  We propose a model for errors in sung queries, a variant of the hidden Markov
model (HMM). This is a solution to the problem of identifying the degree of
similarity between a (typically error-laden) sung query and a potential target
in a database of musical works, an important problem in the field of music
information retrieval. Similarity metrics are a critical component of
query-by-humming (QBH) applications which search audio and multimedia databases
for strong matches to oral queries. Our model comprehensively expresses the
types of error or variation between target and query: cumulative and
non-cumulative local errors, transposition, tempo and tempo changes,
insertions, deletions and modulation. The model is not only expressive, but
automatically trainable, or able to learn and generalize from query examples.
We present results of simulations, designed to assess the discriminatory
potential of the model, and tests with real sung queries, to demonstrate
relevance to real-world applications.
