This is a Computer

This composition's goal was to create a song that has a story that humans have been writing since the industrial revolution. This composition is more than music, it is a sonic narrative. This story is told through the lens of technology evolving towards everyone having a computer in today's day in age. For this composition, the composer deployed uses of heavily edited acoustic samples of guitar, bass, vocals, and drums. In addition, a unique synth sound in the Vital Synthesizer VST. This original waveform is modeled after FM synthesisers. The heavily edited and sampled recording was from an archived interview from 1974 in which science fiction writer Arthur C. Clark ponders what the future will hold for the fate of computers. The plot starts with a sample of slide guitar with a spreader plug-in to add depth on an acoustic 12 string guitar. Furthermore, this composition is composed of three main sections (excluding the slide guitar intro).

The first section is meant to introduce the listener to the idea that in 1974, it was hard for people to conceptually think that the computer is so dominant in today's society. Quite a bit of time was spent on shaping the synth sound through the Vital plug-in in which a unique sine wave synthesizer sound was generated. Specifically, the goal was to emulate the sound of the FM synthesizer that was used to create Radiohead's song Idioteque. That specific synth sounds like a representation of capturing the emotional attention of the listener to feel like this is a new, strange, and complex technology that has a lot of potential; both good and bad. The techniques implemented included playing harmonics on the electric guitar while twisting the tuning pegs to create a ghostly harmonic presence. This combined with electronic drums that change rhythms through the first movement and an underlying repeated bass line creates a soundscape of mystery and intrigue.

Section two of this composition is intended to capture the idea that this technology can get out of control and take over society. The recent panic and introduction of AI into the modern world presents an element of unease. It scares humans just as it has since the industrial revolution. Everyday human tasks have been constantly replaced by technology and the power of AI is frightening for some. Melodic chromaticism was implemented to create the sense of unease and discomfort that collectively the current culture is feeling. Changing the speed and pitch of the narration as well as spatially changing directionally where the voice is coming from, left to right, captures our search for not knowing where to search for answers and find clarity in modern times. The question implied is “Where is solace?”.

Finally, movement three of this piece is meant to represent the embrace and the accompanying benefits that this new technology brings and how we've used that technology to metaphorically shape our own future. We realize how technology can be harnessed to benefit society. In 1974, ordinary people had no idea how far the computer would come to dominate the globe. Today, most people on the streets in an American city have a smartphone in their pockets. 200 years ago smartphones could and potentially would be considered witchcraft. The concept that almost everyone in a given country could have access to all the information they could ever desire, good or bad, would never have been thought possible 200 years ago. To have the ability to connect in real time both with people and information is something that only recent generations of people have witnessed take shape. This profound shift in how the computer operates in the digital information age will continue to determine how the zeitgeist of the culture of generations to come. 

Released: December 12, 2022