Derri Lewis - Tri/o

Using music as a tool to answer a research question, Derri Joseph Lewis' 'Tri/o' is an answer to this question: Can a computer be taught to improvise in the same way as a human? A concert-experience for improvising pianist, spoken voice, and electronics, 'Tri/o' blurs the line between human intuition and  artificial intelligence.


Inspired by the progressive work of Helmut Lachenmann, Derri takes an unconventional approach to playing an instrument, and rather than being concerned with rhythm and melody, focusses on the different sounds that an instrument can create. Scratching, hitting and plucking the piano's inner strings, clicking, hissing and enunciating staccato syllables are just a few of the intriguing techniques used to achieve his eerie, atmospheric piece.


Derri says, "It’s been so interesting and revealing to pull apart the aspects of music - in order to program the computer to analyse, understand and eventually compose its own music, I’ve had to think long and hard about what the most important elements of performance are, in order for the process to feel like a real improvisation. It’s also a bit scary to give this sort of power to a computer…but don’t worry, I don’t think that AI will be taking over the concert hall any time soon. There were, however, moments in rehearsals where the computer genuinely surprised me in its interpretation, that I think gives this performance of TRI/O a proper sense of spontaneity that is vital for great improvisation."





Click here to listen to Atmospheres Radio. Derri's Tri/o will be played Fri May 1 8pm. Don't miss it!