Ronald F. Bustamante: Mahler by Satie by Holly+

Name: Ragnar Digital, LLC
Price range: $

Holly Herndon Ronald F. Bustamante Medina

2022

NFT/Digital

Description

Bustamante’s _Mahler by Satie by Holly+ _sounds like a soothing piece of electronic music. But the process of its creation involved a complex set of interwoven social and technological protocols.

Holly Herndon and Mat Dryhurst are artists and composers who believe that it will soon become common practice for musicians to generate voices with AI. They anticipated the trend by releasing Holly+, an open-source model trained on Herndon’s own voice. Others are welcome to write music with it by uploading audio that will be reinterpreted by the AI model. Members of the Holly+ DAO, who gain access to the group by holding NFTs released by Herndon and Dryhurst, can vote on which compositions they’d like to mint and release as authorized tracks.

_Mahler by Satie by Holly+ _is one such piece of music. Bustamante uses algorithmic processes to compose music blending historical influences. His suite _Mahler by Satie _mashes up the very different styles of two innovative figures who were active in the early 20th century. He then submitted this work to Holly+, adding a new layer of transformation and interpretation. The resulting three-minute piece sounds like an alien hymn. At times, a phantasmic chorus provides backup vocals for the lilting mew that carries the melody. Despite having only a faint drumbeat, the track is exceedingly catchy.