We hope that by now, HD Radio programmers have likely heard of the new Hi-Res Music initiative recently announced by the RIAA and member labels. Because of the nature of your high-quality audio programming, your listeners might have an avid interest in learning more about this initiative and what it means for the state of high-quality music today. As an audiophile myself, I’m excited to share this news far and wide with my fellow enthusiasts.
It’s undoubtedly an exciting time to be an audiophile. The major labels we represent have invested significant time and resources into not only capturing the high-quality sound of high-resolution music from the recording process, but ensuring that fans have access to these valuable versions. That’s what Hi-Res Music is all about.
The Hi-Res Music initiative is the culmination of months of work to create a new logo and branding materials for digital music retailers to use in order to distinguish the highest quality digital format available today, just as the creators intended the music to sound.
The definition of Hi-Res Music is “lossless audio capable of reproducing the full spectrum of sound from recordings which have been mastered from better than CD quality (48 kHz/20-bit or higher) music sources which represent what the artists, producers and engineers originally intended.” That means that high-resolution music that meets this superior audio standard will now be branded with the new Hi-Res Music logo on digital retailer sites that offer this kind of music.
Audio enthusiasts — likely those listening to HD Radio programming — will hopefully find this information helpful when searching high-resolution music sites for the highest quality version possible of their favorite tunes. We encourage you to plug in, turn it up, and listen on, audiophiles!
David Hughes is the chief technology officer for the Recording Industry Association of America.
