8 Tools: How To Think About Artificial Intelligence In The Music Industry

As artificial intelligence continues to grow and develop, its presence is affecting more and more industries. In this piece, Becky Holton explores the impact AI is having on the music business, as well as looking at some of the AI-based tools at play on the music market today.

______________________________

These days, we can all artificial intelligence (AI) all around us. The main purpose of AI is to simulate mental tasks and one of the most important subsets of this technological advancement is machine learning. This is because it has a significant effect on all the other fields within AI. 

As AI gets incorporated in different industries, the music industry has now begun using it. With the introduction of AI, the competitive sustainability of organizations and individuals in the music industry has increased. Let’s find out more about AI in the music industry and a few tools that those in the industry are now using. 

How AI affects the music industry

Most people aren’t used to thinking about AI as something universal and pervasive. But in reality, it already exists all around us and we use different kinds of AI technology in our daily lives. Many industries and businesses use some form of AI technology from online shops, essay writer services, scientific institutions, and more.

But what about the music industry?

As human beings, we are all naturally creative and the best of us express their creativity through music. While we have come this far without using AI to make music, does this mean that we don’t need such technology for this industry? 

When you think about the capacity of AI, the first question that comes to mind is if AI can play “real music.” With all the smart devices that we use, we already know the answer to this question. But even if these technologies can play music, does this mean that it can compose music too? If so, how will this affect the market of the music industry? 

While AI can play music created by people or even play music on its own, right now, AI doesn’t have the capacity to compose original music. However, the long-term vision of those who develop AI is for this technological advancement to have the ability to produce certain styles of music after we (humans) feed the right kind of data to it. 

AI music enthusiasts and experts feel excited about this because it will allow them to collect valuable data. Also, it will let technicians to see exactly how music gets shaped. But right now, AI can only produce some variations of songs that already exist, not write original scores. Still, it can help producers and musicians improve their skills to produce better music. 

The most significant developments

A lot of people still fear the rise of AI because they don’t want computers to take over the work that humans do. But AI does offer a lot of benefits too. In the music industry, the most significant benefits of AI come from the following developments:

Audio improvements

Right now, one of the current roles of AI is in the finalization of music. This occurs when producers master or smooth out aspects of their song production process. In the music industry, experts develop AI technology to understand the cues smoothing professionals look for, then remove them automatically without the need for human interaction. 

Songwriting and song development

Erica Samson who works as a creative writer for an essay writing service UK says that songwriting is something that you need to practice thoroughly if you want to become a true artist. She adds that when it comes to AI taking over this aspect, there’s a very low risk of this happening. 

Instead, AI can provide professional musicians the several opportunities to come up with new, exciting songs. There are now some AI-music development startups that have made the creation of music more accessible. 

This is great news for musicians who are just starting out too. Of course, while such technologies can aid in the process, humans still have to do most of the work, especially in terms of coming up with creative content. 

AI tools for the music industry

It’s true that AI is gradually becoming an essential part of the music industry. This is good news for some while others remain uncertain. If you’re wondering what tools are out there for the musically inclined, here are some examples:

Playbeat

Playbeat utilizes AI technology to randomize grooves through the manipulation of volume, pitch, and other elements of music. All you have to do is load your music samples, tap/click the randomize button, and Playbeat gets to work. You also have the option to adjust parameters manually if you want to. 

Aiva Technologies

Aiva Technologies focuses on creating music for movies, commercials, and video games. It has analyzed musical creations of several classical composers and has created its own variations of these.

Jukedeck

Jukedeck is a paid AI tool for individuals and businesses. The developers have put in a lot of work to teach this AI by feeding it with large amounts of audio files and data. 

Rhythmiq

This is one of the more unique AI tools for the music industry. Rather than building its own beats from scratch, this tool depends on beats that you have already uploaded then creates its own variations. 

Rhythmiq focuses on live performance. For instance, if you already have a playlist that you listen to while working, but you want to have a few variations to fill the silence and change your mood, then this may be the perfect tool for you. 

Popgun

This Australian AI startup has its basis on deep learning technology. Unlike other AI tools, this one can predict the music you will play, provide accompaniment as you play, and even create its own improvisations. 

The main instrument for this AI tool is an electronic keyboard that the developers had trained using electronic samples. But the developers also plan to collaborate with other musicians for Popgun to learn to play other instruments too. 

Conclusion

While the mere idea of AI creating music might seem threatening for musicians and music producers, the truth is, AI can actually help them think more creatively. AI eliminates the more tedious aspects of music production so musicians can focus on more important things like unleashing their creativity.

AI is one of the best solutions for amateurs, too, since it can help them create better music without spending too much time or effort. At the end of the day, creativity remains to be something only humans have… so we shouldn’t feel worried about AI taking over.

Becky Holton is a journalist and a blogger. She is interested in education technologies and is always ready to support informative speaking. Follow her on Twitter.