Music and its meaning in the age of AI

What is the difference between a work of art created by a human and one generated by AI? Recent advances in machine learning have made it objectively impossible, in many settings, to distinguish between human- and AI-authored images, texts, and even music. However, knowledge that an artwork was created using AI inevitably nuances our relationship with it, making us inclined to perceive a lack of originality and emotional depth, an incoherent structure… In short, we are primed to seek evidence that confirms what we intuitively expect: that an algorithm is not capable of creating art that can have a genuine emotional impact on us.

What then does it mean if we are moved by a work of art that was not derived from a lived human experience? If it is no longer possible to recognise the hand of Artificial Intelligence, does provenance matter anymore? These questions open the door for debate about the fundamental nature of art and creativity.

Our “Kunst/Zukunft” programme comprises works of music that were composed entirely, in part or not at all using AI. Treating this concert as a perceptual “experiment”, we provide no further information, instead leaving it to you, the listener, to ponder the provenance of the sounds you are hearing, to decide for yourself wherein lies the meaning and the beauty…

With works from
Malte Giesen, Jennifer Walshe, Joanna Bailie, Justina Repečkaité, Şahin Kureta, Yuri Demetz (UA) und Alfran García (UA)

ENSEMBLE RECHERCHE
Anja Clift, flute
Eduardo Olloqui, oboe
Shizuyo Oka, clarinet
Klaus Steffes-Holländer, piano
Christian Dierstein, percussion
Adam Woodward, violin
Sofia von Atzingen, viola
Åsa Åkerberg, violoncello
Lukas Nowok, sound design

Christie Finn, soprano

Tickets
available at reservix.de, Badische Zeitung Ticketservice and at the box office.

A cooperation 
between Ensemble Recherche and the Freunde of the Ensemble Recherche e.V.

This project is part of a broad effort by Ensemble Recherche in its 2024/25 season (“What is Real/What is Not”) to engage in discussion about Artificial Intelligence and the impact it will have on Art and Creativity.