4.1 Terms and definitions

For the purposes of the RIN standard the following terms have the definitions specified in this clause. Although all the terms below are capitalised, they appear in the text of the remainder of the RIN standard in lower case, for ease of readability.

Digital Audio Workstation (DAW)

A Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) is an electronic device or computer software application for recording, editing and producing audio files of, for example, songs, musical pieces, human speech or sound effects.

Data Carrier

The physical entity created during the Recording Project. Data Carriers can be linked to more than one Recording Project, Session, Sound Recording, or set of Recording Components.

Element

A unique permutation of the Sound Recording. Elements can contain the original Recording Components ("multitrack master"), sub mixes of these components into common themes (“stems”), or single mix files created from the combining of recording components (“master mix”, “instrumental mix”).

File

The mechanism by which an individual asset is stored as a single unit, normally in a file system on disk or magnetic tape.

Initial Producer

A party that initiates the creation of a Sound Recording and is sometimes referred to as a commissioning rights holder. An Initial Producer may be a person or an organisation and the term contrasts for the purposes of this standard with the role of a Studio Producer.

Musical Work

A work intended to be perceivable as a combination of sounds, with or without accompanying text. Any words that are intended to be expressed with a musical work (often termed lyrics) form part of that musical work. Not all musical works have lyrics. A musical work may be expressed and fixed to become part of a sound recording or a music video, or may be used to create notated music (sheet music, scores, instrumental parts) or sound generation codes (such as MIDI files). In some cases, the musical work comes into existence simultaneously with its expression. This is common in extemporised forms such as jazz music.

Recording Project

A Recording Project combines together many Sound Recordings, Recording Components, Sessions, Musical Works and Data Carriers. A project might be a 12 song album, or it might simply be a remix. A Recording Project could be a compilation of older recordings from different projects or a "Various Artists" type of compilation.

Recording Component

The combining of individual files into a common groupings within a multitrack recording. Examples include “snare drum”, “lead cocal comp”, “lead guitar” or “percussion”.

RIN Processor

A device or computer software application that creates, processes or ingests RIN messages.

Session

The location, date and time where/when a Recording Component is created. During the creation of a Sound Recording, sessions usually take place in the recording studio but can also include, for example, live venues, remote locations or a creator’s bedroom.

Sound Recording

An audible persistent manifestation of a subject (often but not necessarily of a performance).

Studio

Any facility where the recording, mixing or mastering of sound can be undertaken. The term specifically includes large studios (such as the ones in Abbey Road in London) as well as digital audio workstations (DAW) installed on a personal computer and used in a musician’s home and portable units used for recording live events.

Studio Producer

A party who directs, and has overall creative and technical oversight of, the entire Recording Project and the individual Sessions that are a part of the Recording Project. The Studio Producer participates in and/or supervises the recording session and works directly with, for example, the artist(s), musician(s) and technical personnel. The Studio Producer makes creative, technical and aesthetic decisions that realise the goals of both the artist(s) and the Initial Producer in the creation of the Elements of the Recording Project. The Studio Producer may perform, choose final takes or versions, and oversee the selection of, for example, songs, musicians, singers, arrangers or studios. The Studio Producer in collaboration with the artist(s), assigns credits to the musician(s) and technical personnel, and is responsible for supplying accurate credit information to the Initial Producer as official documentation. Other duties of the Studio Producer may include, but are not limited to, overseeing other staffing needs, keeping to budgets and schedules, adhering to deadlines, supervising mastering and overall quality control.

Web Service

A modern set of web technologies that allow small pieces of information, typically in the form of XML files, to be exchanged. Augmented with FTP (or other file exchange mechanisms) they can be used to communicate Recording Components and their associated data along the music industry value chain.

Web Service Call

The sending of an XML document to a port/address on a web server, using HTTP or HTTPS.

Web Service Response

The sending of an XML document in direct response to a Web Service Call, using HTTP or HTTPS. For the avoidance of doubt, the appropriate response is always the message indicated in the appropriate choreography.