Clare L. Henderson

Towards the digital music library: tune retrieval from acoustic input

Music is traditionally retrieved by title, composer or subjectclassification. It is possible, with current technology, toretrieve music from a database on the basis of a few notes sung orhummed into a microphone. This paper describes the implementationof such a system, and discusses several issues pertaining to musicretrieval. We first describe an interface that transcribes acousticinput into standard music notation. We then analyze string matchingrequirements for ranked retrieval of music and present the resultsof an experiment which tests how accurately people sing well knownmelodies. The performance of several string matching criteria areanalyzed using two folk song databases. Finally, we describe aprototype system which has been developed for retrieval of tunesfrom acoustic input.

Tune Retrieval in the Multimedia Library

Musical scores are traditionally retrieved by title, composer or subject classification. Just as multimedia computer systems increase the range of opportunities available for presenting musical information, so they also offer new ways of posing musically-oriented queries. This paper shows how scores can be retrieved from a database on the basis of a few notes sung or hummed into a microphone. The design of such a facility raises several interesting issues pertaining to music retrieval. We first describe an interface that transcribes acoustic input into standard music notation. We then analyze string matching requirements for ranked retrieval of music and present the results of an experiment which tests how accurately people sing well known melodies. The performance of several string matching criteria are analyzed using two folk song databases. Finally, we describe a prototype system which has been developed for retrieval of tunes from acoustic input and evaluate its performance.

Examining and disrupting rituals of practice in the primary classroom

Much of what happens in primary classrooms reflects a number of rituals and routines that have largely become an unconscious part of teachers’ repertoires. While these ‘rituals of practice’ provide a framework or structure to learning in classrooms, they are often left unexamined. These taken-for-granted ways of teaching require close examination in order to ascertain their merit or otherwise for childrens learning. This paper outlines some rituals of practice in primary classrooms in the Arts (dance, drama, music and visual art). It outlines the nature of these rituals and discusses how some were disrupted by teachers-as-researchers in collaboration with their university colleagues in a joint research project. The findings suggest that research partnerships of this nature provide a supportive environment for questioning assumptions and enacting alternatives that promote learning.

Vocal accuracy in performance of well‐known melodies

Vocalization is an important aspect of music making, regardless of the culture. Psychologists have carried out considerable research on human melody recognition and perception, which includes anaysis of musical cognitive processes. However, questions that relate directly to the ways in which people perform what they recall have been left largely unanswered. In this experiment, a number of people were asked to sing, from memory, ten well‐known songs. Their performances were recorded on audio tape and analyzed and compared with notated versions of the songs. The results showed that pitch maintenance was more accurate when songs moved by steps rather than leaps and when intervals moved up rather than down. Pitch problems were more prevalent in songs using downward leaps or changes of tonality. Wide leaps, such as fifths or sixths, were often compressed, with subjects singing the top note of an ascending interval flat, or the bottom of a descending interval sharp. The results of this experiment have useful applications for musicologists, music educators, composers, and those involved with data retrieval processes.