On Computer-Assisted Orchestration

Abstract

In 2003, I presented to Ircam a proposal for a long-term research project on the subject of computer-assisted orchestration. The results of this research project lead to the prototype softwares, ‘Orchidee’ and now, ‘Ato-ms’, both used by numerous composers. With these systems, composers can specify a target sound and replicate it with a given, predetermined orchestra. The target sound, defined as a set of audio and symbolic features, can be constructed either by analysing a pre-recorded sound, or through a compositional process. The orchestration procedure uses large pre-analysed instrumental sound databases to offer composers a set of sound combinations. This procedure relies on a set of features that describe different aspects of the sound. Almost 10 years after the start of this project, it is time to look back at what was accomplished from the musical stand point, and to open some new perspectives on the subject, like the introduction of target descriptors for orchestral qualities, and orchestral layers.