On October 9th, 2021, Beethoven's previously unfinished Tenth Symphony was premiered in Bonn to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the composer's birth. The media announced that AI had completed the work. 

Using computer-based technologies to create or help create music is not new. As early as 1848, Ada Lovelace, in her notes on Babbage's Analytical Engine, wrote," Supposing, for instance, that the fundamental relations of pitched sounds in the science of harmony and musical composition were susceptible of such expression and adaptations, the engine might compose elaborate and scientific pieces of music of any degree of complexity or extent. 

In recent years, artificial intelligence in general and, more specifically, the use of Deep Learning-based technologies for music composition has become quite common in scientific publications. However, only events like the recreation of Beethoven's symphony or the use of AI to help generate the" Tokyo 2020 beat", the official anthem of the Tokyo Olympic games, have received attention in the media. 

To add to the pile of contributions of AI in the field of music, the Beatles vocalist Paul McCartney stepped forward, stating that they had used AI to create a new Beatles song using John Lennon's voice. According to McCartney, the song is set to be released this year. 

A back story 

The most influential music band in history, "The Beatles", was formed in Liverpool in 1960. The four Beatles- John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Jon Harrison and Ringo Starr changed music forever in the 60s. 

They were rooted in a roll, skills, beat, and 1950s rock and experimented with different music styles, such as Indian music to psychedelia. Their songs, Let It Be, Abby Road, Penny Lane, Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, and many more, still top the playlists of fans across the world. 

However, despite their massive success, the band broke up in 1970, and each enjoyed success as solo artists. The world witnessed shock as the Beatles singer and songwriter John Lennon was shot down in December 1980. In the year 2001, Harrison also passed of lung cancer. 

Using AI 

After years of heart ache since the breakup of their favorite band, the fans are excited about McCartney's announcement. In an interview recently released by the BBC, McCartney stated that AI was used to "extricate" John Lennon's voice from an old demo used to complete the song. 

According to the singer, they have completed the song, which will be released this year. The song was made with the help of film director Peter Jackson, using the same AI technology employed for the Beatles documentary Get Back. 

Jackson and his team could separate the voices from the instruments during the filmmaking. According to Paul McCartney, he could extricate John's voice from a ropey little cassette. It had John's voice and a piano; he could separate them with AI. 

McCartney stated about AI: "They tell the machine, 'That's a voice, this is a guitar, lose the guitar'. 

McCartney believes that AI has "great uses". In his opinion, AI technology was scary but exciting, and he remarked that we would just have to see where that leads. 

 The song is one of the several songs on a cassette labelled "For Paul" that Lennon recorded before passing. 

This could be the last time that the world would hear their beloved musicians together. And let's all thank AI for making it possible! 

Source: Al jazeera