Groovy Neural Networks

Abstract. The drum machine has been an important tool in music production for decades. However, its flawless way of playing drum patterns is often perceived as mechanical and rigid, far from the groove provided by a human drummer. This paper presents research towards enhancing the drum machine with learning capabilities. The drum machine learns user-specific variations (i.e. the groove) from human drummers, and stores the groove as attractors in Echo State Networks (ESNs). The ESNs are purely generative (i.e. not driven by an input signal) and the output is used by the drum machine to imitate the playing style of human drummers, making it a cost-effective way of achieving life-like drums.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2008
• Where: ECAI
• Authors: Axel Tidemann, Yiannis Demiris
• Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Drum Machine, Drum Patterns, ECAI 2008, Human Drummers