Flute Robot

brownja · Post by **brownja** » Sat Nov 22, 2003 2:40 pm

Silver Flute, but still interesting.

http://www.takanishi.mech.waseda.ac.jp/flute/index.htm

jb

Henke · Post by **Henke** » Sat Nov 22, 2003 3:41 pm

Christ!
That is sick. So now real musicians are replaced by robots.
I didn't read a lot of the page, mabey there was a better reason for inventing such a thing, but the feeling is just wrong. For me, music is the most human thing there is, inventing robots to play music is not right

, espessially not the flute :roll:

kevin m. · Post by **kevin m.** » Sat Nov 22, 2003 3:54 pm

But can it execute rolls?

brownja · Post by **brownja** » Sat Nov 22, 2003 4:15 pm

It's an engineering/robotics exercise.
i.e. pick a really difficult problem and see if you can solve it. The flute is particularly challenging because there are so many many nuances in embouchure, air speed, attack, etc.

cocusflute · Post by **cocusflute** » Sat Nov 22, 2003 5:55 pm

What's wrong with robots? My mother was an android and I am half android. That's part robot to you, bro. My human side may play the flute with feeling, but it's decidedly punier than my robot side. My robot side uses all the keys on my ten-key German flute. Now there's a flute!
Some people say my playing is a bit mechanical, but hey: look at Skip Healey!

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Sat Nov 22, 2003 8:37 pm

Face it, we are computers lodged in robots, only
we're made of the wrong stuff.
The sooner we're replaced by something
durable and efficient, the
better for all concerned.
Our hardware is too soft to
run the software. Also it drools
and pees. Gets old and dies.

If you're gonna create intelligent
physical systems, we are not the
way to go. Best

Tak_the_whistler · Post by **Tak_the_whistler** » Sun Nov 23, 2003 6:31 am

Henke, I know what you mean. Furthermore I think these guys weren't aiming for the true robotics; they don't even know how to make it more aesthetically beautiful. No matter how it can produce an automatic sound, physically it is not attractive at all. Given the tech as exemplified in the facade of "Aibo" (a Robo-dog, selling at approx.$3000 !), I believe they could have consulted their Arts-major friends.

There's also such thing as automatic piano in the restaurants and I think that these days a pianist would 'type in' one of his/her tunes into the robot and it can, thanks to the tech evolution, memorise word perfect the tone, phrasing and intonation, namely the flow of the pianist's playing style. As long as you don't look at the piano but just hear the music, you'd hear a Fujiko Hemming herself playing a Chopin. The problem with such robots is that it's rather boring and even blasphemous to watch it play automatically. Worse than, say, when you happen to be in a haunted house and you suddenly hear the piano playing by itself. Wow, the keys are moving...you know, and I think this is precisely where the difference between a ghost and a stereo lies. These Musica-Robots are based on Science which depends upon Physical Law, but unfortunately, this Law cannot create anything.

David Levine · Post by **David Levine** » Sun Nov 23, 2003 6:04 pm

Do I sense a moral tone in here?
Isn't the the automatic piano you're referring to just a glorified player-piano? And a player piano just reproduces what a human player has programmed it to do.
A player-piano is just another form of sound reproduction. Haven't we all been moved by mechanical sound reproduction -- e.g. by a CD? My parents' generation would have musical parties where they would listen to, and then discuss, 78 RPM recordings of classical music.
Charlie Lennon's "Musical Memories," for instance, is gorgeous stuff. Just a step away from a player-piano.
Which is really a robot.

Tak_the_whistler · Post by **Tak_the_whistler** » Sun Nov 23, 2003 8:04 pm

yeah, agree with you to a certain degree, David, but when we listen to CDs we know they're coming out of the stereo. When you enter a cafe and see a grand piano sitting there playing by itself, I think it'd be a wee bit different experience...

Henke · Post by **Henke** » Mon Nov 24, 2003 4:01 am

I think the thing with these robots and mechanical pianos is that you (if not already, then probably very soon) can programe them to play music that a human would not be capable of playing. If no one puts an end to this we might have super robot musicians who outclass any real musician. I don't think this will ever happen, cause surely, people is not going to let it happen. But this is a start to something like that. When you listen to a cd, it is recorded music, played by a human. Sort of like listening to the real musician remotely, and there is nothing wrong with that.

Leonard · Post by **Leonard** » Mon Nov 24, 2003 9:43 am

Well,

I believe all this robot thing is simply a another challenge that some scientists give to themself like it's often done to improve science and to have a precise goal. They're trying to get as close as possible to reality, that's all. And in a certain way, that's good and simply kind of funny.

I'm absolutely sure there's nothing to be worry about. Anyway, who would like to have such an ugly robot playing at there table in a restaurant or even less on a stage for a show,

unless he's also able to tell very good jokes!

Anyway, the music coming out this robot is triggered by MIDI software, witch could never ever be compared with real playing since it's basicaly codes.

And if such kind of robot appeares at my tuesday session, be sure that he's gonna have to drink a pint with me, whatever happens!

Francois

Speak friend and enter.

fluter_d · Post by **fluter_d** » Mon Nov 24, 2003 9:47 am

Henke: there was a art music composer in the 1930s (I believe - corrections are, as always, welcome) who decided to compose some polyrhythmic music. The only way that he came up to make his compositions work, because of the incredible 3- and 4-part polyrhythms, and the speeds at which he wanted them played, was to program them for player-pianos. Even today, it's impossible for actual musicians to play these compositions as he wrote them.
There is also the issue of pop musicians who sit in their bedrooms (or wherever) and program music into their computers, having analysed succesful electronic music to see what patterns work, and come up with a number one pop hit, but don't play any instruments, or sing. While it may not be 'good music', it happens fairly regularly, and is the same, in principle, as a robot-playing flautist, but doesn't seem to evoke the same sense of moral indignation as when technology is applied to Art Music...

Not that I'm looking to further this debate or anything

...
Deirdre

David Levine · Post by **David Levine** » Mon Nov 24, 2003 10:32 am

Good- let's indeed drop this silly debate and play some tunes.

Cathy Wilde · Post by **Cathy Wilde** » Mon Nov 24, 2003 3:41 pm

Funny -- I play my flute/go to sessions/etc. to recharge my batteries, but with a robot I would have to recharge batteries for it to play the flute.

Ah well, it's lovely there's room for all of us in this big ol' goofy world (apologies to Mr. Prine)!

Happy T-day all,
cat.

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