Economy of selection — picking the salient few from a vast field — is the irreducibly human element in generative composition

Economy of selection means choosing one or a few perceptually and aesthetically optimal or salient choices from a vast desert of unremarkable possibilities, relying on the aesthetic perception of an expert practitioner. Even in generative composition the algorithms are chosen by subjective preference and the rules are loosened or randomized to allow many ‘correct’ solutions; a computer can enumerate those solutions, but carefully picking the best one remains a human talent. As Vaggione observed, a highly stratified musical flux is ‘unthinkable using operations based on statistical means’ — it needs singularities, unique local and global choices integrated into the strategy. ‘Optimal’ here need not mean perfect; it may simply ‘satisfice.‘

Examples

Bach knew all the mirror forms of a melody yet chose which to use — ‘a creative secret that cannot be uncovered by science or technology’; a generative patch enumerates hundreds of variations and the composer selects the one that lands.

Assessment

Explain economy of selection and why picking the best from many enumerated solutions stays a human talent even in generative composition.