Music 225 - Project 01: Song Chart

Qualitative Descriptors for Audio Content

Pitch/Frequency
High
Mid
Low

Tonal Balance
Bright (dominance of high frequencies)
Dark (de-emphasis of high frequencies)
Harsh (dominance of midrange frequencies)
Mellow (de-emphasis of midrange frequencies)
Fat (dominance of low frequencies)
Thin (de-emphasis of low frequencies)

Attack
Plucked (like a harp)
Strummed (like a guitar)
Struck (like a drum)
Bowed (like a violin)
Swell (no attack, just sustain)
Reversed (sustain comes first, then attack)

Clarity
Clean (like a piano)
Dirty/Distorted (like a rock n’ roll guitar)
Hi-Fi (like a high-tech modern recording)
Lo-Fi (like a very old recording or a heavily-compressed MP3 file)
Clear
Murky

Resonance/Reverberation
Ringy (lots of resonance)
Dull (little or no resonance)
Wet (lots of resonance)
Dry (little or no resonance)