Google: how to compose music with Bach (and artificial intelligence)

Google celebrates Bach with a special theme doodle: here’s how to compose music through artificial intelligence and cute easter eggs.
Google: how to compose music with Bach (and artificial intelligence)

Google celebrates Bach’s birthday with a doodle that allows you to compose original music using the German artist’s melodies and artificial intelligence.

The German composer offers the famous search engine the opportunity to take advantage of the AI through one of his famous themed doodle for the first time: just today, March 21st 2019, the birth of the composer of German origin (actually born March 31st, since the German calendar was then ten days behind the others).

The doodle designed by Google to celebrate Bach is a true instrument for composing music, suitable both for the most expert and literate musicians with the musical language and for the most causal users, who can enjoy spreading notes on the score and listening to the result.

Google and Bach: how the doodle works to compose music

Do you want to step into the shoes of the most famous musician of the Baroque period? No problem: just go to Google.

Through the doodle dedicated to Bach, which will start after a short animation once you click on it, you can compose your melody by selecting the notes to be inserted directly on the score.

After a short tutorial, optional, the fun begins. The one presented by Google is a real virtual pentagram where it will be possible to insert different notes in the preferred scale and intensity: quarter note, to be tied also between them.

Through the menu below it is possible to listen to a preview of the composition, change the beats per minute (bpm, from 65 to 120) trash the whole thing and start again or click on “Harmonize”.

This last option is the heart of the whole operation carried out by Google: once the harmonization of our melody has begun, the great one will use its artificial intelligence to create music exactly like Bach. This is possible thanks to the so-called machine learning, technology applied to AI able to learn and imitate: in this case, Google finds the perfect harmony for your melody through 300 songs composed by the same Bach and inserted into the system.

Once finished, the music will be ready to be shared via Facebook, Twitter and email. For the more creative, you can also download the song composed in midi files.

Attention then to the easter eggs: on the left there is a button, red with a white star, able to add sharps (♯) to change intonation. On the right there is a small amplifier, click on it if you want to give your song a really nice electronic turn.

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