Clementine | free music and audio file player

"Clementine is a modern music player and library organizer. It's a multiplatform music player, inspired by Amarok 1.4, focusing on a fast and easy-to-use interface for searching and playing your music.

Features:

• Search and play your local music library.
• Listen to internet radio from Spotify, Grooveshark, Last.fm, SomaFM,Magnatune, Jamendo, SKY.fm, Digitally Imported, JAZZRADIO.com,Soundcloud, and Icecast.
• Search and play songs you've uploaded to Google Drive.
• Create smart playlists and dynamic playlists.
• Tabbed playlists, import and export M3U, XSPF, PLS and ASX.
• CUE sheet support.
• Play audio CDs."

(Link)

Jokosha | open source Garageband alternative

Jokosher is a simple and powerful multi-track studio. Jokosher provides a complete application for recording, editing, mixing and exporting audio, and has been specifically designed with usability in mind. The developers behind Jokosher have re-thought audio production at every level, and created something devilishly simple to use. (Link)

Free online music tools

A great list of useful music tools. As the article says: 'who needs Garageband'?

Here are nine free tools that students can use to create their own music online."

Nuf said.

Music composition and notation

While I'm tone deaf and struggle to hold a note, I do appreciate well-composed, beautiful music. In the past the only high-end music composition package I've been aware of has been Sibelius, but at more than NZ$1000 a seat it's too expensive to have large groups of students discovering if they are the next Douglas Lilburn or Dave Dobbyn or not. Even if the school could afford it, shelling out another NZ$1000 to be able to tinker at home in the basement is just too much of a barrier for most students. Which is why I'm thrilled to have discovered Musescore. It's open source, multi-platform and powerful enough to meet the needs of even the most intricate of compositions. What did we do with the money we saved in software licences? We bought 18 new desktop computers to allow even more students to see if they've got a gift for song-writing.
...and as with most open source projects, free software means a large user base and a large community offering support and producing help documentation. Here's Musescore in 10 easy steps.