What is the Clever Technology Behind Music Recognition Apps?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the technology behind music recognition apps, particularly in the context of identifying songs based on lyrics or audio samples. Participants share personal experiences, inquire about specific songs, and explore the capabilities of various music recognition applications.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant shares lyrics they noted down and seeks help in identifying the song, mentioning specific phrases they remember.
  • Several participants inquire about the genre of the song to narrow down the search.
  • Discussion includes mentions of apps like Shazam that identify songs from audio samples, with some participants expressing uncertainty about their effectiveness in noisy environments.
  • Another participant mentions apps that can identify songs based on humming, suggesting a different approach to song identification.
  • There is a debate about the total number of songs ever recorded, with some participants estimating figures in the thousands while others argue for millions, citing various types of music and artists.
  • One participant corrects their earlier quoted lyrics after checking their phone, indicating the challenges of identifying songs in noisy settings.
  • Another participant expresses curiosity about how music databases are organized and how sound matching works in music recognition technology.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the effectiveness of music recognition apps or the total number of songs ever recorded, with multiple competing views presented throughout the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Participants express uncertainty regarding the accuracy of lyrics they recall and the challenges posed by background noise when trying to identify songs.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in music recognition technology, app developers, and those curious about the history and volume of recorded music may find this discussion relevant.

StevieTNZ
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I heard a song in a restaurant last night, and noted down some of the lyrics when I could hear it a bit clearer.

The song has in the lyrics "words away from my head" and "flying into broken pieces". It is sung by a woman. Google has not been helpful as it chooses any of the keywords I put in, not necessarily joined together. Despite searching using: words away from my head +"flying into broken pieces" lyrics, and "words away from my head" +flying into broken pieces lyrics, I only get two results which are simply me asking on other websites. I realize it may not be much to go off by... I wish I was able to hear more of the lyrics over the noise. I do believe the word 'shot' is sung in the song, too.

Any help much appreciated!
 
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What genre?
 
Have you heard of the Shazzam apps that allow you to identify songs from the radio ( I think similar for TV shows)?
http://www.shazam.com/apps
 
DavidSnider said:
What genre?
No clue.

WWGD said:
Have you heard of the Shazzam apps that allow you to identify songs from the radio ( I think similar for TV shows)?
http://www.shazam.com/apps
I believe it was just song after song, no particular radio station playing. Will that app still be of use?
 
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StevieTNZ said:
No clue.I believe it was just song after song, no particular radio station playing. Will that app still be of use?

Sorry, I meant you point the app towards the source of the sound and it supposedly identifies the song's name and author. EDIT: I say supposedly, because I have heard about it, but I have not myself used it.
 
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I've seen apps where you are humming the song, and it tries to identify it. I'll have to remember the tune and use one of those, hoping it can identify the song.
 
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StevieTNZ said:
I've seen apps where you are humming the song, and it tries to identify it. I'll have to remember the tune and use one of those, hoping it can identify the song.

If you have time, please find the name of this one for me: sha na na na, nana, yeah, sha na na... :). I remember my friend , who worked at a music store ( when these existed, around 10 years ago) , that people would come to her, sounding off songs, asking her if she recognized them.
 
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WWGD said:
If you have time, please find the name of this one for me: sha na na na, nana, yeah, sha na na... :).
:DD It's my song.
 
WWGD said:
Sorry, I meant you point the app towards the source of the sound and it supposedly identifies the song's name and author. EDIT: I say supposedly, because I have heard about it, but I have not myself used it.
I saw a guy use this in a coffee shop and it worked. It connects to the internet and compares the sample against 40 billion trillion songs in an online data base. The sampled song can be being played by any device.

However, the song in question was by Jimi Hendrix, so it was not much of a challenge.
 
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  • #10
zoobyshoe said:
I saw a guy use this in a coffee shop and it worked. It connects to the internet and compares the sample against 40 billion trillion songs in an online data base. The sampled song can be being played by any device.

However, the song in question was by Jimi Hendrix, so it was not much of a challenge.
Are there a total of a billion songs ever recorded? I would estimate the total at 100,000 as a max.
 
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  • #11
If you can't google the lyrics then either you heard them wrong or the song is really obscure.
 
  • #14
Google 'identify song by lyrics'. This will return sites that specialize in ... well ... identifying songs by lyrics.
 
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  • #15
WWGD said:
Are there a total of a billion songs ever recorded? I would estimate the total at 100,000 as a max.
100,000 might cover the number of recordings made in some ancient year of commercial recording, say 1900, world wide.

The first practical sound recording and reproduction device was the mechanicalphonograph cylinder, invented by Thomas Edison in 1877 and patented in 1878.[6] The invention soon spread across the globe and over the next two decades the commercial recording, distribution and sale of sound recordings became a growing new international industry, with the most popular titles selling millions of units by the early 1900s. The development of mass-production techniques enabled cylinder recordings to become a major new consumer item in industrial countries and the cylinder was the main consumer format from the late 1880s until around 1910.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_recording_and_reproduction
 
  • #16
WWGD said:
Are there a total of a billion songs ever recorded? I would estimate the total at 100,000 as a max.
There definitely are more songs than 100,000. Just think of how many singers there are in the world. Not only famous ones, but those local, who only sing at your favourite bar. And those totally hopeless and funny who go to superstar casting and everyone laughs at them. There are also traditional folklore songs and classical music. Now estimate how many of them are in the world and we could easily get into millions of songs.
 
  • #17
I got the 2nd set of lyrics I quoted wrong: checked my phone and I noted down "breaking into flying pieces".
 
  • #18
Never mind, have found the song.

And it happens to be a New Zealand singer! Most of the lyrics I tried were wrong, because it was a bit difficult to hear the song over the noise, and some of what I thought I heard turned out to be other words.
 
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  • #19
WWGD said:
... please find the name of this one for me: sha na na na, nana, yeah, sha na na... :).
I'm guessing, but it could be ... "Get a Job" ?

​
 
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  • #20
Sophia said:
There definitely are more songs than 100,000. Just think of how many singers there are in the world. Not only famous ones, but those local, who only sing at your favourite bar. And those totally hopeless and funny who go to superstar casting and everyone laughs at them. There are also traditional folklore songs and classical music. Now estimate how many of them are in the world and we could easily get into millions of songs.
Right, but I am talking about the ones officially recorded, and existing in a centralized database. BTW, I find it interesting to see how a database of recordings would be organized: how does one search for a sound match?
 
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  • #21
StevieTNZ said:
Never mind, have found the song.

And it happens to be a New Zealand singer! Most of the lyrics I tried were wrong, because it was a bit difficult to hear the song over the noise, and some of what I thought I heard turned out to be other words.
SO WHAT IS IT? ?:)
 
  • #22
StevieTNZ said:
Never mind, have found the song.

And it happens to be a New Zealand singer! Most of the lyrics I tried were wrong, because it was a bit difficult to hear the song over the noise, and some of what I thought I heard turned out to be other words.

Mondegreens! I thought so!
 
  • #23
DaveC426913 said:
SO WHAT IS IT? ?:)
Sharon O'Neill - Words
 
  • #24
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