Prologue: How it Started
Years ago, I remember writing to Apple asking how to get my music on iTunes. Apple Music wasn't even born yet. They replied-professionally, helpfully introducing me to music distributors that I didn't know existed.
Apple literally started me on this journey. The irony of what follows has not been lost on me.
Day 1: The Optimistic Beginning
I wrote my debut book on artist rights history in Tamil (my mother tongue), starting from before the printing press. Apparently, I'm drawn to obsolete battles, because next I decided to become a classical composer in the streaming age.
I was inspired by the sheet music era and stories of Handel and Bach (who never had to argue with an algorithm about genre classifications), I moved from my DAW to scoring software. When I finished my first Piano work, I felt accomplished. After years of writing sync music in isolation, I was ready to share something that was truly mine.
Day 13: The First Encounter
RouteNote used to be free and took WAV files. Now they're still free but only accept MP3s for the free plan. Look, I get the economics—storage costs money, and I'm not exactly generating Spotify millions. Algorithms don't chase me and I don't chase them; we have a mutual non-aggression pact.
But twenty days for customer support? Twenty days! Wagner could have written another Ring Cycle. That's when I realized the distribution landscape had transformed while I was peacefully writing sync music.
Day 45: CDBaby and the Discovery
I recalled having a decade old release with CDBaby. Decided to move to CDBaby—not free, but they responded before I forgot I'd written to them. Days later, I found my music on Apple Music Classical. I didn't even know this existed. It's like discovering a secret room in your house with your furniture already there.
Encouraged, I released a Sonatina and started a Theme and Variations that took sleepless nights.
Day 73: The Hunt for HD Audio
CDBaby doesn't accept HD audio. Yes, most people listen on phone speakers that make everything sound underwater. But what if want to preserve the rosin of the first chairs for the twelve audiophiles who care. They're my people. I was writing my new Passacaglia for them.
I decided to try a distributor marketing special platform relationship. I subscribed, submitted, and then...
Day 89: The Genre Wars
They insisted my classical work should be labeled "Instrumental."
"But it's a Theme and Variations. In C Major. With…."
"Instrumental."
"It follows classical form—"
"INSTRUMENTAL."
I let them distribute it their way. Then it appeared in Qobuz's Pop section. POP. My "Echoes in My Chamber: Theme and Variations in C Major, Op.3, No.1" sitting next to contemporary hits. That was the day I dropped opus numbers from titles. If you can't beat them, stop giving them ammunition.
Don't ask me why I use opus numbers. I know I am not Beethoven. Because he started losing hearing at my age, but I am just developing tinnitus.
Day 112: The Landscape Survey
Back to CDBaby, who distributed it properly. No drama, just basic competence. Revolutionary.
But still no HD audio. The search continued:
Ditto Music: No HD audio
LANDr: No Classical to Apple Music
iMusician: Want classical AND high-definition audio? That's their top tier. Though credit where due—they keep your music up even if you stop paying.
Soundrop: The interface seemed to be having an existential crisis. Each edit created a new release. But wait—they accept high-definition audio, and at $0.99 per track? Their system must be flooded with everyone writing a passacaglia for strings to leave a legacy.
Day 124: Understanding the Game
I get it now. Serious distributors are expensive or invite-only because they're filtering for people who actually make money. Classical metadata requires extra work that isn't worth it for bedroom producers generating three streams annually.
Then Soundrop raised prices to $4.99. I actually felt relieved. Even their interface seems to be relieved from creating new releases on its own.(pay-per-release is better than subscriptions in my opinion, even if they are expensive.)
Day 126: The TuneCore Tragedy
Desperate, I paid TuneCore's annual subscription. Then discovered:
They only have "Classical Crossover" (Bach feat. Billie Eilish?)
They can't deliver classical to Apple Music
Refund policy: "All sales are final" (That is not a refund policy!)
My only real complaint? Tell me upfront. Don't let me pay THEN mention you can't deliver to a platform I want to.
I created a ticket and filed a complaint with their payment processor. Used words like "misrepresentation" and "undisclosed limitations."
[EDIT: 8th September 2025, TuneCore initiated a refund]
The Plot Twist
Just after filing disputes against TuneCore, I went to Soundrop.
Funny thing - I'd set up this release at $0.99 weeks earlier but never submitted, convinced I needed something better with real human support. Post-TuneCore, I finally clicked submit on what I already had.
Epilogue: Into the Unknown
Got an email from another distributor: "You didn't finish your release... The world is waiting..."
The world might be waiting, but apparently not for classical music in high-definition.
The landscape's grown more complex since I started. Spotify's "artificial streaming policy" has everyone paranoid—distributors can't tell if music is human-composed or AI-generated. In a world where AI can write "Classical Crossover" faster than you can, say "Bach feat. Billie Eilish," everyone's suspicious of everything. No wonder they're defaulting to defensive positions.
The Passacaglia isn't released for streaming yet. I won't be surprised if it lands in Death Metal somewhere. But I'm prepared now—it's released on Bandcamp, where genre is what I say it is.
The world is waiting? Let it wait. I am figuring out Bandcamp.