94 I I MAR 19
The very idea of a perfect gadget
is an epitome of pure logical
fallacy. But then again, one can
only be human once in a lifetime
but a slave to the desire for
eternity. So be it. In an age, where
chaos and anarchy rule the roost,
misery and hatred walk prominent
among men, peace and solace
are extremely desirous. But
wherefore lay the path to escape?
Cause there must be one to
calm baffled minds and aching
hearts. To this, I stop to ponder,
what is that one thing that has
always been there and never
grew old? Music, says my lurking
heart and I rejoice to the idea. To
quote Daniel Levitin, “Whenever
humans come together for
any reason, music is there,
....weddings, funerals, graduation
from college, men marching off
to war, stadium sporting events,
a night on the town, prayer, a
romantic dinner, mothers rocking
their infants to sleep and college
students studying with music as
a background ....music is and
was [always] part of the fabric
of everyday life. Only relatively
recently in our own culture, five
hundred years or so ago, did a
distinction arise that cut society intwo, forming separate classes
of music performers and music
listeners. Throughout most
of the world and for most of
human history, music-making
was as natural an activity
as breathing and walking,
and everyone participated.
Concert halls, dedicated to
the performance of music,
arose only in the last several
centuries. Understanding why
we like music and what draws
us to it is, therefore, a window
on the
essence of human nature....”
And that my friend brings us
back to our equation with
technology. I was 13 when
I was introduced to a Music
System for the very first time. It
was a Wind-Up Gramophone
player and originally belonged
to my great grandfather. With
time, things took a solemn
turn. By the time I finished
school, tape recorders and
cassettes went moribund owing
to the advent of neo-age music
systems running CDs and
DVDs. Today, a 5.1 surround
system is no more a cherished
vanity, but music systems still
continue to rule my fascination.to the muSic oF mY mind
That is exactly my idea of a perfect
gadget–A Music System that can
read my mind and play to match
my emotions, my current state of
mind. The idea is as daunting as it
sounds but I am willing to bet on
it. Back in 2015, Bang & Olufsen’s
BeoSound Moment offered a fair
taste of emotion-based music.
However, it required human fingers
to land on a set of colours to try
and match their mood and play
a track accordingly. With Artificial
Intelligence (AI) and Machine
Learning making a strong foray
into almost everything, unrealistic
dreams are slowly becoming a part
of daily life. I would love to see
a music system carrying the soul
of AI and peeping into my mind
to gauge my moments of joy or
displeasure surrendered to music.
I would lay my fingers o rest and
let the music system unravel my
inner self to soulful tunes. And, to
spice up things a bit, let’s have the
speakers self-control noise levels to
match room size, surroundings and
individual privacy in tandem. Now,
that voice recognition is slowly
picking up let mind recognition
for a music system be in vogue.
That would be something to look
forward to!