5 AIs to help composers and music producers

All about Artificial intelligence

AI offers a wide range of tools and capabilities to help songwriters and music producers at every stage of the creative process, from initial idea generation to production and finalization. By integrating these technologies into their workflow, musicians can expand their creative capabilities, save time, and produce high-quality music more efficiently.

Composers and music producers can make use of various AIs to facilitate the creative, technical and organizational processes. Below, we present a list of five AIs that are particularly useful for this audience, along with their main characteristics and how each one can be applied in the music creation process.

How can AI help with music composition?

AI can automatically generate melodies, harmonies, and rhythms, providing a foundation for composers to build upon. These tools can create initial sketches or complete parts of songs in different styles and genres.

Among its benefits, it helps overcome creative blocks and offers new perspectives and ideas that can be developed or refined by the composer. It also allows you to customize automatically generated songs by adjusting parameters such as the genre, tempo, instruments and mood of the song.

For example, it can make it easier to create music that fits perfectly into specific projects, such as soundtracks for films, games or commercials. AI can analyze existing music to identify patterns, structures and characteristics that can be used as inspiration or reference for new compositions.

It also allows composers to better understand what makes a song successful and apply those insights to their own creations. AI can help with mixing and mastering music, automatically adjusting audio levels, applying effects, and ensuring that the music has professional-sounding quality.

It saves time and effort in the production phase, allowing composers to focus more on creation than on technical aspects. AI can facilitate collaboration between musicians, allowing them to create and remix music in real time, regardless of their location. It increases the ability for collaboration and creativity in virtual environments, making it easier for musicians to work together remotely.

AI can generate new timbres and sounds that would be difficult or impossible to create manually, providing new tools for sonic exploration. AI can help write song lyrics by offering suggestions for words, rhymes, and verse structures.

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Discover 5 AI options to help composers and producers, their advantages and disadvantages and the best way to use them:

1- AIVA (Artificial Intelligence Virtual Artist)

AIVA is an AI designed to compose original music in various styles and genres, such as classical, electronic, jazz, and others. It generates complete musical compositions and allows customization, such as adjusting the style, mood, and complexity of the music.

This AI can help composers by offering integration with audio editing software for a more fluid production. It is ideal for composers looking for inspiration or for producers who need original soundtracks for videos, games and other media.

The free version of AI is royalty-free (credit must be given to AIVA) and only offers 3 downloads per month. However, you can subscribe to one of the paid plans (see table below).

2- LANDR

LANDR is an AI-powered music mastering platform that offers a fast and affordable solution for music producers. It automatically analyzes and adjusts the mix for optimization and produces results comparable to traditional mastering studios. It offers distribution services to streaming platforms. It can be ideal for producers who want to master their tracks quickly and efficiently while maintaining professional quality.

It offers distribution services for streaming platforms. It can be ideal for producers who want to master their tracks quickly and efficiently, while maintaining professional quality. You can register for free and choose from two types of plans, see below the prices and what is included. The platform highlights that you can collaborate in real time with other professionals in audio and video sessions, distribute music, monitor release metrics and also have access to tips, tricks and tutorials.

3- iZotope Ozone

iZotope Ozone is one of the most renowned mastering plugins that uses AI to help you finish professional-quality mixes. It analyzes your mix and suggests adjustments for EQ, compression, thresholding, and more. It automatically adjusts frequencies in real time to balance your mix, and has advanced tools for controlling stereo width and final volume.

It is a time-saving alternative to mastering and helps achieve professional sound quality without the need for advanced technical knowledge. AI plugins are becoming increasingly popular in the field of music production, providing advanced tools that facilitate various stages of the creative and technical process. These plugins use machine learning algorithms to offer innovative solutions that help with composition, mixing, mastering, and other aspects of music production.

It offers a free 10-day trial and makes Ozone 11 available in three editions, which can also be purchased as part of Music Production Suite 6. On the plugin's website you can compare the features of each edition and choose the one that best suits your needs.

4- Scaler 2

Scaler 2 is an AI plugin that helps composers identify scales and chords by suggesting harmonic progressions based on their work. It analyzes your music and suggests compatible scales and chords. It offers a wide range of pre-programmed chord progressions in various styles. It transforms chord progressions into realistic musical performances. It can speed up the composition process and help you find interesting and creative harmonic progressions.

The standard price for Scaler 2 is usually around $59 for a perpetual license. Depending on the vendor, there may be occasional promotions or discounts that can reduce this price.

Scaler 2 can sometimes be purchased as part of a bundle with other plugins or music software, which can offer better value for money. If you own an older version of Scaler, there may be upgrade options available at a reduced price.

Buying directly from the official Plugin Boutique website, which is the exclusive distributor of Scaler 2, ensures that you get the latest version and official support. Some vendors offer a free demo version of Scaler 2, allowing you to try out the plugin before purchasing. Be sure to check the license terms to ensure that it meets your needs, especially if you plan to use the plugin in a professional environment.

5- Google Magenta

Magenta is a research project developed by the Google Brain team that explores the use of artificial intelligence to create art and music. It uses machine learning techniques, particularly neural networks, to create new algorithms and tools that help musicians, artists, and developers explore new forms of creativity.

Among the main features of Google Magenta are these music generation models:

• NSynth (Neural Synthesizer): a model that synthesizes new sounds by combining characteristics of different instruments, allowing the creation of unique and innovative timbres.
• MusicVAE: a model based on autoencoding variational networks that generates and transforms melodies and harmonies. It can interpolate between different melodies, creating smooth and inspiring transitions.
• RNN Performance: a recurrent neural network model that generates realistic and expressive musical performances based on human performance data.

Among the tools for developers and musicians, the following are available:

• Magenta Studio: A set of plugins for Ableton Live that allows musicians to use Magenta templates directly in their music production sessions. Includes tools for generating melodies, harmonies, and audio manipulation.
• Magenta.js: a JavaScript library that makes it easy to integrate Magenta templates into web projects, allowing you to create interactive music and art applications.

It is an open-source project, which means that its source code is available to developers and researchers. This allows anyone to contribute to the project or use its algorithms to create new applications. The examples and tutorials available on Magenta’s official GitHub page help developers get started quickly with the tools.

It allows you to explore new forms of musical and artistic creation, generating ideas that might not come from traditional methods. Use music generation models to create new melodies, harmonies and timbres that can be incorporated into original compositions. And you can create interactive music and art applications, such as composition apps, music games and interactive art installations, for example.

Access and use are free. All Google Magenta source code and templates are freely available on GitHub.