Cantata icon

Cantata

Cantata is an open-source graphical front-end application for the music player daemon (MPD). It allows users to browse, play, and manage their music collection stored on an MPD music server.

What is Cantata?

Cantata is an open-source graphical user interface client for the Music Player Daemon (MPD), a free and open music player server. It enables users to remotely browse, play, and manage music collections stored on an MPD server from a graphical interface instead of the command line.

Key features of Cantata include:

  • Browse your music library by album, artist, genre, etc.
  • Build and manage playlists
  • Smart playlists with advanced filtering capabilities
  • Playback controls - play, pause, seek, volume, etc.
  • Cover art support
  • Lyrics support via lyrics plugins
  • Internet radio streaming
  • Support for multiple MPD profiles/instances
  • Customizable user interface
  • Available for Linux, Windows, and macOS

As an MPD client, Cantata does not actually play music files itself. Instead, it connects to a running MPD server to access the music library. This allows MPD to handle the audio playback while Cantata provides the user interface. Cantata offers advanced music management and playback controls compared to MPD's standard command line interface.

The Best Cantata Alternatives

Top Apps like Cantata

Winamp, VLC Media Player, Media Player Classic, MusicBee, AIMP, foobar2000, Rhythmbox, Audacious, Clementine, Strawberry, Amarok, Auremo MPD Client, DeaDBeeF, Xfmpc are some alternatives to Cantata.

Winamp

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VLC Media Player

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Media Player Classic

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MusicBee

MusicBee is a free, advanced music player and media library organizer for Windows. Developed as an alternative to iTunes and Windows Media Player, MusicBee offers powerful tools for managing even extremely large music collections.Key features of MusicBee include:Plays a wide range of audio formats including MP3, FLAC, AAC...

AIMP

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Foobar2000

foobar2000 is a popular free audio player application for the Windows platform. Originally released in 2002, it has earned a reputation for being lightweight, customizable, and supporting a wide range of audio formats.Some key features of foobar2000 include:Supports common formats like MP3, FLAC, WAV, WMA, Ogg Vorbis, and more...

Rhythmbox

Rhythmbox is an open-source music player application designed for the Linux operating system. It is the default music player included in many popular Linux distributions such as Ubuntu.Rhythmbox provides a simple and intuitive user interface that allows users to easily manage their local music library. It will automatically scan...

Audacious

Audacious is an open source audio player application for Linux, Windows, and macOS. It focuses on delivering high audio quality while using minimal system resources.Some key features of Audacious include:Lightweight GTK+ based interfaceSupport for many audio formats including MP3, FLAC, Ogg Vorbis, Musepack, WAV, and moreCustomizable interface with...

Clementine

Clementine is a free, open source music player and library organizer. It is available for Windows, Linux, and macOS operating systems. Some key features of Clementine include:Plays music from local files as well as online streaming services like Spotify, Grooveshark, SomaFM, Jamendo, Magnatune, SoundCloud, and Icecast internet radio stationsOrganizes...

Strawberry

Strawberry Perl is a free and open source distribution of the Perl programming language for Microsoft Windows operating systems. It is designed to provide everything you need to run Perl on Windows, including a Perl compiler, debugger, editor, and various libraries and add-ons.Key features of Strawberry Perl include:Latest...

Amarok

Amarok is a free and open source music player application originally created for the Linux operating system. With its intuitive interface and powerful music management capabilities, Amarok has become one of the most popular audio players on Linux and Unix-like systems.Some key features of Amarok include:Support for a...

Auremo MPD Client

Auremo is a free and open-source MPD (Music Player Daemon) client application developed by Aurelien Gateau. It has a simple and intuitive user interface that focuses on ease of use while still providing full control over an MPD music server.Some key features of Auremo include:Minimalist UI design optimized...

DeaDBeeF

DeaDBeeF (also written as deadbeef) is a free and open-source audio player software. It runs on Linux, Windows, and macOS operating systems.Some key features of DeaDBeeF include:Support for many audio formats including MP3, FLAC, Ogg Vorbis, Musepack, WavPack, AAC, etc.Lightweight and low on resource usageCustomizable user interface...

Xfmpc

Xfmpc is a graphical client application for the Music Player Daemon (MPD), designed specifically for the Xfce desktop environment. It provides a user-friendly interface to manage music libraries and control music playback.Some key features of Xfmpc include:Lightweight and fast interface using GTK+ 3Designed to integrate nicely with the...