|
What
is PerfectPitch?
PerfectPitch
(PP) is a free music database that is of use to a broad range of people
interested in Latin music: from salsa dancing through to merengue mp3
files. It is a tool we developed to help our members understand and
choose Latin music, and applies especially to those who are or aspire
to be, dancers, instructors, musicians, and DJs.
PerfectPitch
is more than just a database - it is a search engine, system of cataloguing
and of use purposefully designed to help you find the right music. It
is populated with about 3,000 records containing objective and subjective
information, complete with links to short mp3s:
Objective
Artist name, Album title, Track number, Track title, Track length, mp3
track sample
Subjective
Track tempo, Rhythm type, Accessibility, DJ rating, Album rating
Notes:
mp3 track sample
Each sample is thirty seconds long, obtained from the "meat"
of the track. In mono 22kHz mp3 format.
Track tempo
This was determined by counting manually the number of dance beats over
two minutes, then dividing the number by two to halve the error. Compound
rhythms render the classification of dance beats as subjective.
Rhythm type
Described using either a two or one letter code. Songs with distinct
changes in rhythm type have slashes separating them e.g. 3/C/M for Chachachá
then Cumbia then Merengue. Combinations of rhythms not separated are
compound rhythms e.g. BoC3 (or B3) for Bolero-Chá
- -- unspecified
- Ba
Bachata
- Bo
or B Bolero
- C3
or 3 Chachachá
- Co
Conga
- Cu
or C Cumbia
- Gu
or G Guaguanco
- Lj
Latin Jazz
- Ma
Mambo
- Me
or M Merengue
- P Pop
- Pa
Pachanga
- Pl
Plena
- Ra
Ragga
- Re
Reggae
- Sa
or S Salsa
- Sb
Samba
- Va
Vallenato
Accessibility
"Would a non-Latin audience appreciate the song?" A tick denotes
a higher likelihood. Greater care would be required when using not-as-accessible
tracks.
DJ rating
Quality of the track on a scale of 0-3. This is based on general consensus
of use by our DJs. See Customising PerfectPitch.
Album rating
Indexed up to a theoretical maximim of 3.0. This is the average of track
rating across the entire album, and is a measure of its consistency.
Si (Sustained
intro)
The song takes more than 5 seconds to enter a dance rhythm. DJs would
generally cue in past the intro.
Se (Sustained
ending)
The song's dance rhythm ceases more than 5 seconds from the end of the
track.
|
