Despite many practical limitations imposed by mobile device platforms and application execution environments, vocal musical performances may be captured and continuously pitch-corrected for mixing and rendering with backing tracks in ways that create compelling user experiences. Based on the techniques described herein, even mere amateurs are encouraged to share with friends and family or to collaborate and contribute vocal performances as part of virtual “glee clubs.” In some implementations, these interactions are facilitated through social network- and/or eMail-mediated sharing of performances and invitations to join in a group performance. Using uploaded vocals captured at clients such as a mobile device, a content server (or service) can mediate such virtual glee clubs by manipulating and mixing the uploaded vocal performances of multiple contributing vocalists.

A method for processing a voice signal by an electronic system to create a song is disclosed. The method comprises the steps in the electronic system of acquiring an input singing voice recording (11); estimating a musical key (15b) and a Tempo (15a) from the singing voice recording (11); defining a tuning control (16) and a timing control (17) able to align the singing voice recording (11) with the estimated musical key (15b) and Tempo (15a); applying the tuning control (16) and the timing control (17) to the singing voice recording (11) so that an aligned voice recording (20) is obtained. Next, the method comprises the step of generating an music accompaniment (23) as function of the estimated musical key (15b) and Tempo (15a) and an arrangement database (22) and mixing the aligned voice recording (20) and the music accompaniment (23) to obtain the song (12). A system a server and a device are also disclosed.

Embodiments described herein relate generally to systems comprising a display device, a display device-coupled computing platform, a mobile device in communication with the computing platform, and a content server in which methods and techniques of capture and/or processing of audiovisual performances are described and, in particular, description of techniques suitable for use in connection with display device connected computing platforms for rendering vocal performance captured by a handheld computing device.

Vocal musical performances may be captured and, in some cases or embodiments, pitch-corrected and/or processed in accord with a user selectable vocal effects schedule for mixing and rendering with backing tracks in ways that create compelling user experiences. In some cases, the vocal performances of individual users are captured on mobile devices in the context of a karaoke-style presentation of lyrics in correspondence with audible renderings of a backing track. Such performances can be pitch-corrected in real-time at the mobile device in accord with pitch correction settings. Vocal effects schedules may also be selectively applied to such performances. In these ways, even amateur user/performers with imperfect pitch are encouraged to take a shot at “stardom” and/or take part in a game play, social network or vocal achievement application architecture that facilitates musical collaboration on a global scale and/or, in some cases or embodiments, to initiate revenue generating in-application transactions.

Disclosed herein are computer-implemented method, system, and computer-readable storage-medium embodiments for implementing template-based excerpting and rendering of multimedia performances technologies. An embodiment includes at least one computer processor configured to retrieve a first content instance and corresponding first metadata. The first content instance may include a first plurality of structural elements, with at least one structural element corresponding to at least part of the first metadata. The first content instance may be transformed by a rendering engine running on the at least one computer processor and/or transmitted to a content-playback device.

Techniques have been developed to facilitate (1) the capture and pitch correction of vocal performances on handheld or other portable computing devices and (2) the mixing of such pitch-corrected vocal performances with backing tracks for audible rendering on targets that include such portable computing devices and as well as desktops, workstations, gaming stations, even telephony targets. Implementations of the described techniques employ signal processing techniques and allocations of system functionality that are suitable given the generally limited capabilities of such handheld or portable computing devices and that facilitate efficient encoding and communication of the pitch-corrected vocal performances (or precursors or derivatives thereof) via wireless and/or wired bandwidth-limited networks for rendering on portable computing devices or other targets.

Techniques have been developed to facilitate (1) the capture and pitch correction of vocal performances on handheld or other portable computing devices and (2) the mixing of such pitch-corrected vocal performances with backing tracks for audible rendering on targets that include such portable computing devices and as well as desktops, workstations, gaming stations, even telephony targets. Implementations of the described techniques employ signal processing techniques and allocations of system functionality that are suitable given the generally limited capabilities of such handheld or portable computing devices and that facilitate efficient encoding and communication of the pitch-corrected vocal performances (or precursors or derivatives thereof) via wireless and/or wired bandwidth-limited networks for rendering on portable computing devices or other targets.

A system for providing mobile content to a mobile communication device includes a first computing system including one or more servers to cause a graphical user interface to be displayed at a second computing system, the graphical user interface (i) enabling a user of the second computing system to edit a digital file to create the mobile content and (ii) enabling the user of the second computing system to provide a phone number associated with the mobile communication device, the mobile communication device being separate and remote from the first computing system and the second computing system. The one or more servers of the first computing system receive, from the second computing system via the communications network, the mobile content and the phone number associated with the mobile communication device. The one or more servers of the first computing system use the phone number received from the second computing system to cause the delivery of the mobile content to the mobile communication device via a wireless communications network in a format compatible with one or more operational parameters of the mobile communication device, the one or more operational parameters including at least one of a mobile communication device type and a software platform type, wherein using the received phone number to cause the delivery of the mobile content to the mobile communication device is performed without the mobile communication device identifying the one or more operational parameters to the first computing system or the second computing system.

In some examples, a system includes a first portable computing device that audibly renders a backing track, captures and pitch corrects a vocal performance of a first user, and transmits the first user's pitch corrected vocal performance. The system may also include a second portable computing device including a data communications interface that receives the first user's pitch corrected vocal performance, an audio transducer that audibly renders a mix of the backing track and the first user's pitch corrected vocal performance, a display for concurrent presentation of lyrics temporally synchronized with a vocal score and the backing track, a microphone interface that captures a vocal performance of a second user, and pitch correction code executable on the second portable computing device to pitch correct the second user's vocal performance in accord with the vocal score to produce a composite multi-vocal performance.

Audiovisual performances, including vocal music, are captured and coordinated with those of other users in ways that create compelling user experiences. In some cases, the vocal performances of individual users are captured (together with performance synchronized video) on mobile devices, television-type display and/or set-top box equipment in the context of karaoke-style presentations of lyrics in correspondence with audible renderings of a backing track. Contributions of multiple vocalists are coordinated and mixed in a manner that selects for visually prominent presentation performance synchronized video of one or more of the contributors. Prominence of particular performance synchronized video may be based, at least in part, on computationally-defined audio features extracted from (or computed over) captured vocal audio. Over the course of a coordinated audiovisual performance timeline, these computationally-defined audio features are selective for performance synchronized video of one or more of the contributing vocalists.