transfer music library from iTunes on Mojave to another computer with Apple Music on Monterey

Question

I have one computer running Monterey (Mac Pro) and another one running Mojave (Macbook pro). I want to transfer my iTunes music library (all audio files and playlist and rating information) from the Mojave computer to the Monterey computer so I can listen to them in the new music app on the newer machine and ultimately pair the new machine with an iphone.

All the audio files are currently on the Monterey machine in: /Users/username/Music/iTunes/iTunes\ Media/Music/

How do I do this? Presumably I could transfer the audio files to the new machine and import them to the Music app, but that wouldn't necessarily get all the library information and playlists. I don't want to upgrade the OS on the old machine to go through the iTunes->Apple Music transition. I also don't want to transfer ALL the data on the old machine to the new one with Migration Assistant or something, but I would be fine with just transfering the audio files.

Answer 1

I believe I have (mostly) successfully done this now. The steps were:

0. Delete the ~/Music/Music on the new machine
1. Copy the iTunes folder to the new machine and put it in ~/Music to create ~/Music/iTunes
2. In iTunes on the old machine do "Export Library" to make a Library.xml file
3. Transfer the Library.xml file to the new computer
4. Open Apple Music and go to File > Library > Import Playlist and import the Library.xml file from the previous step. This was the trick. There is a temptation to do File > Import but that did nothing.

Music files, playlists, ratings, and play counts were copied over, with the exception of a few random ones that seem to be missing, but the vast majority made it.

Answer 2

I had to transfer from Mojave to Monterey, and here is how I imported my iTunes library into the now called Music. It lets you keep all info on songs, including play count and date added.

1. Transfer all your actual music files, depending of where you decided to store them, and if possible, keep the folders in the same locations on the new computer.
2. Make sure you have a copy of the old library on the new computer. It should be called "iTunes Library.itl", and can be found in ~/Music/iTunes.
3. Hold the Option (alt) key down and open Music. This will ask you to select a library file.
4. Find your library itl file in the prompt.

Your entire library, including playlists, should be restored as is. If you see a lot of "not found" songs with a "!" sign next to them, then it means you may have audio files missing, or misplaced. If you try to play a missing song, you will be asked if you want to locate it on your hard drive.