11 March 2010 — Computer Music
Miller-McCune has a good piece about composer David Cope, who is most famous for writing a piece of software that could effectively mimic the compositional style of earlier composers (via Kottke).
I remember hearing about Cope's work when I was in high school, but I never really got what the big deal was. I think it's pretty amazing, but I don't understand why anybody gets so worked up about it. This paragraph struck me:
Of course, some composers probably have taken dictation from birds. Yet the most likely explanation, Cope believes, is that music comes from other works composers have heard, which they slice and dice subconsciously and piece together in novel ways. How else could a style like classical music last over three or four centuries?
Probably? Is it a stretch to think of Olivier Messiaen as being one of the most influential/highly regarded/famous composers of the 20th century?