A Model for Scale-Degree Reinterpretation: Melodic Structure, Modulation, and Cadence Choice in the Chorale Harmonizations of J. S. Bach

This paper reports a corpus study of the 371 chorale harmonizations by J. S. Bach. Specifically, this study investigates what kinds of events are typical at phrase endings given various melodic conditions, i.e., how well melodic structure is a predictor of modulation and cadence choices. Each fermata event was analyzed by ear and encoded with regard to the local key area and the cadence type. The frequency of each cadence type was then tabulated with respect to categorizations of the melodic structure (in terms of the intervallic pattern and scale degree content) prior to the fermata. It is shown that most fermata events can be categorized by a small collection of event types. As a result, a simplified conceptual model of cadence choice is posited. This model proposes that a basic harmonization default is to (re-)interpret the soprano note at the fermata as scale-degree 1, 2, or 3 in some closely-related key area via an authentic or half cadence. The efficacy of this model is found to be very good, especially given certain conditions. Moreover, an overall success rate above 90% can be achieved through only four additional concepts

Chord-Conditioned Melody Choralization with Controllable Harmonicity and Polyphonicity

Melody choralization, i.e. generating a four-part chorale based on a user-given melody, has long been closely associated with J.S. Bach chorales. Previous neural network-based systems rarely focus on chorale generation conditioned on a chord progression, and none of them realised controllable melody choralization. To enable neural networks to learn the general principles of counterpoint from Bach's chorales, we first design a music representation that encoded chord symbols for chord conditioning. We then propose DeepChoir, a melody choralization system, which can generate a four-part chorale for a given melody conditioned on a chord progression. Furthermore, with the improved density sampling, a user can control the extent of harmonicity and polyphonicity for the chorale generated by DeepChoir. Experimental results reveal the effectiveness of our data representation and the controllability of DeepChoir over harmonicity and polyphonicity. The code and generated samples (chorales, folk songs and a symphony) of DeepChoir, and the dataset we use now are available at https://github.com/sander-wood/deepchoir.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, 2 table

A Functional Taxonomy of Music Generation Systems

Digital advances have transformed the face of automatic music generation since its beginnings at the dawn of computing. Despite the many breakthroughs, issues such as the musical tasks targeted by different machines and the degree to which they succeed remain open questions. We present a functional taxonomy for music generation systems with reference to existing systems. The taxonomy organizes systems according to the purposes for which they were designed. It also reveals the inter-relatedness amongst the systems. This design-centered approach contrasts with predominant methods-based surveys and facilitates the identification of grand challenges to set the stage for new breakthroughs.Comment: survey, music generation, taxonomy, functional survey, survey, automatic composition, algorithmic compositio

ChoraLearn: A system that learns from examples to write simplified figured bass harmonizations of chorales using the PLS1 clusterer

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A computational framework for aesthetical navigation in musical search space

Paper presented at 3rd AISB symposium on computational creativity, AISB 2016, 4-6th April, Sheffield. Abstract. This article addresses aspects of an ongoing project in the generation of artificial Persian (-like) music. Liquid Persian Music software (LPM) is a cellular automata based audio generator. In this paper LPM is discussed from the view point of future potentials of algorithmic composition and creativity. Liquid Persian Music is a creative tool, enabling exploration of emergent audio through new dimensions of music composition. Various configurations of the system produce different voices which resemble musical motives in many respects. Aesthetical measurements are determined by Zipf’s law in an evolutionary environment. Arranging these voices together for producing a musical corpus can be considered as a search problem in the LPM outputs space of musical possibilities. On this account, the issues toward defining the search space for LPM is studied throughout this paper

J. S. Bach\u27s Modal Compositional Practice in the Chorale Preludes for Solo Organ: A Schenkerian Perspective

This dissertation proposes a Schenkerian perspective of J. S. Bach’s modal compositional practice in his chorale preludes for solo organ. It develops two major themes: first, a viable framework for reconciling Schenker’s theory of tonality with the kind of composition that Bach’s modal music exemplifies (chapter 3); and second, a definition of Bach’s modal compositional practice in the chorale preludes as revealed through analysis of the repertoire (chapter 4). Additionally, the dissertation explores the pertinence of traditional modal theory to Bach’s modal music (chapter 1), confronts Schenker’s evaluation of modal composition (chapter 1), and responds to other scholarly work in this area (chapter 2). In advancing a Schenkerian interpretation of Bach’s modal compositional practice, my approach aims to reconcile rather than to adapt. Instead of altering Schenkerian theory or offering an exclusively tonal view of Bach’s modal music, I define a space within Schenkerian theory that can accommodate this repertoire. I remain faithful to the principles of Schenkerian theory but stretch their scope beyond the borders of tonality. To accomplish this, I argue that the Ursatz is best understood as an abstract prototype of tonality, and I elaborate Matthew Brown’s expression of Schenkerian theory as a set of law-like generalizations of tonal contrapuntal and harmonic behaviour. Rather than adopting an a priori idea of modality, I define Bach’s modal compositional practice by the musical behaviour that the chorale preludes exhibit as revealed in analysis and through the Schenkerian perspective. To this end, I offer original analyses of five modal chorale preludes: “Ach Herr, mich armen Sünder,” BWV 742, from the Neumeister collection; “Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland,” BWV 599, “Lob sei dem allmächtigen Gott,” BWV 602, and “Komm, Gott Schöpfer, heiliger Geist,” BWV 631, from the Orgelbüchlein; and “Kyrie, Gott Vater in Ewigkeit,” BWV 669, from Klavierübung III. I show that in the modal chorale preludes, despite the multiplicity of available options, Bach uses only seven distinct background patterns divided among three modal categories. The musical content of these modal backgrounds and the tonal behaviour of the foreground and middleground structural levels define Bach’s modal compositional practice

Jesu meine Freunde: A cultural reception analysis of Romans 8. Bach the evangelist and our contemporary secularized society

Romans 8:1-11 ; Contains German text and trans of motet, Jesus Meine Freude by J S Bach