I have a number of multi-CD opera recordings I would like to transfer to my iPod. When I download them into iTunes, they appear as multiple arias ordered by the first words of their titles. Then when I bring each disc over to a playlist, the order of the arias changes to an alphabetical listing, not the order of their original performance. How can I transfer the CDs to my iPod so that the arias will appear in the correct order of performance?
Having recently rekindled our own love of opera, we’re glad to help. Depending on your source CDs and their embedded file information (or apparent lack thereof), iTunes usually respects track order, but in your case, it sounds like you’ll have to reorder your playlist the old-fashioned way. Select the playlist from iTunes’ Source List, then click-and-drag the tracks into their appropriate order. If iTunes won’t let you drag tracks, click the Track Number column header (as circled in the screenshot below) and you should be able to drag yourself silly.
Press the first column's top box to manually rearrange a playlist.
Herb Levy
November 07, 2007 at 11:36pm
You might should also try using the grouping field which is one of the possible listings on the multiple item information entry page. Using the same name here for tracks from any long musical work that's been split into individual movements, arias, or whatever, they should play in the correct order.
Unlike the playlist manipulation described in the original article, this feature also lets you hear complete multi-section works even in shuffle play. So you can shuffle your entire library and still hear each symphony, concerto, sonata, opera or whatever as a whole but in random order instead of hearing individual movements and arias all shuffled together.
