Singer-songwriter Björk is no stranger to this, generally using technology to express her music in more inventive ways, but this time she’s using it to shape the music itself into unexpected forms. The Icelandic music star is using Microsoft AI as part of Kórsafn (“choral archives”), a non-stop composition that plays in the lobby of the Sister City hotel in New York City. The work plays selections from many of Björk’s choral arrangements (including new ones from the Hamrahlid choir) based on what the AI sees in the sky through a camera on the hotel’s top floor. It will react based on different cloud types, bird behavior, passing aircraft, and even barometric pressure. Long-term weather trends will gradually change the musical score.
The composition is the second in a larger series of “lobby soundscapes” created with the help of Microsoft and Sister City. The first was a piece by experimental artist Julianna Barwick that was released alongside the hotel itself in April 2019.
AI-powered music is nothing new. Arca (or as Björk’s collaborator Jesse Kanda is known) created an ever-evolving soundtrack for the Museum of Modern Art in New York, while Holly Herndon used AI as a virtual collaborator for her album Proto. However, Björk’s involvement may just bring attention to the technology, both for artists looking for inspiration and for fans who want to see how AI can shape their favorite artists. We’ll be taking a closer look at Kórsafn in the near future.
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