Algorithmic Music

Algorithmic music composition is the application of standardized, well-defined algorithms to the process of composing music. We think algorithmic music composition won't have truly succeeded until it can produce not only beautiful music, but also beautiful music of a wholly different type from what we've heard before. A lot more research is going on in algorithmic music composition than you might expect. At the Fine Arts Lab, we're not afraid to explore to connections between music composition and social theory, space as a structural factor in composition or using chaos theory in music composition.

"Spanish Phrygian" : An Exploration in Algorithmic Mathematics & Music Composition Using the Spanish Phrygian Scale

liked that,nicely moving,odd, yet enjoyable

I don't understand how this music was produced. Was it composed completely by the computer, or is it merely based on musical ideas produced by the computer?

"beautiful music of a wholly different type from what we've heard before"

Personally this seems pretty derivative. Also, there are moments when it goes outside of the mode, as though the computer has made a "mistake". This seems unlikely if it were a computer made improvisation. It is too human - if indeed it is made by a computer (I doubt it really is), then it has been the product of a great deal of human input, which makes its validity debatable.

L.

Teaching a computer to make a "mistake" from time to time isn't terribly hard though, and is a very common principle in computer music that seeks to sound "natural".

wow thats a pretty interesting idea, I'd like more information if you have it...technical papers and such