Yesterday I saw in a german newsletter, that a person in Germany did create an automatic composing program named “Ludwig”. He did it, as he did his Check-program Fritz. Not by placing the algorithms of composing into the code, but by having the program place note after note, and then evaluating the quality. Even these quality evaluation rules aren’t hardcoded, but are looked up in a DataBase, that can be fed with new information. So, my real questions and concerns are:

• How Automatic can one make the creative act of composing?
• Will such things survive and replace “ordinary composers”?

As I asked in http://www.tamino-klassikforum.at I am really curious, but find the idea itself interesting and challenging. Something to watch!

Matthias