Artificial Intelligence Disc-Jockey project
This project is a collaboration with MW to create an automatic DJ. Not a DJ that selects tunes and plays them in sequence, but a device that creates a single track that will last the whole night in a night-club.
- I have no formal musical education, apart from basic piano lessons at the age of 8 or 9 and no musical talent so have never learnt to play any instrument. So part of this project is for me to to learn music theory. MW is musically "grade 8", has been in a band or two and likes ambient generative music and is dipping his toe in a youtube channel.
- My personal preference is Deep House and Techno, which can be easily achieved instrumentally.
- The single track will last, say, 6 hours, but needs to change so that it does not become boring.
- We feel that there is a need for clubs or `rooms` for the fast-approaching and over 60`s to come and enjoy some pumping Techno or Deep house with comfy chair and a nice cup of tea.
- My AI Art project creates "art" from random paint-bots. We thought it would be fun to try this with music.
- We can later tie this project in with our ongoing Oscilloscope from Music project.
First I would like to see how individual sounds look. There are many sounds in techno music that I do not like and many that I do, but I am not musical enough to understand why some are more pleasing than others.
Options for viewing sounds:-
This a representation of what I was hoping for, something that would show me a single sound over time over the range of frequencies. I would then be able to see the sounds that I wanted to play in much the same way a musician will know which instrument to pick up for a different sound.
Options for viewing sounds:-
- Oscilloscopes and Audacity wave viewers do not produce enough detail over a longer time
- Spectrum Waterfalls are a possibility, but would have to be very fast and precise to analyse a single sound.
- Converting a sound to a colour picture may give an overview of a sound and the ability to compare them
This a representation of what I was hoping for, something that would show me a single sound over time over the range of frequencies. I would then be able to see the sounds that I wanted to play in much the same way a musician will know which instrument to pick up for a different sound.
Short examples of techno tracks that I believe can be replicated automatically (and possibly randomly)
Example 1 shows some sort of "phasing" or "pitch change" of the instruments, all at different speeds, although in hindsight it is probably varying the cutoff frequency of a filter. This is the idea that I have about a single track that can have infinite changes.
The device should also allow the human DJ to alter the speed of the change of any of the instruments. Essentially the device is somewhere between the musician and the DJ. Another analogy would be for a conductor to have more control of the orchestra, what and when they play and also how the sound is altered.
example 2. This is an example of a beat loop, which for techno/house lovers can probably go on for some time...
example 3. There needs to be a tune or occasional `melody` going on even with all the phasing and changing loudness of the `ambient noise` instruments.
example 4. more "phasing" of many sounds.
Example 1 shows some sort of "phasing" or "pitch change" of the instruments, all at different speeds, although in hindsight it is probably varying the cutoff frequency of a filter. This is the idea that I have about a single track that can have infinite changes.
The device should also allow the human DJ to alter the speed of the change of any of the instruments. Essentially the device is somewhere between the musician and the DJ. Another analogy would be for a conductor to have more control of the orchestra, what and when they play and also how the sound is altered.
example 2. This is an example of a beat loop, which for techno/house lovers can probably go on for some time...
example 3. There needs to be a tune or occasional `melody` going on even with all the phasing and changing loudness of the `ambient noise` instruments.
example 4. more "phasing" of many sounds.
Results
Our results are not works of art, but simply a record of progress from the very outset to wherever we are now. I have tried to upload every result, however bad, to the Playlist page. Often I will create many results per day, but I will select the best one to provide the example. If we make significant progress, then I will upload to our YouTube channel.