Why it makes sense for musicians to use AI

 

 

 

Researchers of today are discovering that it can serve as more of an inspiration than a danger.

Anyone can compose music in almost any genre with a professional quality thanks to artificial intelligence. Large industry organizations are taking notice of its growing usage in music. Popular AI music applications Suno and Udio were sued in June by the Recording Industry Association of America, Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and Warner Music Group on charges of copyright infringement.

Although their results may not be seen for years, lawsuits such as this one could aid in defending the rights of musicians and record labels. For musicians, AI may, in the meanwhile, offer more opportunities than difficulties. According to Sum Patten, a creative director at the agency Glow and advisor to the AI 2030 movement, which encourages ethical AI use, “most musicians I know aren’t afraid of their art being replaced by AI.” “At this point, it’s pretty obvious that AI won’t be able to replicate the magic that an accomplished musician can perform.”

Songs produced by AI lack the organic quality of music made by humans. However, artists that use AI in their work can gain a competitive advantage in a changing field. AI can inspire them and speed up their own creative process.

Take into consideration how Suno creates music to get an idea of how. As in the sample below, the user types into a text prompt.

After getting my SMS prompt, Suno created everything you hear and see here, including the song, album cover, and lyrics, in under 20 seconds. Although the song and its cover won’t become summertime hits or win any awards, the package is very sophisticated considering it was made up of only 15 words. It demonstrates how AI may be used to assist in the creation of lyrics, music, and even album art.

Users of the program can choose particular styles and instruments, as well as contribute their own lyrics. In the subsequent instance, I requested that ChatGPT produce the lyrics.

I requested female vocals from Suno, but you can see how we might continue to alter the tune.

These songs are rather simple for an experienced ear to identify as AI-generated. In terms of timbre, conception, performance, and structure, they’re all rather “mid,” according to Eric Lyon, a professor at Virginia Tech and a composer and computer musician.

“The vocals have audible artifacts. The artificial guitar solo is remarkably consistent.”

Since Lyon is aware of these shortcomings in AI-generated music, he has largely drawn inspiration from Suno when creating his own works. As a test of human-AI interaction, he recently gave the software instructions to create a parody of an atomic accident. What AI produced was this:

For Lyon, “the text’s and the music’s cheerfulness was completely incongruous for the subject of nuclear war.” “There was a catchy melody.” The phrase structure has a slight imbalance. It provided a plenty of varied musical ideas.

The song by AI lasted for 26 seconds. Lyon expanded that into a six-minute piece, starting with a bass solo lifted straight from the AI song to provide subtlety and suspense.

Artificial intelligence is not able to produce the same magic that skilled human musicians can. However, under the direction and curation of artists, it can produce works of art. In the example below, Beethoven’s incomplete 10th Symphony was finished by a collaboration of musicians and scientists using AI they had trained on the composer’s work.

Out of all the alternatives generated by the AI model, the musicians chose the contributions that made sense.

Together, they added 40,000 notes to Beethoven’s symphony, which had only 200 notes at first. Audiences find it difficult to distinguish Beethoven from AI after hearing the results.

The 10th Symphony project manager, Ahmed Elgammal, a professor of computer science at Rutgers University, stated that “AI is just a tool when you use it in the creative domain.” Humans and AI play complementary roles in society. According to an email he sent, “AI can surprise us, but the human artist is the one who puts that into a human context.”

For many years, technology has shaped and advanced the music industry by impacting the methods in which music is produced and listened to. “There was always a doubting public that said, ‘That’s not genuine music,’ whether it was during the emergence of electronic music or the development of hip-hop, an art movement aided by technology. Oh no. “Music is in decline,” Patten declared of the AI 2030 project. “A seismic flood of new artistic expression finally silenced them. And all of them made it through.”

Although it’s simple to see how AI might benefit both professional musicians and non-professional music lovers, the technology isn’t yet strong enough to jeopardize the lives of musicians. Craig Arthur, a 27-year veteran DJ, stated, “Most of the people I’ve worked with are pretty excited and curious where it goes.” Arthur has shared stages with Ye and other well-known acts. He has combined instrumental parts from several songs using AI technologies like Serato, which was previously only available to professional music mixers. DJs now have more opportunities because to AI, he claimed.

The music industry has repeatedly demonstrated that musicians with an open mind and a rapid adoption of technology have the greatest opportunity to reap the rewards of new developments. Today’s experimenters are having important discussions on how to harness AI rather than avoiding it. This maintains people engaged in the advancement of AI, enabling them to guarantee that the technology enhances human creativity.

Let’s listen to AI‘s own explanation of why musicians should utilize it to wrap up.