Search for music by “how it sounds”
Sun Labs reports researching methods of searching for music by how it sounds, or its acoustic content, They envision a system, “Search Inside the Music.”
Using this technology people would be able to find and organize music based on lyrics, musical theme, melody, tempo, rhythm, and instrumentation. Searching by these characteristics would find music that “sounds like” the music someone has in mind. The intent is to ultimately allow someone to hum a few bars and find a recording in that way.
The researchers envision many uses, including:
- Extracting certain parts such as the chorus
- Finding one part of a long piece
- Marking selections for copyright enforcement
- Making access to specific sounds easy for composers and performers
- Changing social interactions among listeners
- Expanding capabilities to compare performances
- Increasing exposure to various kinds of music and new artists based on the sound rather than “hits”