Algorithmic composition

Algorithmic composition is the technique of using <a href="/facts/Algorithm/fnl5NmRt">algorithms</a> to create <a href="/facts/Music/hDVP0xsQ">music</a>.
Algorithms (or, at the very least, formal sets of rules) have been used to <a href="/facts/Composer/6zrz16FN">compose</a> music for centuries; the procedures used to plot <a href="/facts/Voice_leading/05GAdDIG">voice-leading</a> in Western <a href="/facts/Counterpoint/9yd8pKzN">counterpoint</a>, for example, can often be reduced to algorithmic determinacy. The term can be used to describe music-generating techniques that run without ongoing human intervention, for example through the introduction of <a href="/facts/Randomness/QJQBoEX5">chance</a> procedures. However through <a href="/facts/Live_coding/Vf9rTNDJ">live coding</a> and other interactive interfaces, a fully human-centric approach to algorithmic composition is possible.
Some algorithms or data that have no immediate musical relevance are used by composers as creative inspiration for their music. Algorithms such as <a href="/facts/Fractal/sXj38JeN">fractals</a>, <a href="/facts/L-system/SGfQ416R">L-systems</a>, <a href="/facts/Statistics/DNPsKGYU">statistical models</a>, and even arbitrary <a href="/facts/Data/AUBFN97o">data</a> (e.g. <a href="/facts/Census/dePeULsk">census</a> figures, <a href="/facts/Geographic_information_system/PoP1kVoa">GIS</a> coordinates, or <a href="/facts/Magnetic_field/Ta8Ev588">magnetic field</a> measurements) have been used as source materials.

Algorithmic composition open-in-new

Algorithmic composition