer, Tidal and Qobuz. This simultaneous launch across the platforms – facilitated by a new digital distribution agreement with Universal Music – invites listeners to explore the wide range of music recorded by our artists in the course of nearly five decades of independent production.
 
Although ECM’s preferred mediums remain the CD and LP, the first priority is that the music should be heard. The physical catalogue and the original authorship are the crucial references for us: the complete ECM album with its artistic signature, best possible sound quality, sequence and dramaturgy intact, telling its story from beginning to end.
 
In recent years, ECM and the musicians have had to face unauthorized streaming of recordings via video sharing websites, plus piracy, bootlegs, and a proliferation of illegal download sites. It was important to make the catalogue accessible within a framework where copyrights are respected.
 
 
 
ECM Press Office
Munich, November 14, 2017   

Mark

[wdw]

On 2017-11-11 at 12:08 PM, miguelito said:

OMG!!! Love.

 

https://www.ecmrecords.com/catalogue/1501068700/blue-maqams-anouar-brahem

 

https://tidal.com/album/79640505

 

 

Miguelito,

 

Thanks for this.  Just great!

 

WDW

[Jelly292]

Wow, hell may freeze over..!   Thanks for the thread - this is huge news! We may no longer need servers, just a good streaming gadget. By the way I have been using a Google Chromecast plugged into a great DAC and it sounds pretty good. Any other users?