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P& P2 Pa Pc Pd Pe Pg Ph Pi Pl Pn Po Pp Pr Ps Pt Pu Pw
Pam Pan Pap Par Pas Pat Pay

Parsons Code

Parsons Code

Type: noun

Pronunciation: /par-sunz-kohd/

Also spelled or known as: Melodic Contour Code

Related: Music Identification

What does Parsons Code mean? A simple way of identifying melodies by the direction of pitch movement; U (up), D (down) and R (repeat).

Developed by Denys Parsons in 1975, the system represents a melody’s pitch changes while completely ignoring rhythm. It translates musical themes into a string of characters using the following rules:
  • * : Indicates the starting note (used as a reference).
  • U (Up) : The current note is higher than the previous note.
  • D (Down) : The current note is lower than the previous note.
  • R (Repeat) : The current note has the same pitch.

Parsons Code represents whether notes go up, down, or repeat, helping identify songs from melodic contour.

Parsons Code synonyms: Melodic Contour Code, Melody Code, Tune Identification Code

Example sentence: “The researcher used Parsons Code to compare melodies.”

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