AI in the Arts (part two)

(ed note: The following was originally published at Skinny Devil Universe)


In Part One, I drew some lines in the sand and delivered a history of technology to demonstrate that, while disruptive, AI is just another technological step - an extension of the mind of man.
For clarification, it should be said that early technology (up to the industrial revolution) was focused primarily on amplifying the BODY of man, while 20th & 21st century technology has shifted focus to extending the MIND of man.

That caveat aside, I decided (even though I had already sketched out the foundation of this article) to feed the entirety of Part One into Google's AI Gemini and see what it had to say. But not what it had to say in support of my thesis, but instead with explicit instructions to challenge EVERYTHING.

"Tear it all down" were my specific words.

While it praised both the historical & philosophical rigor as well as the writing style (it seems machine minds dig my musical sense of symmetry and repetition - hahaha!), it hit back HARD.

If this topic concerns you, prepare to get even more anxiety and depression.

AI in the Arts (part one)

Art created by Gemini for this article...just for the irony!

(ed note: The following was originally published at Skinny Devil Universe)

AI in music....and AI in the arts in general.

Before we leap in, one thing worth remembering - and it's highly likely to anger everyone reading this right now - is that most of the public discourse on this topic (at least by musicians and industry folk) has been of a legal or philosophical nature, while usually taking a brief moment to mention how "fake" AI sounds as composer or performer (or poet or essayist or visual artist).

If that's your view, you need to swallow a bitter pill: The market disagrees with you, and (by any metrics you yourself would apply to a fellow human) you are wrong.

Sienna Rose, The Velvet Sundown, Nick Hustles, Xania Monet, FN Meka, Yona, Breaking Rust, Eddie Dalton, and more....including the 100% AI driven (no human intervention) creation Anna Indiana - all streaming millions to hungry listeners. Listeners who largely don't care about any of the issues we're about to get into - they care only about if they like the music.

Admittedly, this pisses me off a little, too.

At any rate, ponder that for a moment and then we'll leap in.

While I've thought extensively about this topic (and have for longer than I care to say, as I've been an avid fan of the works of Raymond Kurzweil for a long time, starting with his 1990 book "The Age of Intelligent Machines", and, as an irrelevant aside, still own my Kurzweil K-2000 keyboard), it's usually fragmented based on specifics. I've never really coalesced these thoughts into a single, specific policy position.

So let's explore "both sides" of this issue and see where we land.

Worthy of note: It should be obvious that the history given below (on both sides of the issue) is greatly abbreviated and oversimplified for brevity and ease of discussion. But the major pillars remain.

Let's get into it!

"Nemesis Tori" by Gregory Francis (part 3 of 3)

 

- - - Part III - - -

CHERIBUM VOID

TIMON DATE (TD) = TD-41999.358.0713

(Christian Date = 1999 AD, 7 days till years end, 7:13 a.m.)

3:1

                   "Fears from afar

              Killing many Holy ones -

              Spears made of stars

              A Testament in quantum sums -"

                            The Day of our Lord 9:19, v,5

                            AHKANON

  (Seventh Decription, WC-ARC-DIV.)

Content in the knowledge that theirs was superior, a secret sect, affiliated with a branch under control of the advocates of the New Order, initiated the final sequence of commands that would loose upon the world a wave of stars, setting them down upon the cities of their adversaries, reducing them in the cleansing nuclear fires. To them, no choices were left. One course only remained. With their masses starving, their allies turning away from them, the Common Market closing them off from the economic flows of the world, their lifeblood was swiftly draining away. What was there to loose? What could justify continuing such an existence? 

"Nemesis Tori" by Gregory Francis (part 2 of 3)

NEMESIS TORI (part 2 - find part one HERE)

- - - Part II - - -

NEPHILIM CRUX

TIMON DATE (TD) = TD-28999.280.2220

(Christian Date = 11,001 BC, 80 days till year's end, 10:20 p.m.)

2:1

Deep in the Sides of the North are hidden the Machines,

Disciples of the New Religion -

Start to see meaning in the seams -

That sew hot fabrics close together -

Forming patterns on their elemental reams.

                            Denominations 9:18

                            AHKANON

  (Mountain Archives, Edonos)

                                             

"Man should not play God!" Jahamon Gabrali pressed through clenched teeth. He was a devout student of The Path. How could the simple readouts on a computer screen challenge his faith thus? 

For many centuries, The Path had been accepted as the only true belief. It was the very Word of God! None could challenge its simple laws leading to a cleaner, healthier, happier life. And unlike most of the secondary religions, its references to bygone times were backed up with hard archaeological evidence. From the emergence of Man through the destruction of paradise by the flood, to the eventual reclamation of the land by wandering men.

"Nemesis Tori" by Gregory Francis (intro & part one of 3)

 NEMESIS TORI

by

Gregory Francis

Hubble Saw THIS on Your Birthday

As part of the 30th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble Telescope, NASA has made thousands of photographs available as part of their "birthday" search.

"...Hubble explores the universe 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. That means it has observed some fascinating cosmic wonder every day of the year, including on your birthday...."

Many events, during the pandemic, have of course been cancelled, but NASA is making all manner of educational tools available on their website, as well as a resource download page HERE.

Check it out HERE!

Scientists turn Martian sunrise into a piece of music

You can now listen to the sun rise on Mars. Scientists in England have translated the Martian sunrise into a two-minute score.

Researchers used sonification techniques to translate image data into sounds, turning each pixel into a sonic data point. Using images of the 500th sunrise observed by the Mars rover Opportunity, scientists linked each pixel with brightness, color and elevation measurements.

Special algorithms helped researchers turn the pixel data points into pitch and melody, forming a piece of music.

The two-minute score will be shared with visitors to NASA's Mars Soundscapes exhibit on Tuesday at the Supercomputing SC18 Conference being held this week in Dallas, Texas. The song will be presented both sonically and vibrationally, so that it can be experienced by visitors with hearing disabilities.

Read the entire story HERE

.

Why Music Matters to Us

From the Guardian:


It’s a question that has intrigued thinkers across the ages from Socrates to Schopenhauer: why is it that abstract patterns of sound mean so very much to human beings?


We are more exposed to music than ever before, thanks to streaming – from Spotify and YouTube to Mixcloud– and downloading, and we’re bombarded with music via advertising, too. It is there to influence the way we think, feel and behave. As every filmmaker knows, music is unique in its power to stir the emotions. As music therapists’ work with dementia patients and autistic children has shown, music has the capacity to touch us and tap into memories that words alone are not able to reach. But how?


Read it all at https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jul/02/ultra-sound-why-music-means-so-much-to-us

Humanizing, harmonizing effects of music aren't a myth

From ScienceDaily:

Jake Harwood turned his lifelong hobby as a musician into a scholarly question: Could the sharing of music help ease interpersonal relations between people from different backgrounds, such as Americans and Arabs?

To explore the issue, and building on his years of research on intergroup communication, Harwood began collaborating two to three years ago with his graduate students and other researchers on a number of studies, finding that music is not merely a universal language. It appears to produce a humanizing effect for members of groups experiencing social and political opposition.

"Music would not have developed in our civilizations if it did not do very important things to us," said Harwood, a professor in the University of Arizona Department of Communication. "Music allows us to communicate common humanity to each other. It models the value of diversity in ways you don't readily see in other parts of our lives."

Read the entire article HERE.

Music on Your Brain

From Popular Science

by Sophie Bushwick

....At the end of a stressful day, you pop on a pair of headphones, hit “play” on your favorite song—and your mood instantly improves. This emotional response occurs, a new study suggests, because music activates a chemical reward system in your brain: the same system that makes yummy food, vigorous exercise, and opioid drugs feel good.

Humans have had music on the brain for most of our existence—cultures all over the world create, listen to, and experience pleasure from music. To study this phenomenon, researchers have surveyed people’s feelings, scanned the brains of performers and listeners, and even measured hormone production. Their findings thus far suggest that our enjoyment comes from the same two-phase reward process—a dopamine-driven anticipatory phase, followed by a dopamine- and opioid-influenced consummatory phase—that kicks into gear when you eat a tasty treat or experience a rush after an intense workout. This neurological reward system also gives drugs their appeal.....

Read the entire article HERE.

Music & Evolution

From Science Daily:

....A new theory paper, co-authored by Graduate School of Education doctoral student Samuel Mehr and Assistant Professor of Psychology Max Krasnow, proposes that infant-directed song evolved as a way for parents to signal to children that their needs are being met, while still freeing up parents to perform other tasks, like foraging for food, or caring for other offspring. Infant-directed song might later have evolved into the more complex forms of music we hear in our modern world. The theory is described in an open-access paper in the journal Evolution and Human Behavior.

Music is a tricky topic for evolutionary science: it turns up in many cultures around the world in many different contexts, but no one knows why humans are the only musical species.....

Read the entire article HERE.

Melissa McCracken - Painting Sounds

"Shine On You Crazy Diamond" Pink Floyd

From her web-site:

Melissa McCracken was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1990. She graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from William Jewell College in 2013, but ultimately pursued a career in the arts post-graduation. As a synesthete, she utilizes her unique ability to see colors in the sounds she hears. Many of her paintings incorporate vibrant colors and lively textures to depict the movement of music.

Implementing the effects of both palette knives and brushwork, Melissa seeks to convey the swirl of colors embedded deep in her mind’s eye. Layered blossoms of color and streaks of white create cosmic-like scenes, evoking new perceptions of melody and rhythm in her audience. Through her work, Melissa strives to unmask the elusive areas of the world we encounter, allowing a refreshing experience of the familiar.

Bach's "Cello Suite #1"

"I paint music....."

Visit her ON-LINE to see her amazing work!

Music from Earth: 40 Years of Voyager 1

This year marks 40 years ago (exact date was September 5, 1977), that the Voyager 1 spacecraft was launched from earth.

On that spacecraft, NASA placed a gold record that includes greetings in 55 languages, a collection of "sounds of Earth" (includes babies crying, various animals sounds, "Per aspera ad astra" in Morse Code, sounds of nature, and the like), Ann Druyan's brainwaves, over 100 images....and music.

Gilgamesh Tablet Found

This story is actually from 2015, but it bears spreading the news....

Published on September 24, 2015
The Newly Discovered Tablet V of the Epic of Gilgamesh
written by Osama S. M. Amin

I was taking photos in the main hall of the Sulaymaniyah Museum and came across a display case containing a small clay tablet. The description beside it said the tablet was part of the Epic of Gilgamesh and a fragment of tablet V. Immediately I thought it was a ‘replica’ as the description was superficial. It did not say the tablet was genuine, that it was newly discovered or even told about the many new pieces of information it had revealed.

After the US-led invasion of Iraq and the dramatic looting of Iraqi and other museums, the Sulaymaniyah Museum (directed by the council of ministers of Iraqi Kurdistan) started an initiative. They paid smugglers to ‘intercept’ archeological artifacts on their journey to other countries. No questions were asked about who was selling the piece or where it came from. The Sulaymaniyah Museum believed this condition kept smugglers from selling their merchandise to other buyers, as they would have otherwise done so "with ease and without any legal consequences.".....

Read the entire story HERE.

World Science Festival: How music and science combine to monitor climate change

Music researcher Dr Leah Barclay told the 100 Ways To Listen project that artists and scientists working together could unlock the secrets of climate change.

"The way we think about music and the way sound artists listen, can really influence and inspire how scientists are responding to climate change," she said.

Recording sound from different environments, allowed music scientists to monitor climate change, by using hydrophones and binaural microphones that mimicked the same technology as the human ear.

"Dramatic changes in aquatic ecosystems can go unnoticed simply due to visibility," said Dr Barclay, whose hydrology piece featured recordings of the world's water systems collected over a decade.

This non-invasive technique called acoustic ecology enabled the researchers "to listen to an active and healthy reef and hear active fish and snapping shrimp" or the increased traffic of Humpback whales, she said.

A lack of noise or increased noise levels could be indicators of the ecosystem's health.

Read it all HERE!

Music & Your Brain

Can playing a musical instrument make you a genius? Probably not, says Bob Duke, director of the Center for Music Learning at The University of Texas at Austin, but it is giving your brain a great workout.

“Few activities engage the brain like music does,” said Duke, who for 32 years has led classes and national research on music and the brain. “My focus throughout my career has been on learning and human behavior. And because I am a musician, I do that in the context of studying music makers.”

That is why he founded the Center for Music Learning within the Butler School of Music in 2002. The goal of the center is to break down barriers between disciplines by bringing together expert teachers, performers, composers, psychologists, neuroscientists and physiologists.

Read the entire article HERE.

Stage Fright - Banish it Now

(Ed. note: Not really. Banish it, that is. "Stage fright" is just the human adrenal response. Happens when you perceive some level of stress - which in this case, just means you care.
The idea is NEVER to get rid of the fright, but to mitigate the negative effects and to use the adrenal response to your advantage.)

You're about to walk on stage, for a talk, a musical or theatrical performance, or similar. And suddenly....

Stage fright has famously effected many people, including Brian Wilson (Beach Boys), Megan Fox, Rhianna,Andre 3000, Katy Perry, Carly Simon, Barbera Streisand, Olympia Dukakis, Maya Angelou, Hugh Grant, Adele, and many others.

Some just suffer through it, struggling their entire careers with it. Some resort, quite famously, to drugs or alcohol or other unhealthy (and only temporarily effective) approaches.

I've seen all manner of articles on conquering stage fright. They offer all manner of advice, from "just get out there more often and you'll get used to it" to "imagine the audience naked" to "you have to address your negative thoughts and realize they aren't realistic" to "imagine positive images" to "visualize success" and many more.

While somewhat helpful, these are all woefully inadequate, ultimately, because they address psychology and ignore physiology.

Ray Kurzweil receives 2015 Technical Grammy Award

Ray Kurzweil received the 2015 Technical Grammy Award on February 7, 2015 for his outstanding achievements in the field of music technology.

One of his primary inventions paved the way for re-creating acoustic instruments with electronic equivalents.

The Technical Grammy Award is a Special Merit Award presented by vote of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences Trustees, for contributions of outstanding technical significance to the recording field.....

Read it all HERE.

Your Brain on Music

 Great VIDEO piece at Scientific America!

By Benjamin Meyers, Diana Kwon on December 10, 2015

(excerpt).....While listening to music you might find yourself tapping your foot or bobbing your head to the beat. What you might not have expected is that as you listen to your favorite tune, the rhythms in your brain also follow along.

Brain rhythms arise when large groups of neurons fire together. Previous studies have shown that listening to someone talk can elicit such activity. Now research reveals that brain rhythms also synchronize with musical sequences. And musical training can enhance this ability. The study is in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences [Keith B. Doelling and David Poeppel, Cortical entrainment to music and its modulation by expertise]......

Music Therapy

Amazing.....

Watch and listen!