When Music Meets AI: A Composer's Conversation with the Future
In which I offer some insight from my experience so far
I never expected two simple AI-generated songs to spark a full-blown creative ethics debate. But that’s exactly what happened.
Let me explain.
The Blowback Begins
After posting about my experience using suno AI to make a couple of surprisingly solid songs, the blowback started. One email, in particular, caught me off guard. It came from a producer I respect deeply:
"Using AI to make 'music' is selling out yourself and all other creatives. It furthers the demise of humans being valued, period."
That hurt. And it got me thinking.
A History of Accessible Music-Making
This isn’t the first time technology has shaken things up. Back in the '90s, I had a colleague who couldn’t play or sing a note. Still, he composed music for video games as a sideline. After 2001, that "sideline" became his main gig.
The software he used wasn’t AI. It was just good enough to help a "non-musician" produce marketable music. That never bothered me—in fact, I found it hopeful.
GarageBand, Grandsons, and Generative Joy
Recently, my family played a music creation game using GarageBand for iOS. My grandson — not yet eight — "won" most rounds, often surprising us with how creatively he used the loops and stems.
Professional and amateur musicians in the family met him at eye level, laughing, learning, and collaborating. GarageBand, in this case, leveled the playing field.
That little game taught me a lot. Imagine what it’s teaching him.
Then and Now: Tools for Learning
Remember "Music Minus One" records? They let you practice with professional ensembles at home. Today, we have access to that kind of tech for any instrument, any song, any ensemble, any genre, in just a few clicks.
One music teacher I know, Nick Revel, created a string ensemble etude series called Dragon Scales The Hero Levels, complete with a storyline and digital play-alongs. He even publishes sheet music and performance tracks. (You can hear Nick on my podcast, where we explore his bold approach to media, live looping, and the reimagining of music for an Oscar-winning short film.)
All this inspires me. What could I do with the tools at my fingertips? Well, I used suno AI to find out.
The Complicated Part
I’ll be honest: I’m not a fan of AI as a concept. It feels like an untamed beast, making decisions based on data I can’t verify. I worry about coercive algorithms. About the slide toward the lowest common denominator. About control.
But I’ve also seen how powerful AI can be.
A colleague of mine recently used ChatGPT to write a major speech. But instead of handing it a rough draft to clean up, he wrote a detailed three-page prompt with structure, tone, delivery cues, humor, and pacing — all tailored to his natural speaking style. What he got back was astonishing.
AI didn’t replace him. It empowered him.
Better Input = Better Output
ChatGPT is only as good as the prompt you give it. Same goes for suno AI. Saying “Write me a love song” won’t get you very far. But crafting a thoughtful prompt? That can feel like working with a creative partner.
As a composer, I use suno AI to test out different styles for lyrics. As a lyricist, I use it to solve rhyme and meter challenges. The better the input, the more aligned the results are with my vision.
The Artist's Dilemma
Here’s where it gets sticky.
I’m a one-take, no-edits recording artist. That ethos matters to me. So does authenticity. I’m still grappling with whether to monetize the AI-assisted songs I’ve made.
When 200,000 AI-generated tracks hit Deezer daily, why do I hesitate? Probably because I care about how a song feels — not just how it sounds or whether it will make money or that (cringe) AI-generated music costs less to make.
The Algorithm vs The Artist
AI tools like ChatGPT often skew toward popularity over originality. That worried me at first. But in music, I see a different path.
Today’s musicians are competing with The Algorithm for visibility. For singer/songwriters, getting heard often means leaning into what’s trendy. But I don’t sing, and I can’t afford to hire vocalists or arrange full productions. With suno AI, I can quickly build a clear musical sketch to share with collaborators.
What's Possible?
I’m no expert after just two songs. But I can imagine a future where I upload my own rhythm stems, melodies, dynamics, tempo, and tuning preferences—and get a rich, custom AI composition in return.
Right now, Suno AI is best at "popular" music sounds. That happened to work perfectly for what I wanted. And that led me to a realization.
Humans Still Matter
AI isn’t replacing musicians. It’s amplifying the ones who know how to guide it.
The better the human input, the better the AI output.
That’s why the skills of composers, lyricists, and producers matter more than ever. AI may be fast, but it can’t feel. Not the way we do.
The Intangible Finish Line
There’s always that moment when a creator decides: it’s done. How do we know when that moment arrives?
My wife, painter Rebecca Noelle, has her own answer. I have mine. AI can assist, but it doesn’t get a say in that sacred moment when an artist steps back and signs the work. Or clicks “publish.” It’s the same for articles like this one.
A Better Future for Listeners Too
If AI helps raise the bar for popular music, we all win. If more people are inspired to make music, even without traditional training, is that really a bad thing?
Think about this: A child, like my grandson, learns GarageBand. Then someone introduces him to suno AI. Soon, he’s composing music that people want to hear. His work gets noticed. Collaborators appear. And the tools that once seemed threatening become his creative prosthetic—helping him soar.
So What’s the Point?
Intention matters. Creativity matters. And the responsible, skillful use of AI might just open the door to the next renaissance of human expression.
Let’s not fear it. Let’s learn how to use it well.
How’d I Do?
No need to wait to jump in on this. If a lifelong musician like me can use AI to create music, what could you do? Let me offer you the two songs I’ve made so far as a kind of flag in the sand. Would it be awesome to see a ink to the music you made just now in the comments? You bet!
About Me
Over the course of more than 40 years of paying attention to how music works on us, Bill Protzmann has rediscovered the fundamental nature and purpose of music and accumulated a vast awareness of anthropology and sociology, as well as the effects of music, the arts, and information technology on human beings. Bill has experimented with what he has learned through performing concerts, giving lectures, facilitating workshops, and teaching classes. He first published on the powerful extensibility of music into the business realm in 2006 (here and abstract here). Ten years later, in 2016, he consolidated his work into the Musimorphic Quest. In this guided, gamified, experiential environment, participants discover and remember their innate connection to this ancient transformative technology. The National Council for Behavioral Healthcare recognized Bill in 2014 with an Inspiring Hope award for Artistic Expression, the industry equivalent of winning an Oscar.
In addition to individuals, Musimorphic programs support personal and professional development and wellness for businesses, NPOs and at-risk populations.