A brand new, multidisciplinary MIT graduate program in music expertise and computation will function school, labs, and curricula from throughout the Institute.
This system is a collaboration between the Music and Theater Arts Part within the Faculty of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (SHASS); Division of Electrical Engineering and Laptop Science (EECS) within the Faculty of Engineering; and the MIT Schwarzman School of Computing.
“The launch of a brand new graduate program in music expertise strikes me as each a needed and a provocative gesture — an essential leap in an period being quickly redefined by exponential progress in computation, synthetic intelligence, and human-computer interactions of each conceivable variety,” says Jay Scheib, head of the MIT Music and Theater Arts Part and the Class of 1949 Professor.
“Music performs a chic position on the fore of a exceptional convergence of artwork and expertise,” provides Scheib. “It’s the correct time to launch this program and if not at MIT, then the place?”
MIT’s practitioners outline music expertise as the sector of scientific inquiry the place they examine, uncover, and develop new computational approaches to music that embrace music info retrieval; synthetic intelligence; machine studying; generative algorithms; interplay and efficiency programs; digital instrument design; conceptual and perceptual modeling of music; acoustics; audio sign processing; and software program growth for inventive expression and music functions.
Eran Egozy, professor of the observe in music expertise and one of many program leads, says MIT’s focus is technical analysis in music expertise that at all times facilities the humanistic and inventive features of creating music.
“There are such a lot of MIT college students who’re fabulous musicians,” says Egozy. “We’ll method music expertise as pc scientists, mathematicians, and musicians.”
With the launch of this new program — an providing alongside these accessible in MIT’s Media Lab and elsewhere — Egozy sees MIT turning into the apparent vacation spot for college students excited by music and computation examine, making ready high-impact graduates for roles in academia and business, whereas additionally serving to mildew inventive, big-picture thinkers who can sort out giant challenges.
Investigating large concepts
This system will embody two grasp’s levels and a PhD:
- The Grasp of Science (MS) is a two-semester, thesis-based program accessible solely to MIT undergraduates. One semester of fellowship is mechanically awarded to all admitted college students. The primary class will enroll in fall 2025.
- The Grasp of Utilized Science (MAS) is a two-semester, coursework-based program accessible to all college students. One semester of fellowship funding is mechanically awarded to all admitted college students. Purposes for this program will open in fall 2025.
- The PhD program is obtainable to all college students, who would apply to MIT’s Faculty of Engineering.
Anna Huang, a brand new MIT assistant professor who holds a shared school place between the MIT Music and Theater Arts Part and the MIT Schwarzman School of Computing, is collaborating with Egozy to develop and launch this system. Huang arrived at MIT this fall after spending eight years with Magenta at Google Mind and DeepMind, spearheading efforts in generative modeling, reinforcement studying, and human-computer interplay to help human-AI partnerships in music-making.
“As a composer turned AI researcher who makes a speciality of generative music expertise, my long-term aim is to develop AI programs that may shed new mild on how we perceive, be taught, and create music, and to be taught from interactions between musicians to be able to rework how we method human-AI collaboration,” says Huang. “This new program will allow us to additional examine how musical functions can illuminate issues in understanding neural networks, for instance.”
MIT’s new Edward and Joyce Linde Music Constructing, that includes enhanced music expertise areas, can even assist rework music training with versatile efficiency venues and optimized rehearsal services.
A pure residence for music expertise
MIT’s world-class, top-ranked engineering program, mixed with its concentrate on computation and its conservatory-level music training choices, makes the Institute a pure residence for the continued growth of music expertise training.
The collaborative nature of the brand new program is the most recent instance of interdisciplinary work occurring throughout the Institute.
“I’m thrilled that the Faculty of Engineering is partnering with the MIT Music and Theater Arts Part on this essential initiative, which represents the convergence of varied engineering areas — corresponding to AI and design — with music,” says Anantha Chandrakasan, dean of the Faculty of Engineering, chief innovation and technique officer, and the Vannevar Bush Professor of EECS. “I can’t wait to see the revolutionary tasks the scholars will create and the way they are going to drive this new discipline ahead.”
“Everybody on campus is aware of that MIT is a good place to do music. However I would like folks to return to MIT due to what we do in music,” says Agustin Rayo, the Kenan Sahin Dean of SHASS. “This excellent collaboration with the Schwarzman School of Computing and the Faculty of Engineering will make that dream a actuality, by bringing collectively the world’s finest engineers with our extraordinary musicians to create the subsequent era of music applied sciences.”
“The brand new grasp’s program presents college students an unparalleled alternative to discover the intersection of music and expertise,” says Daniel Huttenlocher, dean of the MIT Schwarzman School of Computing and the Henry Ellis Warren Professor of EECS. “It equips them with a deep understanding of this confluence, making ready them to advance new approaches to computational fashions of music and be on the forefront of an evolving space.”