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AIFF (.aif, .aiff, .aifc)

  • Import and Export support all audio codecs commonly used in AIFF files.

Background & Context

    • MIME types: audio/aiff, audio/x-aiff, audio/x-aifc
    • AIFF digital audio format.
    • Commonly used in professional audio processing applications and on Macintosh.
    • AIFF is an acronym for Audio Interchange File Format.
    • Binary file format.
    • Stores audio data in uncompressed mono or stereo waveforms.
    • Supports a variety of bit resolutions and sample rates.
    • Developed in 1988 by Apple and others.

Import & Export

  • Import["file.aif"] imports an AIFF file, returning an audio object.
  • Import["file.aif",elem] imports the specified element from an AIFF file.
  • The import format can be specified with Import["file","AIFF"] or Import["file",{"AIFF",elem,…}].
  • Export["file.aif",expr] exports an audio or sound object to an AIFF file.
  • Sound objects including notes are rasterized to sampled audio.
  • See the following reference pages for full general information:
  • Import, Exportimport from or export to a file
    CloudImport, CloudExportimport from or export to a cloud object
    ImportString, ExportStringimport from or export to a string
    ImportByteArray, ExportByteArrayimport from or export to a byte array

Import Elements

  • General Import elements:
  • "Elements" list of elements and options available in this file
    "Summary"summary of the file
    "Rules"list of rules for all available elements
  • Data representation elements:
  • "Audio"audio signal given as an Audio object
    "AudioFile"audio signal given as an out-of-core Audio object
    "Data"raw audio samples, given as a list of real numbers, each sublist representing an individual audio channel
    "SampledSoundList"audio signal given as a SampledSoundList object
    "Sound"audio signal given as a Sound object
  • Import by default uses the "Audio" element for short AIFF files and the "AudioFile" element otherwise.
  • Advanced Import element:
  • "AudioChannels"number of audio channels
    "AudioEncoding"audio encoding
    "Duration"duration of the audio given in seconds
    "Length"number of samples
    "SampleDepth"number of bits used to store every sample
    "SampleRate"number of amplitude samples per second and channel
  • Metadata elements:
  • "MetaInformation"interpreted as quantities, locations, dates, numbers, etc.
    "RawMetaInformation"uninterpreted as strings and numbers
  • Available metadata tags include "ID3v2".

Options

  • Import and Export options:
  • "AudioChannels"Automaticnumber of audio channels
    IncludeMetaInformationAllmetadata types to import and export
    SampleRateAutomaticsamples per second for each channel
  • Export option:
  • AudioEncoding"Integer16"how samples are encoded
  • If the sample rate is not specified when exporting to AIFF, the highest sample rate occurring in the exported sound is used, and all sounds are resampled as necessary.
  • If the number of channels is unspecified, the highest number of simultaneous channels is taken, and silence is inserted if necessary.
  • If "AudioChannels" is set to a value n that is less than the number of channels to be exported, only the first n channels are exported.
  • The AIFF format normally uses PCM (pulse code modulation) audio encoding but also supports various other codecs.
  • AudioEncoding can be set to any of the following codecs:
  • "UnsignedInteger8"Unsigned 8-bit PCM
    "Integer8"8-bit PCM
    "Integer16"16-bit PCM
    "Integer24"24-bit PCM
    "Integer32"32-bit PCM
    "IMA-ADPCM"adaptive differential PCM
    "Real32"32-bit IEEE floating point
    "Real64"64-bit IEEE floating point
    "aLaw"a-Law 4-bit PCM (ITU-T G.711 standard)
    "uLaw"-Law 4-bit PCM (ITU-T G.711 standard)
    "GSM610"GSM 6.10 codec (ETSI 6.10 standard)
    "DWVW-12"12-bit DWVW
    "DWVW-16"16-bit DWVW
    "DWVW-24"24-bit DWVW
  • Not all codecs support arbitrary sample rates and channel specifications.
  • Supported IncludeMetaInformation settings are: "ID3v2", "RawID3v2", All and None.

Examples

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Basic Examples  (2)Summary of the most common use cases

Import an AIFF sample file:

Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-tr5f6z
Direct link to example
Out[2]=2

Use Play to create a one-second sound sample:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-0zeu1b
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Export it to AIFF:

Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-xqwb7d
Direct link to example
Out[2]=2

Export to 24-bit AIFF:

Copy to clipboard.
In[3]:=3
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-vgy666
Direct link to example
Out[3]=3

Scope  (3)Survey of the scope of standard use cases

Show all import elements available in this file:

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In[1]:=1
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-6ii3dw
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Import audio properties:

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In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-mkob8v
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Use ExportString and ImportString with an AIFF:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-ja4du2
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1
Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-nqy4py
Direct link to example
Copy to clipboard.
In[3]:=3
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-papscs
Direct link to example
Out[3]=3

Import Elements  (16)

Available Elements  (3)

List of available elements:

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In[1]:=1
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https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-1g2ndh
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Get audio-related information as a list of rules:

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In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-myzd73
Direct link to example

Import some audio options:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-bvl5fv
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

The "Options" element does not return all options that are present in the imported audio:

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In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-kx49o5
Direct link to example
Out[2]=2

Data Representation  (5)

"Audio"  (1)

Get an audio signal given as an Audio object:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-cy3ssw
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"AudioFile"  (1)

Get an audio signal given as an out-of-core Audio object:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-0xr3jy
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"Data"  (1)

Get a raw audio sample, given as a list of real numbers:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-frvaa3
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Create an audio sample from imported data:

Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-h1j08c
Direct link to example
Out[2]=2

"SampledSoundList"  (1)

Get an audio signal given as a SampledSoundList object:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-qjalwa
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"Sound"  (1)

Get an audio signal given as an Sound object:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-t80mxr
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Metadata  (8)

"AudioChannels"  (1)

Get the number of audio channels:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-v4dei0
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"AudioEncoding"  (1)

Get the audio encoding:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-zv25qi
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"Duration"  (1)

Get the duration of the audio sample given in seconds:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-2oapoc
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"Length"  (1)

Get the number of samples:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-rymzoz
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"MetaInformation"  (1)

Get the audio metadata:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-t12eop
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"RawMetaInformation"  (1)

Get the audio metadata in a raw form:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-jvdfe1
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"SampleDepth"  (1)

Get the number of bits used to store every sample:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-yrds94
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

"SampleRate"  (1)

Get the number of amplitude samples per second and channel:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-sr3m2d
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Import Options  (6)

"AudioChannels"  (2)

Generate a stereo AIFF file:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-7otap
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

By default, the number of audio channels is set to be Automatic:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-egyxgc
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Specify all the audio channels to be imported:

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In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-dmrvtr
Direct link to example
Out[2]=2

Import the second channel only:

Copy to clipboard.
In[3]:=3
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-2ojj5z
Direct link to example
Out[3]=3

IncludeMetaInformation  (3)

By default, all available metadata is imported:

Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-oy06er
Direct link to example
Out[2]=2

Import an audio file with no metadata:

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In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-inmgwp
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Import the audio with only specified classes of metadata:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-8wgh6p
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

SampleRate  (1)

By default, the sample rate is extracted from the file:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-kux3uu
Direct link to example
Out[1]=1

Specify the sample rate of the imported sound:

Copy to clipboard.
In[3]:=3
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-f98eh7
Direct link to example
Out[3]=3

Export Options  (4)

"AudioChannels"  (1)

By default, the audio is exported using the default number of channels:

Copy to clipboard.
In[9]:=9
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-quny9n
Direct link to example
Copy to clipboard.
In[10]:=10
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-dmpxuo
Direct link to example
Out[10]=10
Copy to clipboard.
In[11]:=11
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-66u87
Direct link to example
Out[11]=11

Specify the number of channels of exported audio:

Copy to clipboard.
In[4]:=4
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-xxlhe
Direct link to example
Out[4]=4
Copy to clipboard.
In[5]:=5
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-iolwmo
Direct link to example
Out[5]=5

AudioEncoding  (1)

By default, the audio is exported using the "Integer16" encoding:

Copy to clipboard.
In[1]:=1
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-wrebz5
Direct link to example
Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-eqv97q
Direct link to example
Out[2]=2
Copy to clipboard.
In[3]:=3
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-f0fb0m
Direct link to example
Out[3]=3

Specify the encoding of exported audio:

Copy to clipboard.
In[4]:=4
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-y8sj9d
Direct link to example
Out[4]=4
Copy to clipboard.
In[5]:=5
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-7a91my
Direct link to example
Out[5]=5

IncludeMetaInformation  (1)

By default, the audio is exported using the metadata:

Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-oxo5vz
Direct link to example
Copy to clipboard.
In[3]:=3
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-lh14xn
Direct link to example
Out[3]=3
Copy to clipboard.
In[12]:=12
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-d2ipo8
Direct link to example
Out[12]=12
Copy to clipboard.
In[13]:=13
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-tjhe2h
Direct link to example
Out[13]=13

Specify the metadata to include:

Copy to clipboard.
In[14]:=14
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-q48q8q
Direct link to example
Out[14]=14
Copy to clipboard.
In[15]:=15
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-jptih7
Direct link to example
Out[15]=15

SampleRate  (1)

By default, the audio is exported using the default sample rate:

Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-lszysm
Direct link to example
Copy to clipboard.
In[2]:=2
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-bhjnpf
Direct link to example
Out[2]=2
Copy to clipboard.
In[4]:=4
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-t9ntr8
Direct link to example
Out[4]=4
Copy to clipboard.
In[5]:=5
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-7p8hv4
Direct link to example
Out[5]=5

Specify the sample rate of exported audio:

Copy to clipboard.
In[6]:=6
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-3ie1wu
Direct link to example
Out[6]=6
Copy to clipboard.
In[7]:=7
✖
https://wolfram.com/xid/0b3t12fvbu-ss5jdi
Direct link to example
Out[7]=7