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Music, Copyright & Generative AI: Social, Ontological & Legal Perspectives
“Music, Copyright & Generative AI: Social, Ontological & Legal Perspectives” is the second in a series of 4 public seminars taking critical and creative perspectives on the current state of AI in music; it is organised by the MusAI research programme in collaboration with the ‘AI and the Arts’ group at The Alan Turing Institute. The speakers address the challenges posed by generative AI to existing music copyright regimes. Born’s presentation draws on anthropological literature to highlight key ontological categories underwriting property and ownership. Drott’s presentation focuses on automatic music generation services, asking whether copyright’s commitment to the individual author is called into question by the distributed nature of machine learning. Haworth examines the use of AI-based vocal cloning and source separation methods in official and unofficial productions of the Beatles’ and Beach Boys’ music. He highlights the moral anxieties that cluster around the use of vocal likenesses in pop, and the artist-led initiatives being developed to address these––many of which are in advance of copyright law.
Featuring an electronic music performance by Owen Green (Max Planck Institute) and Jules Rawlinson (University of Edinburgh). Owen Green’s research centres on live electronic music, with focuses on playing with and designing semi-autonomous performance systems, and the philosophy of technology as it relates to music.
Georgina Born is Professor of Anthropology and Music at University College London. She directs the MusAI research programme, and previously held Professorships at the Universities of Oxford (2010-21) and Cambridge (2006-10), as well as having a professional life as a musician in experimental rock, jazz and free improvisation.
Eric Drott is Associate Professor of Music Theory at the University of Texas at Austin. His research spans contemporary music cultures, streaming music platforms, music and protest, genre theory, digital music and AI music, and the political economy of music.
Christopher Haworth is Associate Professor in Music at the University of Birmingham. His research focuses on electronic and experimental musics; British popular music; music and politics; the theory and analysis of music technology; AI music, and music and the internet.
