In most privative approaches to melodic structure, the only phonological operations deemed possible are those involving the linking and delinking of primes. However, within an Element Theory model where no independent ATR prime is recognized, this restriction must be relaxed in order to accommodate cases of tongue root harmony. In response, we propose a view of melodic structure in which every ...

NEUMA is an on-line library that stores collections of symbolic scores and proposes a public interface to search for melodic pieces based on several kinds of patterns: pitchesbased, with or without rhythms, transposed or not. In addition, searches can be either exact or approximate. We describe an index structure apt at supporting all these searches in a consistent setting. Its distinctive feat...

We propose a new musical interface, TrAP (TRace-A-Phrase) for generating phrases of Hindustani Classical Music (HCM). In this system the user traces melodic phrases on a tablet interface to create phrases in a raga. We begin by analyzing tracings drawn by 28 participants, and train a classifier to categorize them into one of four melodic categories from the theory of Hindustani Music. Then we c...

We present a memory-based model for melodic segmentation based on the notion of melodic density. The model emphasises the role of short-term memory and time in music listening, by modelling the effects of recency in the perception of boundaries. We describe the model in detail and compare it with Cambouropoulos’ Local Boundary Detection Model for a series of melody examples. First results indic...

This study characterizes the prosodic structure of the TV news speaking style in Brazil and compares it to the speech of interview subjects on a television talk show. Fifteen distinct metrics, designed to characterize both temporal and melodic characteristics of speech, were evaluated on the two speaking styles. The results of the analysis show that the TV news speaking style is characterized b...

Identifying a musical work from a melodic fragment is a task that most people are able to accomplish with relative ease. For some time now researchers have worked to give computers this ability as well, as it would be the cornerstone of any query-by-humming system. To accomplish this, it is reasonable to study how humans are able to perform this task, and to assess what features we use to deter...

Previous studies testing the production and evaluation of musical scales revealed a preference for Pythagorean intonation among violinists whereas pianists preferred equal temperament, with non-musicians showing no clear preferences. This study investigates preferences for four musical tuning systems using chord sequences and excerpts from musical compositions performed in different instrumenta...

Recently developed parts of a computer program are presented that contain a rule system which automatically converts music scores to musical performance, and which, in a sense, can be regarded as a model of a musically gifted player. The development of the rule system has followed the analysis-by-synthesis strategy; various rules have been formulated according to the suggestions of a profession...

Singing has been used in language rehabilitation for decades, yet controversy remains over its effectiveness and mechanisms of action. Melodic Intonation Therapy (MIT) is the most well-known singing-based therapy; however, speculation surrounds when and how it might improve outcomes in aphasia and other language disorders. While positive treatment effects have been variously attributed to diffe...

The ability to make sense of the music in our environment involves sophisticated cognitive mechanisms that, for most people, are acquired effortlessly and in early life. A special population of individuals, with a disorder termed congenital amusia, report lifelong difficulties in this regard. Exploring the nature of this developmental disorder provides a window onto the cognitive architecture o...