generative music
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Björk and Microsoft use AI to create music that changes with the sky
Björk is no stranger to using technology to express her music in more inventive ways, but now she's using it to shape the music itself in unexpected forms. The Icelandic star is using Microsoft AI as part of Kórsafn ("choral archives"), a non-stop composition playing in the lobby of the Sister City hotel in New York City. The project plays selections from Björk's many choral arrangements (including new ones composed by the Hamrahlid Choir) based on what the AI sees in the sky through a rooftop camera. It'll react based on different cloud types, the behavior of birds, passing aircraft and even barometric pressure. Long-term weather trends will gradually alter the piece, too.
Bronze makes your music collection sound downright lazy
No matter how large your record collection is, there'll always be days when you're sick and tired of everything you own. There are some pretty easy fixes to this, of course -- streaming music services, internet radio, and even the old fashioned terrestrial variety, but none attack the problem quite as directly as Bronze. The app was co-created by Golden Silvers' front man, Gwilym Gold, in part as a clever way to promote his new track, "Flesh Freeze," a hushed, Robert Wyatt-esque number, which just so happens to be the only song that it's compatible with at present. Bronze combats musical stagnation by altering the music itself, assuring that no two listens of a song are ever quite the same, running an algorithm that jumbles the sequence and presence of elements including the instruments and vocals. The changes are generally fairly subtle from play to play, taking a few listens to really pick up on what's unfolding. At present, it's available as a download for the Mac, with Windows and mobile versions to follow. It's free for now, but that, like the song, should change soon enough.
Otomata sequencer creates generative music for the melodically challenged (video)
It won't bring you the success or adoration that Brian Eno's enjoyed, but the Otomata sequencer could have you making noise like the Roxy Music alum in seconds. Way back in 1996, Eno espoused the idea of generative music, which is a non-repetitive form of music created, in this case, anyway, by a piece of software. Otomata takes that idea and puts it to use in a cellular automaton, consisting of a simple grid of cells in different states. With Otomata, each selected cell has four states: up, down, left, and right. When activated, the cells move in the direction of their given state, and when they encounter an obstacle, like a wall, a pitched sound is created. After each collision, the cells turn around and head in the opposite direction until they hit another obstacle, and the process continues indefinitely. The result is a chaotic but somehow lulling symphony of electronic sounds, a la Mr. Eno, that anyone with a mouse can muster. Head on past the break to see for yourself.
