01.08.2013 - Why time context?
The productive period of a music artist is important information that is typically highly correlated to his style, influences and similarities to other artists. Research has shown that the activity span is strongly associated with artist collaborations. As such, the productive years constitute a reliable, additional feature for various MIR tasks: listeners typically show a certain affection for music related to particular periods of their lives, and therefore time information could act as a basis for music recommendation. The practical applications of productivity profiles exceed the MIR domain. Productivity in absolute terms may be the most important factor for a comprehensive understanding of the creativity in music. Based on that, Kozbelt for example investigated the correlation between productivity and musical characteristics such as versatility and eminence. From a musicological perspective, a quantitative representation of productivity can offer valuable insights in music trends, significant musical events, significant social events, and the mutual influence that may exist between them.