Advertising

The Seattle Times Company

NWjobs | NWautos | NWhomes | NWsource | Free Classifieds | seattletimes.com

The Seattle Times

Microsoft


Our network sites seattletimes.com | Advanced

Originally published Thursday, January 8, 2009 at 12:00 AM

Comments (0)     E-mail article     Print view

Microsoft's Songsmith gives amateur singers their own backup music

Amateur singers and songwriters, it's time to come out of the shower. Microsoft has a new tool that automatically generates backup music to go with original melodies and lyrics sung into a computer.

Seattle Times technology reporter

For an example of songs created with Songsmith, check out www.seattletimes.com/pri0

LAS VEGAS — Amateur singers and songwriters, it's time to come out of the shower.

Microsoft has a new tool that automatically generates backup music to go with original melodies and lyrics sung into a computer.

Songsmith, debuting today at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, lets people explore songwriting "even if you don't know anything about music theory or chords, and you never thought you'd write a song in your whole life," said Dan Morris, who helped develop it.

The software first analyzes your vocal melody using existing pitch-tracking technology. Then an algorithm the researchers built selects musical chords that will go well with the melody.

The algorithm uses approximate statistical rules, developed by analyzing a database of about 300 songs, to determine the chords that sound good with different melodies and each other.

"So then when we get a new melody, we can use the rules to generate new chords to go with that melody," Morris said.

Songsmith incorporates technology from PG Music — a Victoria, B.C., company that makes software called Band-in-a-Box — to automatically play the accompaniment in a variety of styles. People can set the software to match different moods and play around with the chords to refine their music.

Songsmith doesn't produce "a professional, Grammy-winning recording, but it is going to sound musical and it's going to give nonmusicians that sense of musical creativity," Morris said. He expects people to share their songs with friends and create music videos to post on YouTube.

The product evolved from MySong, a joint research project by Microsoft researchers Morris and Sumit Basu, and Ian Simon, a University of Washington computer-science graduate student who worked with them as an intern in 2007.

All three are music lovers and hobbyist musicians. Morris and Simon play together in a local '80s cover band called Rewind.

Simon, 29, said he was surprised to see his efforts as an intern evolve into a shipping product. (Songsmith is available at store.microsoft.com for $29.95; a free, time-limited trial is also available at research.microsoft.com/songsmith.)

"This project was incredibly fun to work on," he said. "In three months, we got to make this thing that you sing into it and chords come out. ... I may have spent more time playing with what I was making than actually making it."

Benjamin J. Romano: 206-464-2149 or bromano@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2009 The Seattle Times Company

More Microsoft headlines...

E-mail article Print view      Share:    Digg     Newsvine

Comments
No comments have been posted to this article. Start the conversation.

advertising


Get home delivery today!

Microsoft's job cuts 'complete' — for now

Microsoft to do major revamp of MSN site

Brier Dudley: Touting tech tools of the future

Movie replaces Microsoft in sponsoring Fox's 'Family Guy' special

Microsoft CEO: IT spending won't fully recover

Advertising

Video

Mourners gather at KeyArena for slain officer's memorial
Mourners gathered at KeyArena for the memorial service of Seattle police Officer Timothy Brenton on November 6, 2009.

Procession for slain SPD officer
Election Night: Approve R-71
Election Night: Reject R-71
Election Night: Joe Mallahan
Election Night: Mike McGinn
Election Night: Susan Hutchison
Election Night: Dow Constatine
Candlelight vigil for Officer Brenton
Flying Elephant on Aurora

Marketplace

nwautos

2009's most fuel-efficient sedansnew
Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment

Open Houses

Find this weekend's open house listings.
Or search by location:

 
Most read
Most commented
Most e-mailed
 
 
Advertising