The metrical structure is a fundamental aspect of music, yet its automatic analysis from audio recordings remains one of the great challenges of Music Information Retrieval (MIR) research. This thesis is concerned with addressing the automatic analysis of changes of metrical structure over time, i.e. metric modulations. The evaluation of automatic musical analysis methods is a critical element of the MIR research and is typically performed by comparing the machine-generated estimates with human expert annotations, which are used as a proxy for ground truth. We present here two new datasets of annotations for the evaluation of metrical structure and metric modulation estimation systems. Multiple annotations allowed for the assessment of inter-annotator (dis)agreement, thereby allowing for an evaluation of the reference annotations used to evaluate the automatic systems. The rhythmogram has been identified in previous research as a feature capable of capturing characteristics of rhythmic content of a music recording. We present here a direct evaluation of its ability to characterise the metrical structure and as a result we propose a method to explicitly extract metrical structure descriptors from it. Despite generally good and increasing performance, such rhythm features extraction systems occasionally fail. When unpredictable, the failures are a barrier to usability and development of trust in MIR systems. In a bid to address this issue, we then propose a method to estimate the reliability of rhythm features extraction. Finally, we propose a two-fold method to automatically analyse metric modulations from audio recordings. On the one hand, we propose a method to detect metrical structure changes from the rhythmogram feature in an unsupervised fashion. On the other hand, we propose a metric modulations taxonomy rooted in music theory that relies on metrical structure descriptors that can be automatically estimated. Bringing these elements together lays the ground for the automatic production of a musicological interpretation of metric modulations.

This thesis is concerned with computational methods for alignment and score-informed transcription of piano music. Firstly, several methods are proposed to improve the alignment robustness and accuracywhen various versions of one piece of music showcomplex differences with respect to acoustic conditions or musical interpretation. Secondly, score to performance alignment is applied to enable score-informed transcription. Although music alignment methods have considerably improved in accuracy in recent years, the task remains challenging. The research in this thesis aims to improve the robustness for some cases where there are substantial differences between versions and state-of-the-art methods may fail in identifying a correct alignment. This thesis first exploits the availability of multiple versions of the piece to be aligned. By processing these jointly, the alignment process can be stabilised by exploiting additional examples of how a section might be interpreted or which acoustic conditions may arise. Two methods are proposed, progressive alignment and profile HMM, both adapted from the multiple biological sequence alignment task. Experiments demonstrate that these methods can indeed improve the alignment accuracy and robustness over comparable pairwise methods. Secondly, this thesis presents a score to performance alignment method that can improve the robustness in cases where some musical voices, such as the melody, are played asynchronously to others - a stylistic device used in musical expression. The asynchronies between the melody and the accompaniment are handled by treating the voices as separate timelines in a multi-dimensional variant of dynamic time warping (DTW). The method measurably improves the alignment accuracy for pieces with asynchronous voices and preserves the accuracy otherwise. Once an accurate alignment between a score and an audio recording is available, the score information can be exploited as prior knowledge in automatic music transcription (AMT), for scenarios where score is available, such as music tutoring. Score-informed dictionary learning is used to learn the spectral pattern of each pitch that describes the energy distribution of the associated notes in the recording. More precisely, the dictionary learning process in non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) is constrained using the aligned score. This way, by adapting the dictionary to a given recording, the proposed method improves the accuracy over the state-of-the-art.

This paper attempts to unpack a few of the vast array of assumptions implicit in how "the technology" known as Napster was understood by several of its key constituencies. Our approach examines discourse about Napster in several areas - legal, economic, social, and cultural. This approach enables us to understand "the technology" as an ongoing encounter, rather than the accomplishment of any one inventor, team of inventors, dominant institution, or rule of law. We do not offer proscriptive advice. While there is value in other research that has tried to determine the "impact of Napster on" a particular market or industry, we argue that a multidimensional understanding is necessary both as a foundation for such research as well as in its own right. In only the past four years, dominant interpretations of Napster have not only emerged, but also have been inscribed into laws, business plans, and purchasing decisions, in effect, determining what "tools" - precedents, myths, data sets, prior objects, capabilities - will be available in the future. Our paper tries to show how and why certain (subjective) significations increasingly have taken on the status of truth, while other (equally subjective) discourses have been pushed farther and farther out to the fringes

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Rutgers University, 2007. / "Graduate Program in Communication, Information and Library Studies." Includes bibliographical references (p. 149-158).

Typescript. Includes bibliographical references.

Dissertation (Ed.D.)--The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2010. / Directed by Carl Lashley; submitted to the Dept. of Educational Leadership and Cultural Foundations. Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Jul. 9, 2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 124-129).

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if a select group of adolescents exhibited behaviors and practices regarding digital music discovery, production, and sharing that influenced their classroom music instruction. The qualitative study focused on ways in which a group of adolescents informally engaged with digital music in relationship to learning music in their classroom. A constructivist–interpretivist viewpoint framed the theoretical perspective that a person’s knowledge constructions take place within the context of social interaction. In the early 21st century, young people interacting via digital social networking can experience and share music in ways previous generations could not imagine. Peer learning and exchange occur when adolescents share musical ideas and digital artifacts. In addition, autonomous learning takes place while interacting with a digital device. I used Mayer’s (2002) cognitive theory of multimedia learning to support an understanding of the learning effects associated with content-rich digital experiences. Linking social-constructivist and multimedia educational theories provided the conceptual framework needed to extrapolate meaning from adolescents’ preferences, influences, and feelings regarding digital musicking. In an instrumental case study, I followed four high school participants and their music teacher over the course of 6 months. The data consisted of participants’ detailed reflections and perspectives regarding digital music media discovery, production, and sharing. Detailed accounts collected from interviews and observations illustrated the behaviors of the participants, building a thick description. Although the research focused on adolescents, viewpoints of others emerged throughout the study, including those of peers, colleagues, and family members. Consequently, the investigation also considered what music teachers understood about their students’ out of school digital music discovery, production, and sharing. Findings show the convergence and divergence of digital music engagement in a high school music setting. Themes of experiencing music for personal identity, creativity, and popular culture intermix in classroom and informal learning environments. I present outcomes indicating direct implications for music curriculum development and suggest paths to connect in school and out of school music learning via digital music experiences. This study might help contemporary music teachers take advantage of students’ out of school digital music media practices to strengthen in school music programs.

A convergência entre tecnologia, internet e música resultou em grandes desafios para a indústria fonográfica mundial. Apesar do crescimento no volume de receitas de música digital, a indústria fonográfica vem diminuindo significativamente nos últimos anos. Para atrair novos clientes e competir com outras formas de aquisição de música na rede, as gravadoras e os provedores de serviços de música on-line precisam descobrir quem são e como se comportam os seus clientes em potencial. O objetivo deste trabalho foi explorar e descrever características e comportamentos, não apenas dos usuários de música digital, mas também daquelas pessoas que querem pagar ou não querem utilizar, a fim de entender de forma mais ampla e segura o contexto desse mercado. A pesquisa contou com duas fases: a primeira procurou identificar características e comportamentos de usuários e não-usuários de acordo com a literatura e dados mundiais sobre o assunto. No segundo momento, foi realizada uma pesquisa quantitativa para mensurar as variáveis que mais tarde serviram para descrever o perfil das pessoas que usam música digital. A coleta de dados foi realizada em redes sociais com auxílio da técnica “bola de neve”, em que, após preenchimento dos questionários, as pessoas indicavam outras a participar. Com isso, foram coletados 574 questionários. Através de técnicas estatísticas, foi possível descrever o perfil de usuários, não-usuários e pessoas com intenção de pagar pela música digital. Estas foram as principais descobertas deste estudo: 1) 88,5% dos internautas são usuários de música digital; 2) seu perfil está significativamente relacionado com o perfil de uso da internet (redes sociais e entretenimento); 3) os não-usuários deixam de utilizar música digital principalmente pela falta de conhecimento de como fazê-lo; 4) 66,4% das pessoas tem intenção de pagar pela música digital; 5) e compartilham uma característica: compram com frequência pela internet; 6) pessoas com intenção de pagar pela música digital percebem a diferença entre música legal e ilegal além de atribuir baixo grau de importância para a internet. Espera-se que este estudo promova ações de marketing eficientes, orientadas para o cliente em duas frentes: na captação e na manutenção de usuários. / The convergence of Internet and music resulted in great challenges for the recording industry worldwide. Despite the revenue growth of digital music, the music industry has declined significantly in recent years. To attract new customers and compete with other ways of getting music on the network, record companies and on-line music providers must figure out who their potential customers are. The objective of this study was to explore and describe the characteristics and behavior not only of users of digital music, but also of those people who want to pay or are unwilling to use it in order to fully understand the context of this market. The research had two phases: the first one attempted to identify the determining variables of users and nonusers according to literature on the subject. In the second phase, a quantitative survey was carried out to measure these characteristics that later served to describe the profile of people who use digital music. Data were gathered from social networks based on the “snowball” technique, in which, after completing the questionnaires, people indicated others to participate. 574 questionnaires were collected. Through statistical techniques, it was possible to describe the profile of users, nonusers, and people willing to pay for digital music. These were the main findings of this study: 1) 88.5% of Internet users are also digital music users; 2) their profile is significantly related to the profile of Internet usage (social networking and entertainment), 3) non-users fail to adopt digital music mainly by lack of knowledge on how to do it; 4) 66.4% of people intend to pay for digital music; 5) they share one characteristic: they frequently shop online; 6) people who pay for digital music realize the difference between legal and illegal music and attribute a low degree of importance to the internet. This study is expected to promote efficient customer-oriented marketing actions, both to attract and maintain users.

A convergência entre tecnologia, internet e música resultou em grandes desafios para a indústria fonográfica mundial. Apesar do crescimento no volume de receitas de música digital, a indústria fonográfica vem diminuindo significativamente nos últimos anos. Para atrair novos clientes e competir com outras formas de aquisição de música na rede, as gravadoras e os provedores de serviços de música on-line precisam descobrir quem são e como se comportam os seus clientes em potencial. O objetivo deste trabalho foi explorar e descrever características e comportamentos, não apenas dos usuários de música digital, mas também daquelas pessoas que querem pagar ou não querem utilizar, a fim de entender de forma mais ampla e segura o contexto desse mercado. A pesquisa contou com duas fases: a primeira procurou identificar características e comportamentos de usuários e não-usuários de acordo com a literatura e dados mundiais sobre o assunto. No segundo momento, foi realizada uma pesquisa quantitativa para mensurar as variáveis que mais tarde serviram para descrever o perfil das pessoas que usam música digital. A coleta de dados foi realizada em redes sociais com auxílio da técnica “bola de neve”, em que, após preenchimento dos questionários, as pessoas indicavam outras a participar. Com isso, foram coletados 574 questionários. Através de técnicas estatísticas, foi possível descrever o perfil de usuários, não-usuários e pessoas com intenção de pagar pela música digital. Estas foram as principais descobertas deste estudo: 1) 88,5% dos internautas são usuários de música digital; 2) seu perfil está significativamente relacionado com o perfil de uso da internet (redes sociais e entretenimento); 3) os não-usuários deixam de utilizar música digital principalmente pela falta de conhecimento de como fazê-lo; 4) 66,4% das pessoas tem intenção de pagar pela música digital; 5) e compartilham uma característica: compram com frequência pela internet; 6) pessoas com intenção de pagar pela música digital percebem a diferença entre música legal e ilegal além de atribuir baixo grau de importância para a internet. Espera-se que este estudo promova ações de marketing eficientes, orientadas para o cliente em duas frentes: na captação e na manutenção de usuários. / The convergence of Internet and music resulted in great challenges for the recording industry worldwide. Despite the revenue growth of digital music, the music industry has declined significantly in recent years. To attract new customers and compete with other ways of getting music on the network, record companies and on-line music providers must figure out who their potential customers are. The objective of this study was to explore and describe the characteristics and behavior not only of users of digital music, but also of those people who want to pay or are unwilling to use it in order to fully understand the context of this market. The research had two phases: the first one attempted to identify the determining variables of users and nonusers according to literature on the subject. In the second phase, a quantitative survey was carried out to measure these characteristics that later served to describe the profile of people who use digital music. Data were gathered from social networks based on the “snowball” technique, in which, after completing the questionnaires, people indicated others to participate. 574 questionnaires were collected. Through statistical techniques, it was possible to describe the profile of users, nonusers, and people willing to pay for digital music. These were the main findings of this study: 1) 88.5% of Internet users are also digital music users; 2) their profile is significantly related to the profile of Internet usage (social networking and entertainment), 3) non-users fail to adopt digital music mainly by lack of knowledge on how to do it; 4) 66.4% of people intend to pay for digital music; 5) they share one characteristic: they frequently shop online; 6) people who pay for digital music realize the difference between legal and illegal music and attribute a low degree of importance to the internet. This study is expected to promote efficient customer-oriented marketing actions, both to attract and maintain users.

abstract: Social media offers a powerful platform for the independent digital content producer community to develop, disperse, and maintain their brands. In terms of information systems research, the broad majority of the work has not examined hedonic consumption on Social Media Sites (SMS). The focus has mostly been on the organizational perspectives and utilitarian gains from these services. Unlike through traditional commerce channels, including e-commerce retailers, consumption enhancing hedonic utility is experienced differently in the context of a social media site; consequently, the dynamic of the decision-making process shifts when it is made in a social context. Previous research assumed a limited influence of a small, immediate group of peers. But the rules change when the network of peers expands exponentially. The assertion is that, while there are individual differences in the level of susceptibility to influence coming from others, these are not the most important pieces of the analysis--unlike research centered completely on influence. Rather, the context of the consumption can play an important role in the way social influence factors affect consumer behavior on Social Media Sites. Over the course of three studies, this dissertation will examine factors that influence consumer decision-making and the brand personalities created and interpreted in these SMS. Study one examines the role of different types of peer influence on consumer decision-making on Facebook. Study two observes the impact of different types of producer message posts with the different types of influence on decision-making on Twitter. Study three will conclude this work with an exploratory empirical investigation of actual twitter postings of a set of musicians. These studies contribute to the body of IS literature by evaluating the specific behavioral changes related to consumption in the context of digital social media: (a) the power of social influencers in contrast to personal preferences on SMS, (b) the effect on consumers of producer message types and content on SMS at both the profile level and the individual message level. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Business Administration 2013