Consistency of timbre patterns in expressive music performance

International audienceMusical interpretation is an intricate process due to the inter- action of the musician's gesture and the physical possibilities of the instrument. From a perceptual point of view, these elements induce variations in rhythm, acoustical energy and timbre. This study aims at showing the importance of timbre variations as an important attribute of musical interpretation. For this purpose, a general protocol aiming at emphasizing specific timbre patterns from the analysis of recorded musical sequences is proposed. An example of the results obtained by analyzing clarinet sequences is presented, showing stable timbre variations and their correlations with both rhythm and energy deviations. this study, we aim at checking if timbre also follows systematic variations on natural clarinet sounds. We shall first describe a general methodology developed to analyze and compare recorded musical performances in order to point out consistency of timbre, rhythmic and intensity patterns in expressive music performance. An application of this methodol- ogy to twenty recorded musical sequences of the same clarinettist is then given. Eventually, we show that timbre, as rhythm and in

Controlling a non linear friction model for evocative sound synthesis applications

International audienceIn this paper, a flexible strategy to control a synthesis model of sounds produced by non linear friction phenomena is proposed for guidance or musical purposes. It enables to synthesize different types of sounds, such a creaky door, a singing glass or a squeaking wet plate. This approach is based on the action/object paradigm that enables to propose a synthesis strategy using classical linear filtering techniques (source/resonance approach) which provide an efficient implementation. Within this paradigm, a sound can be considered as the result of an action (e.g. impacting, rubbing, ...) on an object (plate, bowl, ...). However, in the case of non linear friction phenomena, simulating the physical coupling between the action and the object with a completely decoupled source/resonance model is a real and relevant challenge. To meet this challenge, we propose to use a synthesis model of the source that is tuned on recorded sounds according to physical and spectral observations. This model enables to synthesize many types of non linear behaviors. A control strategy of the model is then proposed by defining a flexible physically informed mapping between a descriptor, and the non linear synthesis behavior. Finally, potential applications to the remediation of motor diseases are presented. In all sections, video and audio materials are available at the following URL: http://www.lma.cnrs-mrs.fr/~kronland/thoretDAFx2013

Exploring the usability of sound strategies for guiding task: toward a generalization of sonification design

International audienceThis article aims at providing a new Parameter Mapping Sonification approach in order to facilitate and generalize sonification design for different applications. First a definition of the target as a con-cept that enables a general sonification strategy that is not limited to specific data types is given. This concept intends to facilitate the sepa-ration between sound and information to display. Rather than directly displaying data dimensions through the variation of a specific sound pa-rameter, the approach aims at displaying the distance between a given data value and the requested value. Then a taxonomy of sound strategies based on sound that allow the construction of several strategy types is presented. Finally, several sound strategies are evaluated with a user ex-periment and the taxonomy is discussed on the basis of user's guidance behavior during a guiding task

From shape to sound: sonification of two dimensional curves by reenaction of biological movements

International audienceSonifying two dimensional data is a common problem. In this study, we propose a method to synthesize sonic metaphors of two dimensional curves based on the mental representation of the sound produced by the friction of the pencil when somebody is drawing or writing on a paper. The relevance of such approach is firstly presented. Secondly, synthesis of friction sounds allows to investigate the relevance of the kinematics in the perception of a gesture underlying a sound. In third part, a biological law linking the curvature of a shape to the velocity of the gesture which have draw the shape is calibrated from the auditory point of view. It enables to generate friction sounds with a physically based synthesis model from a given shape

Car door closure sounds: characterization of perceptual properties through analysis-synthesis approach

International audienceThe aim of this study is to identify perceptually pertinent parameters for the evaluation of car door closure sounds. For this purpose, perceptual properties of recorded sounds were first evaluated by sensory metrology. Then, an analysis-synthesis approach was chosen in order to identify perceptually pertinent signal parameters. The analysis part of this process first consisted in decomposing the sound in several independent impact sources using the Empirical Modal Decomposition method. Each impact is then modeled by a set of gains and damping factors in each critical band (ERB). These parameters were further used to synthesize sounds related to various aspects of the door closure sound with a real-time tool. This approach allowed for the generation of realistic, synthesized car door closure sounds that preserve perceptual properties with a reduced number of signal parameters. Listening tests finally allowed for the observation of the influence of the main signal parameters on the perceptual properties of such action-related impact sounds

On the potentiality of abstract sounds in perception research

International audienceRecognition of sound sources and events is an important process in sound perception and has been studied in many research domains. Conversely sounds that cannot be recognized are not often studied except by electroacoustic music composers. Besides, considerations on recognition of sources might help to address the problem of stimulus selection and categorization of sounds in the context of perception research. This paper introduces what we call abstract sounds with the existing musical background and shows their relevance for different applications

How does interior car noise alter driver's perception of motion? Multisensory integration in speed perception

International audienceAcoustic feedback inside a car is composed of different sources, which give information on the drivers actions and the dynamic state of the car. This acoustic feedback influences the drivers perception of movement in a multisensory integration. The development of electric motorizations brings new balance between noise sources inside the car, due to the loss of engine sound that is present in traditional internal combustion engine cars. To study the influence of this modified noise source balance on driving, we focused on speed perception. A car simulator was used for this purpose. 24 participants were asked to accelerate up to a given target speed, while the speedometer was hidden. We studied the speed they actually reached with three acoustic feedbacks (engine, electric motor, no sound), in two visual conditions (night and day). We found out that acoustic feedback can alter the drivers speed perception

Økonomien i landbruket i Trøndelag 2014

Rapporten viser det økonomiske resultat for gårdsbruk i Trøndelag i 2014, og utviklingen i sentrale økonomiske nøkkeltall fra 2005 til 2014. For skogbruket viser rapporten resultater for et større geografisk område der også Helgeland og kommunene nord for Romsdalsfjorden er med. Resultatene er basert på gårdsbruk som har vært med i driftsgranskningene i disse regionene

Synchronizing Gestures with Friction Sounds: Work in Progress

International audienceThis paper presents a work in progress dealing with the sensorimotor relation between auditory perception and graphical movements. An experiment where subjects were asked to synchronize their gestures with synthetic friction sounds is presented. A first qualitative analysis enabled to evaluate the influence of different intrinsic sound parameters on the characteristics of the synchronized gesture. This preliminary experiment provides a formal framework for a wider study which aims to evaluate the relation between audition, vision and gestures