Elisa is Kubuntu default audio player. In Kubuntu history, Elisa replaces the former players namely Cantata and Amarok. Elisa is a part of KDE Applications and well integrated to the KDE Plasma Desktop. Speaking about its appearance, its logo represents a black-green tape cassette and its user interface reminds us to the old three-columns style Amarok. Speaking about its technical aspects, it is written in C++ with Qt Framework, just like any standard Kubuntu application, developed in public by the KDE community. Just like what we have discussed at the previous episode, Dolphin File Manager, we will also explain Elisa in details with screenshots and further references. We hope this helps every Kubuntu users. Now let's start reading!
(Elisa Music Player playing a playlist of few audio recording from American English)
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Logo
Screenshots
Click to enlarge picture.
 (a) |
 (b) |
 (c) |
(d) |
 (e) |
 (f) |
Where:
(a) Elisa default user interface.
(b) Tracks category showing some audio found in the Music directory, imported automatically.
(c) Elisa plays an audio from the playlist.
(d) Elisa shows contents of the Music file directory. Some MP3 files visible there.
(e) Elisa plays an online radio streaming or podcast from British Council.
(f) About Elisa window showing some information such as description, copyright/licensing and initial release year.
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Description
Elisa is the default audio and music player on Kubuntu. In the past, this position was held by Cantata and Amarok. Elisa is part of KDE Applications in the same way Dolphin and Discover are. Elisa's features include a simple and easy to use interface, standard audio playback (play, pause, loop, random, seek) and custom playlists as well as abilities to arrange audios based on Albums, Artists, Files etc. It is also capable to play online radio streamings. It also comes with a high quality user manual.
(Elisa playing an audio recording of American English)
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Purposes
Kubuntu users use Elisa to:
1. Play audio and music, like MP3 and OGG files, among others.
2. Play a playlist of several audio tracks in normal, loop or random order.
3. Play an online radio or podcast, some are already available built-in.
3. Organize their audio collection based on Recently Played or other categories.
4. Study a field of knowledge through audio records, such as language and religion. For example, we Muslims listen to Al Qur'an.
and many more!
How to run Elisa application
From the application launcher:
1. Click Kubuntu logo.
2. Type "elisa" and click Elisa icon.
3. Elisa runs. Done.
From Dolphin file manager:
1. Navigate to a directory containing an audio file e.g. MP3 or OGG.
2. Right-click the audio file -> Open With -> Elisa.
3. Elisa runs and plays the audio. Done.
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How to play audio with Elisa
1. Run Elisa.
2. Select Files category from the left panel.
3. Navigate to a directory containing audio files e.g. MP3 or OGG.
4. Click the black triangle "Play" on the top toolbar.
5. All audio files will move to playlist and the first one will play. Done.
6. Alternatively, do "From Dolphin file manager" section above if you prefer not to open files directly from Elisa.
(Elisa with Files category selected, showing a few MP3 files and mouse pointer points over "Play now" button)
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Commands and Integration with Kubuntu Desktop
To run Elisa from command line, run Konsole then type this followed by Enter:
$ elisa
Elisa appears as an "Open With" option for every audio file on Dolphin File Manager.
Elisa shows its playback indicator and control buttons (pause, next, previous) when mouse pointer points over its icon on panel.
Elisa icon does not replace default audio icon on Dolphin. Instead, all audio files will look as a generic icon (a CD cover with a music symbol) on Dolphin. This behavior is different to many Microsoft Windows users' experience where all audio files might look as Winamp icon for example. See How to play audio section above.
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Supported Formats
- mp3
- flac
- wav
- m3u
- and many more.
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Location on the Screen and System
- Elisa is located at the application launcher.
- Elisa can be located at the desktop, if user moves it out from the launcher.
- Elisa, while playing, will show as a task between running tasks on the panel.
- Elisa can be found on Discover as an installed application and is ready to manage.
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Documentation and User Manual for Elisa
Press F1 on Elisa to show the User Manual. It covers a few chapters and pictures of how to use Elisa as well as information about its author and licensing.
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Similar Programs
Amarok - the oldest audio player default to Kubuntu in the past. Replaced by Cantata.
Cantata - the audio player of Kubuntu, now replaced by Elisa. The development is discontinued.
Rhythmbox - the audio player default to Ubuntu GNOME.
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Contributing to Elisa
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See Also
Setup Cantata Music Player (2018) - a chapter in our long review article about Kubuntu Bionic Beaver.
Setup Amarok Audio Player (2024) - it is continuing development!
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In This Series
List of Kubuntu (KDE) Default Applications and Their Purposes
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References
Elisa Source Code Development at KDE Invent