You can now hum, whistle or sing to Google to identify a song. Wccftech / Twitter
You can now hum, whistle or sing to Google to identify a song. Wccftech / Twitter
You can now hum, whistle or sing to Google to identify a song. Wccftech / Twitter
You can now hum, whistle or sing to Google to identify a song. Wccftech / Twitter

Music

Google now lets you search for music by humming or whistling a tune into your phone

Dubbed ‘Hum to Search’, the feature is available in the latest version of the Google app

Razmig Bedirian
Razmig Bedirian

October 20, 2020

  • English
  • Arabic

You’re going about your day when a melody leaps out from the furthest recesses of your memory. You can’t remember any of its lyrics. You’re not even sure if it was from a song or a symphony. You try to pinpoint where you last heard the tune, figuring out if it was through a friend or in a film. Still, nothing.

A new Google feature might help you keep that tune from becoming a taunting din in your head. All you need to do is hum.

Dubbed ‘Hum to Search’, the feature is available in the latest version of the Google app. To use the feature, tap on the microphone icon and ask it to “search a song”.

You get 15 seconds to hum, whistle or even sing the song that comes to mind.

And don't worry, you don't need to have perfect pitch to make use of the feature. In fact, according to Google, even the tone-deaf can benefit from "Hum to Search".

“We’ll show you the most likely options based on the tune,” a post on Google’s official blog reads. “Then you can select the best match and explore information on the song and artist, view any accompanying music videos or listen to the song on your favourite music app, find the lyrics, read analysis and even check out other recordings of the song when available.”

The post explains that a song’s melody is like its fingerprint, with every track containing its own unique identity.

“We’ve built machine-learning models that can match your hum, whistle or singing to the right ‘fingerprint’.

“When you hum a melody, our machine-learning models transform the audio into a number-based sequence representing the song’s melody. Models are trained to identify songs based on a variety of sources, including humans singing, whistling or humming, as well as studio recordings.

“The algorithms also take away all the other details, like accompanying instruments and the voice’s timbre and tone. What we’re left with is the song’s number-based sequence, or the fingerprint.”

The feature is available in English on iOS and in more than 20 languages on Android. However, there are plans to “expand this to more languages in the future".

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A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation. 

A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.

The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000. 

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
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Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
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Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final

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