ACM

Communications of the ACM

Home/News/. . . And the Computer Plays Along/Abstract

News

. . . And the Computer Plays Along

By Esther Shein
Communications of the ACM, April 2023, Vol. 66 No. 4, Pages 15-17
10.1145/3583082
Comments

View as: Print Mobile App ACM Digital Library In the Digital Edition Share:

colorful jumble of music notes, illustration — Credit: Getty Images

A concert held at the Massachussetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the fall to celebrate the opening of the university's new museum included a performer that was invisible to the audience but played a key role in forming the melodic sound: an artificial intelligence (AI) system that responded to the musicians and improvised in real time.

In a piece from "Brain Opera 2.0," the system starts by growling to the trumpet, then finds pitches with the trombone, becomes melodic with the sax, and ultimately syncs with the instruments by the time everyone comes in, explains Tod Machover, a music and media professor at MIT and head of the MIT Media Lab, who served as composer/conductor of the two-night concert event.

No entries found

Log in to Read the Full Article

Sign In

Sign in using your ACM Web Account username and password to access premium content if you are an ACM member, Communications subscriber or Digital Library subscriber.

Need Access?

Please select one of the options below for access to premium content and features.

Create a Web Account

If you are already an ACM member, Communications subscriber, or Digital Library subscriber, please set up a web account to access premium content on this site.

Join the ACM

Become a member to take full advantage of ACM's outstanding computing information resources, networking opportunities, and other benefits.

Subscribe to Communications of the ACM Magazine

Get full access to 50+ years of CACM content and receive the print version of the magazine monthly.

Purchase the Article

Non-members can purchase this article or a copy of the magazine in which it appears.