aboyle-Looking Outwards-04

For this post, I have chosen to discuss the Flow Machines Project. This project is funded by the European Research Council and coordinated by François Pachet. Their website can be found at http://www.flow-machines.com/. This project uses computers to help compose music in the style of a chosen composer.

I really admire this project’s attempts to emulate creativity. While I can easily understand how computers spit out preexisting melodies, I am impressed with how this project aims to generate new music. Since creativity has long been relegated to the realm of humanity, it’ll be interesting to see where this project goes.

The algorithms used in this project are based on Markov models. They capture the properties of sequences and abstract them into mathematical concepts. Using these concepts, the computer is then able to generate music of its own. The creators have an evident love for music in general, as is to be expected, but it seems to me that they also have a love for the aspects of music that make it unique and recognizable.