{"id":6779,"date":"2023-09-11T22:26:56","date_gmt":"2023-09-12T03:26:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=6779"},"modified":"2023-09-15T09:01:09","modified_gmt":"2023-09-15T14:01:09","slug":"lehman-ex-machina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/lehman-ex-machina\/","title":{"rendered":"Arcus Pluvius: A Conversation with Steve Lehman on Big Bands, Artificial Intelligence, and ‘Ex Machina’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is going to kill us all. Or, at least, that is what some theorize. Many commentators portray the emergence of AI as inevitably leading to some technological dystopia where a master computer controls everyone and everything. In the words of Neil deGrasse Tyson, now is the \u201cTime to behave, so when Artificial Intelligence becomes our overlord, we\u2019ve reduced the reasons for it to exterminate us all.\u201d Or, as Elon Musk put it, \u201cWith artificial intelligence, we are summoning the demon.\u201d Steve Lehman\u2019s\u00a0Ex Machina<\/em>\u00a0(Pi, 2023) forces listeners to look beyond the histrionics of some Max Headroom-ian fever dream and see that the reality of AI is far more nuanced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ex Machina<\/em> finds the saxophonist furthering his explorations of spectral harmony – composition based on the acoustic properties of sound – in conjunction with the acclaimed French large ensemble Orchestre National de Jazz (ONJ) under the direction of Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Maurin. Expansion of Lehman’s ideas to a setting beyond even his octet would, with nothing further, already be a worthwhile listen. But what truly sets Ex Machina<\/em> apart is its incorporation of artificial intelligence in the form of live electronics developed at the renowned IRCAM (Institut de Coordination Acoustique Musique). These electronics interact and, to some extent, think for itself how best to create music. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To Lehman, such artificial intelligence is like any other tool for which the primary distinguishing line between good and evil is the intent of its user. In our conversation, Lehman likens AI to fire. Perhaps an even better analog, however, can be found in dynamite. Although many used Nobel\u2019s invention as a tool of war, its use also saved the lives of miners otherwise confined to applying unstable compounds. Fittingly, like the subterranean laborers, Ex Machina <\/em>bores new tunnels by <\/em>explosively blasting through perceptively tough walls – perceived divisions between human and machine expression and the distinction between improvisation and precomposition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even as alien as things sound at times, there is something distinctly familiar – human – in the music. The presence of a large ensemble itself draws out even the computer’s human traits. For almost a century, the big band form has moved people emotionally, whether Benny Goodman instilling fervent dance or Gil Evans invoking deep reflection. The ONJ is thoroughly modern but nevertheless built upon that lineage, and its ancestral DNA continues in its music. On “Ode to akLaff”, named after the legendary drummer, electronic murmurs and whirs evoke some extraterrestrial exaltation. When the ONJ joins with rich chords evoking a quizzical scene, it inexplicably adds a sense of normalness to the unusual surroundings until live band and virtual imagination become nearly indistinguishable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although spectral music is generally outside the musical mainstream, its concepts also add humanity to\u00a0Ex Machina<\/em>. A computer can analyze sound spectra better than a human, but it cannot truly hear the shimmering effects produced by music using those inputs. Where machines can be more technically precise, they cannot perceive the emotional aspects inherent in sound. Hence, some of the album’s finest moments are when the electronics seemingly learn in real-time. As the computer programs interact more closely with human musicians, the gap between natural and artificial closes even further, with each seeking a middle ground. One can find a superb example in “Chimera”, where Chris Dingman’s vibes find a distorted non-human parallel before the two converge.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is something inherently futuristic about the highly listenable\u00a0Ex Machina,<\/em>\u00a0even as the work reflects contemporary technological reality. Unusual sonorities present an exotic tomorrow just within arm’s reach. But the recording is not experimental for the mere sake of being different. Instead, Lehman, the ONJ, and IRCAM are presenting new methods to express the continued human condition. More than a mere highlight among this year\u2019s recorded output, one cannot help but sense that\u00a0Ex Machina\u00a0<\/em>is setting a new standard for electro-acoustic improvisation. We sat down with Lehman to discuss the fascinating project.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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PG: How did you start working with the Orchestre National de Jazz (ONJ)?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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SL: Right. ONJ is a state-funded ensemble that has a long history at this point. The French government founded ONJ in the ’80s under then-French Cultural Minister Jack Lang. The ONJ\u2019s Director changes every five years or so, which is cool because it means the group’s stylistic orientation and aesthetics evolve. Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Maurin reached out to me after he took over as Director in 2018. We met in Paris briefly, and he asked if I would be open to writing a piece for the group and collaborating with him on a program of music. We had to pause for a while because of the pandemic and other things, but we ultimately did a bunch of concerts in Europe and the US and then went into the studio to record earlier this year.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n

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