Emperor's new mind and music

Ideas and innovations in Indian classical music
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shankarank
Posts: 4043
Joined: 15 Jun 2009, 07:16

Emperor's new mind and music

Post by shankarank »

After plagiarising the title from Prof. Hawking, it is time to move on to his colleague Sir Roger Penrose's work Emperors New Mind - a parody on Artificial Intelligence - whether computers have consciousness. He worked off of Godel's theorem for example, and argued that algorithmic machines cannot prove new theorems. The book is also a speculative work on the pending marriage of Quantum and Gravity - how it might be related to the workings of human consciousness.

His vivid description of how a mathematician might stumble on a new result - hours and days and years of methodical work - almost like an algorithmic machine with no tangible success - then a vacation break and alight from a bus somewhere - boom a new result dawns! This description mirrors exactly what Shri PSN advised students sometime ago in Arkay convention center as a prelude to a Lec Dem by Shri OST. Just keep following the methods - one day a new musical insight dawns. He also reminisced about a TMT's Kamboji from a concert decades back.

In light of speculations about if Algorithms can replace Mom's cooking : http://www.marketwatch.com/story/video- ... 2015-07-30 and other dire predictions by Hawking and others , it is pertinent to speculate if Computers can improvise on Carnatic Music.

This is in fact an old question asked of Turing himself.

When singularity is attained and we are all absolved of our "narAdhamAnana vilOka SOkam" ( working for the lowliest of the low), I speculate that we will with all time in our hands still root for the oldy tapes for certain things - what Cosmology has achieved by placing us here - what you might call it - The Cosmological Hall of fame.


1. The quiver of Brindamma - pick a janaranjaka example - as she pauses after Venkata in venkata saila vihAra.

2. MDR's extraction of rAga essence in somewhat relatively medium paced angArakam - in that quintessentially carnatic rAgam suruTTi - as VR waits - gets enthused by what just happened and roars in with a tIrmAnam.

3. MMI's tantalizing pauses as: pA-ni-ni - in hamsdawani swarams as he transcends pANiNi's of the world.

4. SSI's nasal descent in tam..m..m..m. in mAtRbhUtam

5. PMI's accompaniment for 4 - as he weaves cross beats and late cuts.

6. DKP's meditative spell as she seemingly readjusts kAlapramANam in SrI nAtAdi guruguhO in the caraNam, mAya maya viSvAdiShtAnO.

7. MSS's spell bounding renditions of many ever greens.

8. Dr BMK's pauses and resumes for e.g vanasa nAri keLAni in SrI ganapathi nI

and many more.

On the other hand - our new Emperor is perfectly well placed to absorb all sporty things - virtuosity and techniques etc.

I also have an eerie feeling that the Macaulay-an educated generation of musicians have a more machine like approach to creativity in many respects!! Now I am a trouble maker! ;)

Rsachi
Posts: 5039
Joined: 31 Aug 2009, 13:54

Re: Emperor's new mind and music

Post by Rsachi »

ShankaranK,
How can an aesthete be a trouble maker among rasikas? Reading your list and reliving your tasty bites...
I think everyone around has their lists and we live for those moments.

Surprising you haven't mentioned any instrumental piece.

Panasa-Naarikelaadi jamboophalamuraalaginci..
Thyagaraja lists the delights of Jack fruit (panasa) coconut (naarikela) and jamboophala (we call it panneraLe in Kannada, its rose apple) enjoyed by Ganesha..
Image

shankarank
Posts: 4043
Joined: 15 Jun 2009, 07:16

Re: Emperor's new mind and music

Post by shankarank »

RSachi, Thanks for the correction. Wrote it as I remember hearing it.

Let Instrumentals be not a glaring omission.

1. LGJ's Lalithe - the heart and soul he pours into it.

2. Ravikiran's vINA pustaka dAriNIm - an old cassette release that I have listened to long back.

I am not so much a listener of vINA - so I leave it to those that do with intensity.

shankarank
Posts: 4043
Joined: 15 Jun 2009, 07:16

Re: Emperor's new mind and music

Post by shankarank »

Finally another one on the same lines - the human/machine conundrum:

http://www.openthemagazine.com/article/ ... -classical

Even there - cannot steer clear of other human controversies can he?

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