Senior Project Advisor
Halka, Charles, 1982-
Document Type
Project
Publication Date
Spring 2020
Keywords
Music, Music Composition, MIDI, R, Statistics, Image Processing, Pixel, Sonification
Abstract
I created a computer program in R that analyzed an image and generated music from its pixel data. These data were encoded into values readable by a MIDI (musical instrument digital interface), and set to acoustic instruments. This project is a derivative of image sonification (using audio to communicate a visual message), but I strived to avoid the mere production of noise. My goal was to generate harmonious and replicable music that could be performed by a real group of musicians. My program has the capability to convert music back to images, as well.
The music was generated based on parameters that the user set, including tempo and the parts of the image to read. I employed a few statistical properties, such as repeated sampling and correlation coefficients, to reduce the amount of randomness. Ultimately, my goal was to require the least human interaction possible, in hopes of uncovering new, unbiased musical ideas. The amount of generatable music is virtually infinite, and although much of it would sound discordant, there are surely wonderful combinations out there yet untapped.
Please download the ImageMusicConversion folder at the bottom of this page to run the program yourself.
Department
Music
Recommended Citation
Anderson, Eric, "Pixel Composition: Converting Images to Music" (2020). WWU Honors College Senior Projects. 391.
https://cedar.wwu.edu/wwu_honors/391
Subjects - Topical (LCSH)
Computer music; Music composition; MIDI controllers; File conversion (Computer science)
Genre/Form
student projects; term papers
Type
Text
Rights
Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
ImageMusicConversion