Others

Apart from the main sample applications CLAM has been used in many different projects that are not included in the public version either because the projects themselves have not reached an stable stage or because their results are protected by non-disclosure agreements with third parties. In this section we will outline these other users of CLAM.

The Time Machine project implemented a high quality time stretching algorithm that was later integrated and included in a commercial product [Bonada, 2000]. The algorithm uses multi-band processing and works in real-time. It is a clear example of how the core of CLAM processing can be used in isolation as it lacks of any GUI or audio input/output infrastructure.

The Vocal Processor (see figure 3.15) is a prototype also developed for a third party. It is a VST plug-in for singing voice transformations. It includes transformations such as smart harmonization, hoarseness, whispering or formant change. This prototype was a chance to test CLAM integration into VST API and also to check the efficiency of the framework in highly demanding situations (see 1.1.5). Most transformations are implemented in the frequency domain and the plug-in must work in real-time consuming as few resources as possible.

Figure 3.15: The Vocal Processor

The CUIDADO IST European project [Vinet et al., 2002] was completely developed with CLAM. The focus of the project was on automatic analysis of audio files. In particular rhythmic and melodic descriptions were implemented. The CLAM code was integrated as a binary dll into a commercial product named the Sound Palette (see figure 3.16). The algorithms and research applications are currently being integrated into the CLAM project and incorporated into standalone sample applications such as the Swinger, an application that computes rhythmic descriptors from a sound file and applying a time-stretching algorithm is able to change the swing of the piece (see figure 3.17).

Figure 3.16: The Sound Palette

Figure 3.17: The Swinger

The Open Drama project was another IST European project that used CLAM extensively. The project focus was on finding new interactive ways to present opera. In particular, a prototype application called MDTools was built to create an MPEG-7 compliant description of a complete opera play (see figure 3.18).

Figure 3.18: MD Tools

The AudioClass project aims at building automatic tools for managing large collections of audio effects. Analysis algorithms implemented in CLAM have been integrated and are called from a web application. The results are then added to a large metadata database.

Also CLAM is being used for educational purposes in different ways. On one hand, it is the base for a course on Music and Audio Programming. On the other hand it is the base of many Master Thesis. In this context, it has been used for applications such as Voice-to-MIDI conversion, Timbre Space based synthesis and morph, or song identification. All these results are by definition public and will be integrated into the public repository.

Finally, CLAM is also currently being used in different internal projects that will also someday be integrated. Probably the most important is the SIMAC IST European project. The software output of this project will be three prototypes: a music annotator application, a music collection organizer and browser, and a music recommendation engine. All of them are being developed in CLAM.

Rappid [Robledo, 2002] is a testing workbench for the CLAM framework in high demanding situations. The first version of Rappid implements a quite simple time-domain amplitude modulation algorithm. Any other CLAM based algorithm, though, can be used in its place. Next picture illustrates the basic diagrams of the application. The most interesting thing about Rappid is the way that multithreading issues are handled, using a watchdog mechanism. The current implementation works only under GNU/Linux. Rappid has been tested in a live-concert situation. Gabriel Brnic used Rappid as a essential part of his composition for harp, viola and tape, presented at the Multiphonies 2002 cycle of concerts in Paris.