The news text discusses the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools by a London-based singer-songwriter, Johnny Smith, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and has largely lost his ability to play guitar. He is using AI music generators to create demo arrangements for his instrumental piece 'Horizon' and to help him continue making music.
PHOTO: Associated PressNow, the London-based singer-songwriter is using artificial intelligence tools to help him continue making Americana music after Parkinson's disease largely took away his ability to play guitar.
Smith, who was diagnosed with the progressive neurological disorder in 2020, recently released his second album, "The Art of Letting Go.
" For one of the eight tracks, an instrumental piece titled "Horizon," he relied on platforms that use AI to generate music to create demo arrangements that would convey his vision to the musicians who recorded the song. The demos he created by humming rough melodies into his phone and uploading the recordings into song generators like Suno and Udio weren't for mixing into the final studio version of "Horizon," Smith stressed.
But tremors, stiffness, and fatigue, which are common symptoms of Parkinson's, caused his guitar skills to deteriorate during the more than a year he worked on the album, he said.
"So then I'm faced with a question, 'Don't play, don't be creative, or find a way out, find a route. ' And for me, this was the route. " Generative AI has divided the music industry, whose artists and record labels have complained of their copyrighted work being used to train the models behind AI-powered music tools.
Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Warner Records sued Suno and Udio in June 2024, although Universal later reached a settlement and partnership deal with Udio and Warner did the same with Suno. Less discussed is what those platforms can do when employed by a serious musician like Smith, whose disease affects the tools central to his songwriting and identity as a guitarist: his hands.
He released his debut album, "In the Springtime," in 2023, saying he wanted to give his two sons a way to remember when he could perform and record music himself.
"I'd always written, I'd also played, I always sung," he said. "And immediately it became clear to me that I was in trouble, that my music was going to be seriously compromised. "AI music generators use systems trained on large datasets of recorded music and audio. The platforms analyse patterns in melody, harmony, and rhythm before generating new audio based on prompts or uploaded recordings.
Users don't need musical talent to end up with a serviceable song, or even a popular one. Smith said producing convincing demos from the synthetic tracks the apps generated often required "50, 100, 150 attempts" and extensive editing "to get something that sounds close to my music.
" After humming a song into his phone and uploading the recording, he gives prompts describing instrumentation, mood, and style. "AI is not replacing anything for me," he said. "It's unlocking, it's enabling. It's allowing me to keep writing.
I upload my lyrics; AI doesn't create my lyrics. I upload my music; AI does not create my music.
" He added: "It then brings it to life in a way that I can play to session players and say, 'Here, that's what I'm thinking, that is what I'm hearing. " The album was produced by Grammy-winning pianist and producer Matt Rollings, who assembled a group of established roots and bluegrass musicians for the project.
They included dobro player and 16-time Grammy winner Jerry Douglas, Grammy-winning banjo player Alison Brown, fiddler Stuart Duncan, guitarist Bryan Sutton, bassist Viktor Krauss, and singers Jonatha Brooke and Glen Phillips. For Smith, the experience of singing in a Nashville studio alongside musicians he had admired for decades was "an extraordinary moment.
" Grammy-nominated guitarist Julian Lage, known for his jazz and acoustic recordings with Blue Note Records, performed on the album's title track and on "Horizon. " The latter recording became a bittersweet high point in Smith's career; despite the progression of his disease, he managed to play a guitar duet with his friend.
"I hadn't been able to play for months, but I kept telling myself that if I wrote something to take to the studio, perhaps the clouds would part for a few minutes," Smith said. "That's what happened. I had a window of about 10 minutes in the studio when my arm freed up. ...
So in the end, I was able to capture the last breath of my guitar playing.
"Experts said AI-assisted music tools could benefit other people with disabilities or illnesses. Ruaidhri Mannion, a composer, music producer, and sonic artist who teaches at Brunel University of London, said technology like affordable digital recording software "effectively democratized the making of music" in recent decades. By helping songwriters and musicians communicate ideas and collaborate more easily, AI tools that generate polished-sounding material from voice or text prompts could work in the same way
Parkinson's Disease AI Music Generation Johnny Smith The Art Of Letting Go Horizon AI Tools AI Music Generators AI-Assisted Music Tools Affordable Digital Recording Software Collaboration Communication Music Industry AI-Powered Music Tools AI-Generated Music AI-Generated Demos AI-Generated Polished-Sounding Material AI-Generated Music From Voice Or Text Prompts AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings AI-Generated Music From Humming Rough Melodies AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In An Instrumental Piece Titled 'Horizon' AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In An Instrumental Piece Titled 'Horizon' For Grammy- AI-Generated Music From Uploaded Recordings In An Instrumental Piece Titled 'Horizon' For Grammy- Who Assembled A Group Of Established Roots And Blu
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
BTS Maintains Top Spot on Forbes Korea's Power Celebrity 40 ListK-pop group BTS has maintained its top spot on Forbes Korea's Power Celebrity 40 list for the fourth consecutive year, with its members' individual influence and pursuits in fashion, acting and music collaborations with global artistes also being recognized.
Read more »
Many put off dental treatments due to costs, but it could mean a high price to pay for an ageing societyWith research increasingly linking poor oral health and gum disease to broader conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and osteoporosis, experts say it's worth strengthening financial support for dental care, especially in an ageing society.
Read more »
Super El Niño threatens to exacerbate Asia's energy crisisA severe El Niño weather pattern, dubbed 'Super El Niño', is forecasted to bring intense dryness to South and Southeast Asia, potentially making 2027 the hottest year on record. This comes as the region already grapples with an energy emergency triggered by the Middle East conflict, which disrupted oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz. The drought will curtail hydropower generation and increase electricity demand for cooling, straining power grids and impacting agriculture and water-intensive manufacturing sectors.
Read more »