Generative Art, Music and Writing
A non-comprehensive but broad overview of generative art (and music and writing) systems. Generative art is work created based on the use of systems to generate part of or complete works of art. These systems take on the role of creator or otherwise independently produce works without direct supervision of an artist-creator. Many systems rely on chance operations or data as input that directs or influence the creation of the work so that each iteration or runthrough of the system may generate a new and unique work.
Pre-modern generative music
- Mozart’s Instructions for the composition of as many waltzes as one desires with two dice, without understanding anything about music or composition aka [Musical Dice game](http://imslp.org/wiki/Musikalisches_W%C3%BCrfelspiel,K.516f(Mozart,_Wolfgang_Amadeus), circa 1779
Mozart’s instructions
“To compose, without the least knowledge of music, so many German waltzes or ländler as one pleases, by throwing a certain number with two dice.”
- More info from a 1995-era website by John Chuang
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A BASIC implementation by Donald Sauter
- Herman Hesse’s Glass Bead Game, 1942
- Illiac Suite, composition for string quartet, the first composed via computer, 1957
Early Audio Technology
- COMPOSING WITH PROCESS: PERSPECTIVES ON GENERATIVE AND SYSTEMS MUSIC #9.1 - podcast, 2013
- Composing With Tape Recorders PDF
Music Created With Generative Methods
- Steve Reich on It’s Gonna Rain
- John Cage Wiilliam’s Mix
Generative Visual Art
- Jean Arp’s Untitled : (Collage with Squares Arranged according to the Laws of Chance)
- Jackson Pollock
Generative Writing
- Brian Gyson Cut-up Technique
- William Burroughs Cut-Up Technique
Generative performance system
- Terry Riley’s In C
Generative Software
- Electroplankton on Nintendo DS, by Toshio Iwai
- Sound Machine, unreleased, for Super Nintendo, by Toshio Iwai
- Trope by Brian Eno and Peter Chilvers
- Music For Airports
- Laurie Spiegel’s Music Mouse
- Reflection by Brian Eno
Resources
- Web Presentation on generative music by Tero Parviainen
Software Methods
- Markov chains
- Machine Learning