scholarly journals Making Complex Music with Simple Algorithms, is it Even Possible?

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Risto Holopainen

Algorithmic composition is often limited to score generation, but may also include sound production. All levels from sound synthesis to the generation of a complete composition can be integrated into one monolithic program. A strict separation of the low level of sound synthesis and higher levels otherwise reserved for algorithmic composition is not necessary, information can flow between all levels. An interesting challenge in this kind of thorough algorithmic composition is to generate as complex music as possible with as little code as possible. The challenge has been accepted, successfully or not, in a series of compositions called Kolmogorov Variations. We discuss the techniques used in a few of the pieces as well as the promises and perils of this strict approach to algorithmic composition.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Risto Holopainen

Dynamic systems have found their use in sound synthesis as well as score synthesis. These levels can be integrated in monolithic autonomous systems in a novel approach to algorithmic composition that shares certain aesthetic motivations with some work with autonomous music systems, such as the search for emergence. We discuss various strategies for achieving variation on multiple time-scales by using slow-fast, hybrid dynamic systems, and statistical feedback. The ideas are illustrated with a case study.


1996 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 195-201 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANDREW MARTIN

Reaction–diffusion systems were first proposed by mathematician and computing forerunner Alan Turing in 1952. Originally intended as an explanation of plant phyllotaxis (the structure and arrangement of leaves in plants), reaction–diffusion now forms the basis of an area in biology which is as important as DNA research in the field of biological morphogenesis (Kauffman 1993). Reaction–diffusion systems were successfully utilised within the fields of computer animation and computer graphics to generate visually naturalistic patterning and textures such as animal furs (Turk 1991). More recently, reaction–diffusion systems have been applied to methods of half-tone printing, fingerprint enhancement, and have been proposed for use in sound synthesis (Sherstinsky 1994). The recent publication The Algorithmic Beauty of Seashells (Meinhardt 1995) uses various reaction–diffusion equations to explain patterned pigmentation markings on seashells. This article details an example of the application of reaction–diffusion systems to algorithmic composition within the field of computer music. The patterned data produced by reaction–diffusion systems is used to create a naturalistic soundscape in the piece cicada.


2000 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 49-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Artemis Moroni ◽  
Jônatas Manzolli ◽  
Fernando Von Zuben ◽  
Ricardo Gudwin

While recent techniques of digital sound synthesis have put numerous new sounds on the musician's desktop, several artificial-intelligence (AI) techniques have also been applied to algorithmic composition. This article introduces Vox Populi, a system based on evolutionary computation techniques for composing music in real time. In Vox Populi, a population of chords codified according to MIDI protocol evolves through the application of genetic algorithms to maximize a fitness criterion based on physical factors relevant to music. Graphical controls allow the user to manipulate fitness and sound attributes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-20
Author(s):  
Luc Döbereiner

This article deals with a way that algorithmic composition systems can be informed by material realities of musical performance. After a general discussion of the relation of abstract algorithms to concrete materiality, the article focuses on the idea of an instrument's space of possibilities. It briefly discusses a number of compositional approaches that seek to derive musical structure from bodily movements and from the physical properties of instruments. The last part describes a new open-source JavaScript library called OboeJS and a Web application based on this library. The system is an experimental exploration of the idea of instrumental space and an attempt to bring together abstract algorithmic processing and the concrete possibilities of a musical instrument. The system implements a flexible constraint-based search algorithm for the generation of oboe fingering sequences. This tool is presented as part of a wider approach to algorithmic composition that aims not to map data output of generative procedures to “sound generators” (e.g., performers, instruments, sound synthesis processes). Instead, I propose to derive structure from the space of possibilities of the instrument itself, which in this case is the oboe.


Leonardo ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 249-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agostino Di Scipio

This article describes a method of digital sound synthesis and algorithmic composition based on iterated nonlinear functions. The mathematical framework of Functional Iteration Synthesis (FIS) is outlined, and the dynamics of a specific FIS model are explained. Given the model's peculiarly chaotic system dynamics, an empirical, exploratory attitude is needed in order to achieve compositionally relevant controls. The required method of this exploration is interactive computer music systems. Some examples are discussed bearing on the author's compositional experience with his Sound & Fury project. The approach is described in terms of real-time interaction with a source of chaotic but structured flow of sonic information. The relevance of an “ecological” view of composing is emphasized.


2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (11) ◽  
pp. 3714-3726
Author(s):  
Sherine R. Tambyraja ◽  
Kelly Farquharson ◽  
Laura Justice

Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which school-age children with speech sound disorder (SSD) exhibit concomitant reading difficulties and examine the extent to which phonological processing and speech production abilities are associated with increased likelihood of reading risks. Method Data were obtained from 120 kindergarten, first-grade, and second-grade children who were in receipt of school-based speech therapy services. Children were categorized as being “at risk” for reading difficulties if standardized scores on a word decoding measure were 1 SD or more from the mean. The selected predictors of reading risk included children's rapid automatized naming ability, phonological awareness (PA), and accuracy of speech sound production. Results Descriptive results indicated that just over 25% of children receiving school-based speech therapy for an SSD exhibited concomitant deficits in word decoding and that those exhibiting risk at the beginning of the school year were likely to continue to be at risk at the end of the school year. Results from a hierarchical logistic regression suggested that, after accounting for children's age, general language abilities, and socioeconomic status, both PA and speech sound production abilities were significantly associated with the likelihood of being classified as at risk. Conclusions School-age children with SSD are at increased risk for reading difficulties that are likely to persist throughout an academic year. The severity of phonological deficits, reflected by PA and speech output, may be important indicators of subsequent reading problems.


Author(s):  
Julie L. Wambaugh ◽  
Lydia Kallhoff ◽  
Christina Nessler

Purpose This study was designed to examine the association of dosage and effects of Sound Production Treatment (SPT) for acquired apraxia of speech. Method Treatment logs and probe data from 20 speakers with apraxia of speech and aphasia were submitted to a retrospective analysis. The number of treatment sessions and teaching episodes was examined relative to (a) change in articulation accuracy above baseline performance, (b) mastery of production, and (c) maintenance. The impact of practice schedule (SPT-Blocked vs. SPT-Random) was also examined. Results The average number of treatment sessions conducted prior to change was 5.4 for SPT-Blocked and 3.9 for SPT-Random. The mean number of teaching episodes preceding change was 334 for SPT-Blocked and 179 for SPT-Random. Mastery occurred within an average of 13.7 sessions (1,252 teaching episodes) and 12.4 sessions (1,082 teaching episodes) for SPT-Blocked and SPT-Random, respectively. Comparisons of dosage metric values across practice schedules did not reveal substantial differences. Significant negative correlations were found between follow-up probe performance and the dosage metrics. Conclusions Only a few treatment sessions were needed to achieve initial positive changes in articulation, with mastery occurring within 12–14 sessions for the majority of participants. Earlier occurrence of change or mastery was associated with better follow-up performance. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12592190


1972 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 852-860 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoe Zehel ◽  
Ralph L. Shelton ◽  
William B. Arndt ◽  
Virginia Wright ◽  
Mary Elbert

Fourteen children who misarticulated some phones of the /s/ phoneme were tape recorded articulating several lists of items involving /s/. The lists included the Mc-Donald Deep Test for /s/, three lists similar to McDonald’s but altered in broad context, and an /s/ sound production task. Scores from lists were correlated, compared for differences in means, or both. Item sets determined by immediate context were also compared for differences between means. All lists were found to be significantly correlated. The comparison of means indicated that both broad and immediate context were related to test result. The estimated “omega square” statistic was used to evaluate the percentage of test score variance attributable to context.


2006 ◽  
Vol 76 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yukari Egashira ◽  
Shin Nagaki ◽  
Hiroo Sanada

We investigated the change of tryptophan-niacin metabolism in rats with puromycin aminonucleoside PAN-induced nephrosis, the mechanisms responsible for their change of urinary excretion of nicotinamide and its metabolites, and the role of the kidney in tryptophan-niacin conversion. PAN-treated rats were intraperitoneally injected once with a 1.0% (w/v) solution of PAN at a dose of 100 mg/kg body weight. The collection of 24-hour urine was conducted 8 days after PAN injection. Daily urinary excretion of nicotinamide and its metabolites, liver and blood NAD, and key enzyme activities of tryptophan-niacin metabolism were determined. In PAN-treated rats, the sum of urinary excretion of nicotinamide and its metabolites was significantly lower compared with controls. The kidneyα-amino-β-carboxymuconate-ε-semialdehyde decarboxylase (ACMSD) activity in the PAN-treated group was significantly decreased by 50%, compared with the control group. Although kidney ACMSD activity was reduced, the conversion of tryptophan to niacin tended to be lower in the PAN-treated rats. A decrease in urinary excretion of niacin and the conversion of tryptophan to niacin in nephrotic rats may contribute to a low level of blood tryptophan. The role of kidney ACMSD activity may be minimal concerning tryptophan-niacin conversion under this experimental condition.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document