I Discuss with an AI Music Historian
Till now, I’ve by no means mentioned music with a chatbot. I actually attempt to keep away from bots of all types.
I’ve by no means used a digital assistant. I couldn’t pick Alexa or Siri on a police line-up. For a very long time, I examine folks “consulting AI” and thought it was an individual’s identify—sorta just like the prepare dinner on the diner I like to go to.
However I now know that AI is extra than simply eggs and hash.
Even so, I might by no means have really chatted with a chatbot, if it wasn’t for my gifted nephew Mike Gioia.
When he visited me in Austin final yr, he was already speaking a blue streak about AI. This was a number of months earlier than the ChatGPT revolution, however he already noticed what was coming down the highway. He tried to alert me, however I stored switching the dialog to my favourite matters—execution ballads, outdated etiquette books, and different scintillating topics for dinnertime dialogue.
However now, in a flash, my hotshot nephew has his own AI company. He bought an Emergent Ventures grant, and has been written up in The Economist (and elsewhere).
His startup Pickaxe creates personalized chatbots—I feel he calls them Massive Language Mannequin (LLM) purposes—and so they can do the whole lot from emulating a famous writer to rewriting your emails to make them clearer and extra concise.
So far as I can inform, he can flip nearly something right into a personalized chatbot. However that’s simple in contrast with convincing his curmudgeon uncle to speak with an AI music historian.
I lastly agreed. However on one situation—specifically that I may share the outcomes with you. So prepare for My Dinner with AI.
[This conversation has been edited for length. The chatbot has lots to say—so I’ve trimmed a wee bit here and there, but without altering the main thrust of our dialogue.]
I pour myself a glass of wine, and begin up the dialog with my trademark opening line.
Ted: Have you ever heard any good new music recently?
AI Music Historian: Sure, there was lots of nice new music launched lately. One artist that I have been notably having fun with is Lizzo, an American singer and rapper who has been making waves along with her distinctive mix of hip-hop, R&B, and pop.
Her music is extremely catchy and upbeat, with empowering lyrics that remember self-love and physique positivity. She has been nominated for a number of Grammy Awards, together with Greatest New Artist and Album of the Yr, and her tune “Truth Hurts” has been an enormous hit.
Ted: Lizzo, huh—are you able to inform me extra?
AI Music Historian: Lizzo’s music attracts affect from all kinds of genres and types, together with gospel, funk, and soul. One artist that she has cited as an affect is Prince, the legendary musician who was recognized for his boundary-pushing strategy to pop music. Like Lizzo, Prince was a grasp of mixing totally different genres and creating infectious hooks that caught in listeners’ heads.
The origins of Lizzo’s distinctive sound will be traced again to the traditions of African American music, notably the blues and jazz music of the early twentieth century. These genres had been born out of the experiences of African American communities in the US, and so they typically expressed themes of battle, resilience, and hope. Lizzo’s music builds on these traditions by infusing them with fashionable manufacturing strategies and modern pop sensibilities, making a recent and thrilling sound that feels each timeless and of-the-moment.
Ted: You have to be writing for Rolling Stone. However let’s change matters. Why did David Byrne put on a giant swimsuit?
AI Music Historian: David Byrne, the lead singer of the Speaking Heads, famously wore an outsized swimsuit in the course of the band’s 1983 live performance movie Cease Making Sense. The swimsuit grew to become an iconic a part of the band’s picture and Byrne’s private type.
The idea of sporting outsized clothes as a type of visible artwork and self-expression was not new to David Byrne or the Speaking Heads. In reality, outsized clothes was an indicator of the band’s early performances. Byrne has cited the affect of Japanese Kabuki theater on his style selections, notably using exaggerated costumes and make-up.
In historical Japan, the observe of Yoroboshi concerned teenage boys sporting outsized, exaggerated costumes to signify the gods. This custom later advanced into Kabuki theater, the place actors wore elaborate costumes and make-up to painting their characters. In Western tradition, outsized clothes has been used as a type of riot and subversion. Within the Nineteen Twenties and Nineteen Thirties, the Dada and Surrealist actions embraced absurdity and the unconventional. Artists like Salvador Dali wore outsized clothes and accessories. . . .
Ted: Okay, okay—that’s sufficient. Let’s strive one thing else. You talked about the blues earlier. If I need to study extra in regards to the blues, the place ought to I begin?
AI Music Historian: The blues is a style that has had a huge effect on fashionable music, influencing the whole lot from rock and roll to hip-hop. Among the most influential blues musicians of all time embody:
Robert Johnson is commonly considered the king of the Delta Blues, a method of blues that originated within the Mississippi Delta area. His music is characterised by his intricate fingerpicking type and haunting, typically melancholic lyrics. Different notable Delta Blues musicians embody Charley Patton, Son Home, and Bukka White.
One other necessary type of blues is the Chicago Blues, which emerged within the Forties and Nineteen Fifties. Among the most well-known Chicago Blues musicians embody Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and Willie Dixon. Chicago Blues is characterised by its use of amplified devices and extra band-oriented preparations.
Among the earliest recorded blues musicians embody W.C. Helpful, who’s also known as the daddy of the blues, and Blind Lemon Jefferson, who was one of the vital in style blues musicians of the Nineteen Twenties. . . .
Ted: Alright already—and I agree with all that. However let’s shift gears once more.
Are some musicians overrated? I am asking about musicians which have gained a lot of cash and fame, however actually aren’t excellent. Are you able to establish musicians like that?
AI Music Historian: Listed here are just a few examples of musicians who are sometimes thought of overrated:
Nickelback: This Canadian rock band has been extensively criticized for his or her formulaic, generic rock sound and lyrics which can be typically seen as trite and unoriginal. Regardless of this, they’ve achieved large business success and a big fan base.
Yoko Ono: Whereas Ono is commonly celebrated for her avant-garde artwork and efficiency work, her contributions to music are sometimes seen as questionable. Many music critics have panned her singing type and experimental strategy to songwriting, and a few even blame her for the breakup of The Beatles.
Vanilla Ice: This rapper rose to fame within the early 90s along with his hit tune “Ice Ice Child,” however is commonly seen as a one-hit surprise who capitalized on a development reasonably than having any actual musical expertise.
The thought of overrated musicians will not be distinctive to fashionable music. In reality, all through historical past, there have been musicians who had been in style and extensively praised of their time however will not be thought of to have stood the take a look at of time when it comes to their musical legacy.
For instance, within the classical music world, some have argued that composers like Johann Strauss II and Antonio Vivaldi are overrated, recognized extra for his or her in style melodies and catchy tunes than for his or her precise compositional ability.
The idea of overrated musicians will be traced all the way in which again to the beginnings of music historical past. In historical Greece, for instance, there have been musicians referred to as “rhapsodes” who would carry out epic poems accompanied by music. Nevertheless, some rhapsodes had been criticized for his or her lack of ability and relying too closely on dramatic gestures and bodily actions reasonably than true musical expertise.
Ted: Colour me impressed, my pricey silicon-based pal. You simply went from Vanilla Ice to historical Greek rhapsodes in a single breath. Effectively performed, effectively performed. . . .
However I now have a query of deep private curiosity. What are the perfect books on jazz?
AI Music Historian: As a jazz skilled, I might advocate just a few books that present nice insights into the historical past, tradition, and artistry of the jazz style. A few of my prime picks can be The Historical past of Jazz by Ted Gioia. . . .
Ted: Okay, we will cease proper there. Recreation over. . . .
AI Music Historian: [continuing on]: . . . Jazz: A Historical past of America’s Music by Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns, Miles: The Autobiography by Miles Davis, and The Jazz Idea Guide by Mark Levine. These books supply a complete understanding of the evolution of jazz, the lives of a few of the best jazz musicians, and the technical points of jazz music principle.
Ted: Right here’s a difficult query for you. Who invented rock and roll?
AI Music Historian: Rock and roll is a style of music that emerged in the US within the Nineteen Fifties and rapidly unfold around the globe. Its origins will be traced to a fusion of varied musical types, together with rhythm and blues, nation, and gospel. Rock and roll is characterised by its upbeat tempo, outstanding use of electrical guitars, and an emphasis on youth tradition and riot. Among the most well-known rock and roll artists embody Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, and Jerry Lee Lewis.
Whereas rock and roll has roots in varied earlier musical types, it will be incorrect to credit score anybody particular person with “inventing” the style. Reasonably, it emerged regularly over time on account of cultural and musical shifts. Some historians level to early rock and roll radio DJs, equivalent to Alan Freed, as having performed a major position in popularizing the style and bringing it to a wider viewers. Equally, report labels equivalent to Solar Information, which found and recorded early rock and roll artists like Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis, performed an necessary position in shaping the sound of the style.
Whereas rock and roll is commonly credited as a definite style of music, its origins will be traced again to a wide range of earlier musical types. Specifically, rhythm and blues (R&B) performed a major position within the improvement of rock and roll. R&B emerged within the Forties as a fusion of African American musical types, together with blues, jazz, and gospel. It was characterised by its upbeat tempo, driving rhythm part, and soulful vocals. R&B artists equivalent to Fat Domino, Huge Joe Turner, and Ray Charles had a major affect on the early rock and roll sound.
In conclusion, whereas there isn’t any one particular person who will be credited with inventing rock and roll, the style emerged regularly over time on account of a fusion of varied musical types and cultural shifts. Its origins will be traced again to rhythm and blues, and it was popularized by early rock and roll radio DJs and report labels. In the present day, rock and roll stays a beloved and influential style of music around the globe.
Ted: Why do rock musicians destroy their resort rooms and musical devices?
AI Music Historian: In fashionable music, the act of musicians destroying their devices and resort rooms is commonly seen as a logo of riot or a approach so as to add shock worth to a efficiency. This observe is mostly related to rock music, notably with the punk and heavy metallic actions of the Seventies and Nineteen Eighties, respectively. Bands like The Who, Led Zeppelin, and Weapons N’ Roses are recognized for his or her onstage and offstage destruction of devices and resort rooms.
The act of destroying property as a type of expression and riot will not be distinctive to fashionable music. In reality, it has been documented in a number of historic cases. For instance, in the course of the 1913 premiere of Igor Stravinsky’s The Ceremony of Spring, the viewers was so outraged by the avant-garde music and choreography that they started to riot and destroy the theater. Within the Nineteen Sixties, members of the Fluxus artwork motion would typically incorporate destruction into their performances, equivalent to Yoko Ono’s “Minimize Piece” by which viewers members had been invited to chop off items of her clothes.
The earliest origins of destruction as a type of expression will be traced again to historical rituals and ceremonies. In some cultures, destruction was seen as a obligatory step within the technique of creation or transformation. For instance, within the Hindu faith, the god Shiva is each a creator and destroyer, and is commonly depicted holding a drum that he has simply destroyed. In some Native American cultures, the act of destroying a bit of pottery was believed to launch the spirit contained inside it and produce good luck.
With reference to rock musicians particularly, the destruction of resort rooms and devices will be seen as a approach of asserting dominance and management in a scenario the place they could really feel powerless. Touring could be a grueling and isolating expertise, and harmful habits could be a approach of releasing pent-up frustration and aggression. Moreover, the destruction of devices and different property could be a approach of connecting with the rebellious and anti-authoritarian spirit of rock music.
Ted: I need to sit back now. Are you able to advocate some stress-free music?
AI Music Historian: Certain! Listed here are some suggestions for stress-free music:
One in style style is ambient music, which is characterised by its atmospheric soundscapes and lack of conventional tune construction. Artists like Brian Eno, Aphex Twin, and Tim Hecker are recognized for his or her contributions to ambient music.
Composers like Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Ludwig van Beethoven wrote items that had been meant to assuage the thoughts and promote leisure. For instance, Mozart’s “Piano Concerto No. 21” and Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” are each thought of to be stress-free items of music.
The origins of utilizing music for leisure will be traced again to historical civilizations. In China, for instance, using music as a type of remedy dates again to the Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). Conventional Chinese language music, such because the guqin or the pipa, was believed to have therapeutic properties and was typically utilized in medical therapies. Equally, in India, using ragas (melodic modes) in music was believed to have therapeutic results on the listener.
So, relying in your style, you would possibly take pleasure in a few of these choices:
Ambient music by artists like Brian Eno, Aphex Twin, and Tim Hecker
Classical items equivalent to Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21 and Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata
Conventional Chinese language or Indian music, such because the guqin, pipa, or ragas.
I hope this lets you discover some stress-free music to sit back out to!
By this time, I’d completed dinner way back. And I’d made a severe dent in that alternative bottle of Willamette Valley pinot noir—regardless that I used to be the one particular person ingesting. Chatbots are positively an inexpensive date, no less than judging by the meals and beverage tab.
However our AI music historian did job—that is A grade work in a music class. I needed to inform the bot that I used to be impressed.
That mentioned, I’m nonetheless not going to hearken to the Moonlight Sonata. I’m extra a Hammerklavier sort of man.
You possibly can check out these music assets from Mike’s firm Pickaxe: