MusicBrainz NGS: A Comprehensive Music Encyclopedia
MusicBrainz Next Generation Schema (NGS) is a significant evolution of the MusicBrainz project, transforming it from a tool primarily for identifying audio CDs into a robust and comprehensive music encyclopedia.
What MusicBrainz NGS Does
MusicBrainz NGS is designed to catalog and organize music metadata in a highly detailed and structured manner. It allows users to accurately represent various aspects of music releases, including the physical media, tracklists, and artist credits. This system is essential for music enthusiasts, collectors, and professionals who need precise and reliable music information.
Key Features and Functionality
Improved Release Model
In NGS, the release model has been substantially enhanced. A release now represents the specific product a consumer might purchase, such as an album, complete with its own unique MusicBrainz ID (MBID). Each release can contain multiple mediums (e.g., CD, DVD, vinyl, cassette), and each medium can have its own tracklist. This change ensures that each distinct release event (e.g., an album released in different countries) is treated as a separate release.
Mediums and Tracklists
The concept of mediums has been introduced to represent the physical media on which audio content is stored. Tracklists serve as a bridge between mediums and the tracks they contain, allowing the same tracklist to appear on different mediums. This feature is particularly useful for releases with the same tracklist but different physical formats or regional releases.
Recordings
In NGS, tracks are now referred to as “recordings,” each with its own MBID. This distinction allows for the recognition that the same track can be released on multiple albums or mediums. Each recording is linked to multiple tracks if necessary, ensuring that common tracks across different releases are identified as the same recording.
Artist Credits
NGS introduces the concept of artist credits, enabling the accurate attribution of tracks to multiple artists. This feature eliminates the need for composite artist names (e.g., “Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash”) and instead allows each artist to be credited separately with their own ID. This improves the accuracy and flexibility of artist attribution.
Works
The NGS schema includes the concept of “works,” which represent the musical composition itself, distinct from the recording. This is particularly important for classical music, where composers may not have recorded their works but created numerous compositions. This differentiation helps in maintaining a clear distinction between the composition and its various performances.
Web Service API
The NGS release includes a new version of the MusicBrainz web service API, which allows for detailed queries and retrieval of data entities such as artists, release groups, releases, recordings, labels, and works. The API supports various search queries and can include additional information like artist credits and tracklists.
Additional Features
- RDFa Support: NGS incorporates RDFa (Resource Description Framework in attributes) into its HTML pages, enhancing the semantic web capabilities.
- CSS and Design: The new schema features a cleaner design and full CSS support, improving user experience.
- Tools and Integrations: Tools like MusicBrainz Picard, a cross-platform music file tagger, integrate seamlessly with NGS, allowing users to tag and organize their music collections accurately.
In summary, MusicBrainz NGS offers a sophisticated and detailed approach to music metadata management, making it an indispensable resource for anyone seeking to catalog, organize, and understand music in a comprehensive and accurate manner.