[Smt-talk] Aesthetics of Computer-Generated Music

[matralab]

Dear Collective Wisdom

could anyone refer me to studies done on computer-generated music as
aesthetic entities ?

I would be especially interested in [double-]blind studies where listeners
were asked to rate "meaningfulness"
or emotional richness of music that was a) either composed with an intent to
convey emotion or b) fully generated by computer.
Of course, the method of delivery (computer players/ human performers/
purely electroacoustic etc.) should be equal for both musics.

I am aware that, of course, making and listening to computer-generated music
is in itself an aesthetic statement, regardless of the emotional import of
the music.
But while this is certainly of interest to me in general, for this
particular research I am not interested in that aspect.

I am interested in what you could call the "emotional reality" of music as
it is experienced by listeners.
Do listeners perceive a "message" in music even if there is no direct human
intervention in its "composition"?
Can listeners make out if something is composed by computer or by a human
composer (perhaps using the computer as a tool, or without any computation
at all)?

My hunch is they cannot, and do not really care - but I would like to learn
more about it.
Any hints ?

Thank you in advance
Sandeep Bhagwati
Canada Research Chair in Inter–X Art
Concordia University Montreal
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