Composing first species counterpoint with a variable neighbourhood search algorithm

In this article, a variable neighbourhood search (VNS) algorithm is developed that can generate musical fragments consisting of a melody for the cantus firmus and the first species counterpoint. The objective function of the algorithm is based on a quantification of existing rules for counterpoint. The VNS algorithm developed in this article is a local search algorithm that starts from a randomly generated melody and improves it by changing one or two notes at a time. A thorough parametric analysis of the VNS reveals the significance of the algorithm's parameters on the quality of the composed fragment, as well as their optimal settings. A comparison of the VNS algorithm with a developed genetic algorithm shows that the VNS is more efficient. The VNS algorithm has been implemented in a user-friendly software environment for composition, called Optimuse. Optimuse allows a user to specify a number of characteristics such as length, key and mode. Based on this information, Optimuse 'composes' both cantus firmus and first species counterpoint. Alternatively, the user may specify a cantus firmus, and let Optimuse compose the accompanying first species counterpoint. © 2012 Taylor & Francis

Machine learning of symbolic compositional rules with genetic programming: dissonance treatment in Palestrina

We describe a method for automatically extracting symbolic compositional rules from music corpora. Resulting rules are expressed by a combination of logic and numeric relations, and they can therefore be studied by humans. These rules can also be used for algorithmic composition, where they can be combined with each other and with manually programmed rules. We chose genetic programming (GP) as our machine learning technique, because it is capable of learning formulas consisting of both logic and numeric relations. GP was never used for this purpose to our knowledge. We therefore investigate a well understood case in this study: dissonance treatment in Palestrina’s music. We label dissonances with a custom algorithm, automatically cluster melodic fragments with labelled dissonances into different dissonance categories (passing tone, suspension etc.) with the DBSCAN algorithm, and then learn rules describing the dissonance treatment of each category with GP. Learning is based on the requirement that rules must be broad enough to cover positive examples, but narrow enough to exclude negative examples. Dissonances from a given category are used as positive examples, while dissonances from other categories, melodic fragments without dissonances, purely random melodic fragments, and slight random transformations of positive examples, are used as negative examples

A novel music constraint programming system: the PWGL libraries cluster engine and cluster rules

This workshop demonstrates a music constraint system that offers a user-friendly visual programming interface suitable for rapid development, and at the same time allows for a large range of constraint problems, including complex polyphonic problems. This system consists of the two PWGL libraries Cluster Engine and Cluster Rules

Game Feel Aesthetics : Finding the Fun Factor

Spel är något som ligger oss nära om hjärtat, och är en industri som fortsätter växa hejdlöst. Vi var nyfikna på hur man gör ett spel “roligt” att spela. Steven Swink har presenterat konceptet “game feel”, i sin bok med samma namn, och hur man kan använda det för att beskriva samarbeten som uppstår mellan de visuella och taktila komponenterna i ett spel för att skapa känslor hos spelaren. En liknande term är “immersion”, som behandlar själva spelarens påverkan av vad Swink kallar game feel. Utöver de här koncepten, tar vi i detta arbete upp hur game feel fungerar som en estetisk upplevelse, med hjälp av Graeme Kirkpatricks tankar kring ämnet. Vi går igenom hur negativa känslor kan bli en positiv spelupplevelse, med en artikel av Kristine Jørgensen, och hur ett spels tekniska begränsningar kan påverka dess visuella estetik, i en artikel av Andrew Hutchinson. Vår frågeställning är: “vad är de visuella komponenterna i game feel, och hur påverkar de en spelupplevelse?”, och vi har valt att gestalta detta genom att utveckla ett spel. Med hjälp av en kvalitativ undersökning har vi fått feedback på vad de visuella komponenterna i game feel är. Spelet inkluderade fem game feel-upplevelser som Swink diskuterar. Speltestarna fick gå igenom en 10-15 minuters speldemo, och ge svar på ett frågeformulär, baserade på sina spelupplevelser. Vi analyserade deras svar efter en “ad hoc” analysmetod. Vi kom fram till att de visuella komponenterna är svåra att separera från de taktila komponenterna, så det är svårt att prata om spel som enbart visuella. Inlevelsen i spel kommer från det kombinerade visuella med de fysiska knapptryckningarna. Vi anser att det går att undersöka vidare på detta ämne, då vi bara skrapat ytan på vad de visuella komponenterna i game feel egentligen är.Games are close to our hearts, and belong to an industry that continues to grow without an end in sight. We were curious about how you make a game “fun” to play. Steve Swink has presented the concept of “game feel”, in his book with the same name, and how it can be used to describe the collaboration between the visual and the tactile components in a game to create feelings in the player. A similar term is “immersion”, which describes the influence a game has on the players themselves — what Swink calls game feel. We also discuss game feel as an aesthetic experience, with the help of Graeme Kirkpatricks thoughts on the subject. We cover how negative feelings can become a positive game experience, with the help of an article by Kristine Jørgensen, and how a game’s technical limits can affect its visual aesthetics, with an article by Andrew Hutchinson. Our research question is: “what are the visual components in game feel, and how do they affect a gaming experience?”, and we’ve chosen to showcase this by developing a game. With the help of a qualitative study, we got some feedback of what the visual components in game feel are. The game included five game feel experiences that Swink discusses. The play testers got to go through a game demo, and answer a questionnaire, based on their gaming experiences. We analysed their answers using an “ad hoc” method of analysis. We arrived at the conclusion that the visual components are hard to separate from the tactile ones, making it hard talk about games as only visual experiences. The feeling of involvement in playing a game comes from the combination of the visual aesthetics and the physical feeling of pressing buttons. We see the possibility of continuing the research on the topic of game feel, because we’ve only scraped the surface on what the visual components of game feel truly are

Statistical rules in constraint-based programming

Presented at the 15th International Conference on Auditory Display (ICAD2009), Copenhagen, Denmark, May 18-22, 2009In this paper we introduce a system that first generates statistical analysis data from a musical score. The results are then translated automatically to constraint rules that in turn can be used in com- bination with ordinary rules to generate scores that have similar statistical distributions than the original. Statistical analysis rules are formalized using our special rule syntax where our focus will be in the pattern-matching part of the rules. The pattern-matching part has two important tasks in our paper: first, it is used to extract various musical entities from the score, such as melodic, harmonic and voice-leading formations; second, it is used also to generate statistical rules which will be used in the re-synthesis part of our system. We first introduce the rule syntax. After this we discuss a practical case study where we analyze a melodic line. Finally we generate out of this material statistical rules which are used to produce new scores

The place-names of Norfolk Part 1; the place-names of the City of Norwich

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:3775.109(EPNS-Pub--61) / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo