Klarinet Archive - Posting 001224.txt from 1998/05

From: Craig Countryman <cegc@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] interesting article about music composition
Date: Sun, 24 May 1998 11:02:14 -0400

I found this article fascinating, simply because I learned a lot about a new
concept in musical composition. It is very thought provoking, and really gives me
some mixed emotions.

In one way, having a computer compose works to imitate Mozart and Bach is a good
thing because it is a learning experience. By using the computer to help analyze
musical style and "signature" we can gain a greater understanding of both of these
composers works. Learning new things about music, or anything for that matter, is
a wonderful thing!

However, the reason the EMI system was developed is "Cope originally developed EMI
to get through his composer's block." This is what I object to. I am not a
composer, so I cannot give the most accurate comments on this subject, however, as
a listener and performer I believe that the point of composition is to express
your feelings and emotions. Composer's block is a natural occurrence. It can be
equated to writer's block. So does a writer enter what he has into a computer and
have it shoot out an ending? Absolutely NOT! So should a composer? No.

It seems to me that using a computer to get over composer's block is nothing more
then taking the easy way out. And, to make the assertion that

``If he (Mozart) were here today, he'd have already done what I've done, only it
would be six times better. Mozart would be a real geek in the 20th century.''
-Cope, creator of EMI

one loses credibility. The great modern composers have not resorted to having
computers do their work for them, so what makes him think Mozart would be any
different?

So really, the system is a mixed blessing. It is an excellent tool to help
students learn about musical style. But, to rely on it too much is a tragedy. We
have many capable PEOPLE to compose. To use computers to do that takes out the
true human element of it. In the article it says something about using the
computer to see what would have happened if a composer went in a different
direction. Well, the composer went in the direction he did for a reason, so while
exploring other possibilities isn't a horrible thing, I don't believe we should
put that much emphasis on it. This part of the debate seems, in my opinion, to
seep into the debate over "How important is what the composer intended?"

All and all it was a very thought provoking article, and if you haven't read it I
would encourage you to.

Sincerely,

----------------------------------------------------------
Craig Countryman
cegc@-----.net
http://www.sneezy.org/clarinet/YPP/Craig.html
http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/1711/

Einstein says:
"I sometimes ask myself how it came about that I was the
one to develop the theory of relativity. The reason, I
think, is that a normal adult never stops to think about
the problems of space and time. These are things which
he has thought of as a child. But my intellectual
development was retarded, as a result of which I began
to wonder about space and time only after I had grown
up."
----------------------------------------------------------

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