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Help The Basics The PDF reader Recordings The Search Engine Frequently Asked Questions The Basics... The music on this site is available to you at no charge. You may print and copy as many as you need for non-commercial use. You will need Adobe's free PDF Reader installed on your computer to view/print these files. See the PDF Reader instructions that follow. To begin, go to any of the several lists available. (Choose from the pulldown menu, or use the Site Map.) Browse the list of your choice, and when you find music that interests you, click on the title. That will take you to a page describing the song, its voicing, lyrics, etc. To view/print the file, LEFT click the "View/Print sheet music" link and your web browser will open the PDF document. After the file transfer is completed, the music should appear on your screen.  If you wish to print the file, use the commands on the PDF Reader toolbar. (The Print command on some older browsers will not function correctly for PDF documents.  If you have problems with the printout, be sure you are using the Print command from the Reader toolbar, not the browser's File/Print command.) To save the file to your computer without (or after) viewing it in the browser screen, RIGHT click on the link and save the file from the pop-up menu. Note: Cantata files are .zip files which will expand to .pdf files. You will need both the PDF Reader (described below) and an unzipping program to use these files. My favorite unzipping program is the StuffIt Expander, available free at www.aladdinsys.com/expander. Return to top of page. The PDF Reader You will need Adobe's free pdf reader to view/print the scores offered on this site. It's really free--no trial period, no shareware fees, no payment or expiration of any kind.To download the Reader, go to: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html  They provide good instructions so I won't repeat them here, but do remember that after you have downloaded the program, you need to then install it as well. Just locate the downloaded file on your hard drive, and double-click it to begin the installation. Return to top of page. Recordings Recordings in MP3 format can be played back on any MP3 player. Here are a few that I have used: Real Jukebox (the freebie is about halfway down the page) Music Match Imaginality Productions C4 Player Winamp Quintessential Player (my personal favorite) Some players offer pay versions. The free versions are sufficient for most users. When you click an MP3 link, your media player should open automatically. MP3 files are available for streamed play in both Hi-fi and Lo-fi versions. Lo-fi is about the same quality as Real Audio, and I personally dislike it, but if you're using a dialup connection you're stuck with it.  The alternative is to select the "download" option, and save the hi-fi version to your drive.  Hi-fi is near-CD quality, so the files are large (3-5 meg). You'll have to decide whether the quality is worth the wait. (I think so, but then I'm finicky.) Both playback and download are free. Many of the recordings are available on CD. These are the same recordings you can download as MP3s--the difference is that the downloadable ones are lower-quality files. These are high-quality home recordings.  Don't expect studio quality, but I think you'll find them enjoyable.  I'm still an amateur at this, but I'm pleased with the way these are shaping up and the versatility of digital editing. It allows me to economically offer pleasant recordings without that wonderful "live quality"--coughs, sneezes, babies crying, pages turning, etc.--that we all know and love. I have also made the accompaniments (minus tracks) to many of these recordings available. Kunaki.com handles the business end of it (thank goodness--I could just see myself up to my ears in CD mailers and jewel cases) and gives you several different options for shipping. If there's a problem with your order, please contact Kunaki customer service. If you have trouble with them, please let me know.  If you do not wish to use a credit card on line, you may send a check to me and I'll be glad to have them shipped to you. Return to top of page. The Search Engine The "search" link at the top of each page takes you to a search engine provided by Picosearch.  It functions just like any other search engine, but searches only the pages belonging to this site.  You may search using any word or phrase.  Use the dropdown list to determine how the engine will search for your terms. Return to top of page.