Toward a universal, meta-theoretical framework for music information classification and retrieval

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a new framework for representing music for information retrieval that emphasizes socio-cultural aspects of music. Design/methodology/approach – Philosophical and theoretical concepts related to the nature of music, aboutness, musical works are explored as they inform how music is represented. Multidisciplinary perspectives on music information representation, classification, and retrieval provide insight into how information science can better accommodate music information within its disciplinary boundaries. Findings – A new term, music information object (MIO), is presented and defined. Downie’s (2003) theoretical statements are reconceptualized into a theory of representational incompleteness and three meta-classes for music information object representation. Practical implications – This new framework incorporates more dimensions of music representation than existing frameworks allow and can facilitate comparisons between classifications of MIO representations by music practitioners, scholars, and system developers. Originality/value – The meta-classes form a much-needed theoretical framework for classifying and defining MIOs from any musical tradition for retrieval. This fills a gap in music information retrieval research, which lacks a theoretical framework that can accommodate musics from all traditions without attempting to organize them according to a western-centered understanding.

Epistemology beyond the brain

“…The study's purpose was to examine the nature, description, representations, and ideas related to music information objects (MIOs), illuminating how music is understood, described, and actualized or represented across cultures. Expert music practitioners from various traditions were asked to describe and conceptualize what music is and how it is represented in many forms, using a theoretical framework proposed by Weissenberger () to classify music information objects.…”

Towards global music digital libraries

“…As advocated by Weissenberger (2015), a flexible organization system is needed for MIR/MDL to meet the needs of different musical traditions. The results of this study have important implications for designing MDL of this kind.…”

“…Music seeking and consumption are no longer confined by the boundaries of country, region or culture today (Lee et al, 2013). Music, as a cultural object, may be perceived differently by people from different cultural backgrounds, imposing a challenge on music digital libraries (MDL) in meeting the needs of a diverse audience (Weissenberger, 2015). Consequently, an increasing number of researchers have started to investigate various cross-cultural issues in the music information retrieval (MIR) and MDL fields.…”

Documenting acousmatic music interpretation

“…From the perspective of Weissenberger’s (2015) MIO representation meta-classes, while the framework is based on non-mutually exclusive classes, the inclusion of a studio recording (conceptualized in the model only within interpretive’s sub-class human-generated manifestations) as a score, that is to say, the conceptualization of sound as symbolic (this point relates to the reversed creative process in this tradition, as compared to instrumental music, going from concrete material to the abstraction of the work; see Chion, 2017, p. 8) is problematic. A potential solution would be to add a sound-based sub-class to the symbolic class, which comprises already the character-based and image-based sub-classes.…”