LAS VEGAS -- One of the products Microsoft is releasing here at the Consumer Electronics Show didn't come from any of the company's product groups. Microsoft Research decided to issue Songsmith directly after it didn't find a quick fit within an existing product.

The software algorithms analyze any tune that a person sings into a computer, adding a virtual band to the background. The idea is to make the basics of song creation available to people of any skill level.

Songsmith was developed by Microsoft researchers Dan Morris and Sumit Basu, themselves hobbyist musicians. A demo version, available here, can be upgraded to the full version for $29.95. Here's a video of Morris demonstrating Songsmith for me at Microsoft Research HQ in Redmond earlier this week.



Songsmith works on Windows XP and Windows Vista. It's designed for novices, and the resulting tracks aren't meant to be used as polished professional songs. But Morris, who plays in an '80s cover band, said the program will also be useful to more-advanced musicians who want to make demo tracks for their bandmates, for example.

The software uses basic digital instruments from Garritan, which also makes higher-end technologies for professional musicians. Songsmith also works with audio from instruments, such as a guitar played into the microphone. Ian Simon at the University of Washington also developed key elements of the underlying technology.

Even though the software was released on its own, from Microsoft Research, Morris didn't rule out the possibility of Songsmith ultimately being added to an existing product, such as the Xbox 360.