Pierre Alexandre Tremblay, Nicola Leonard Hein, Gilbert Nouno

This 2.5-hour workshop examines four musical agent systems through a structured process of presentation, performance, collective listening, and critical discussion. It addresses a central contemporary question in computer music: how the design of musical agents encodes particular modes of listening, interaction, and agency, and how these design choices shape musical practice.
The workshop adopts a commented comparative-phenomenological methodology. It showcases four musical agent systems selected from an open call, which are presented in turn, each offering a distinct approach to interactive and improvisational musical behavior. These systems have been developed using different programming languages, creative coding environments, and technical frameworks, reflecting the diversity of current practices in the field. Their comparison will therefore highlight not only aesthetic and compositional differences, but also the ways in which specific tools and technical architectures condition musical affordances.
For each system, the creator will quickly introduce its technical design, musical aims, and underlying assumptions. This will be followed by a short performance by the system’s author, two exploratory performances by other workshop participants, and a discussion with participants and attendees. The emphasis throughout will be on the system’s interactional qualities, its encoded listening strategies, and the forms of musical agency that emerge in performance.
The final part of the workshop will be devoted to a comparative discussion of the four systems, with the aim of articulating shared vocabulary, critical perspectives, and possible evaluation criteria for improvising and interactive musical agents. In doing so, the workshop seeks to contribute to ongoing discourse on the role of bias, intention, and technological mediation in musical system design. This closing conversation will reflect on the different forms of musical interaction that emerged, and consider how we might develop shared vocabulary, aims, and evaluation criteria for improvising and interactive musical agents.
The workshop is intended for composers, improvisers, performers, creative coders, and researchers interested in interactive systems, machine listening, and AI in music. It particularly welcomes participants who wish to think critically about what it means to compose with, perform with, or delegate agency to computer-based musical systems.
By creating a space for presentation, experimentation, and peer critique, the workshop aims to deepen discussion around the role of encoded listening in musical agent systems and the musical practices that emerge from it.
The workshop is led by Pierre Alexandre Tremblay (Conservatorio della Svizzera italiana), Nicola Leonard Hein (University of Music Lübeck), and Gilbert Nouno (Haute école de musique de Genève), whose artistic and research practices span composition, improvisation, creative coding, and interactive systems.

**Requirements: **
Listen and Discuss.