The Semantic Machine

The Semantic Machine is a transmutable music artwork composed and performed by Tracy Redhead and developed in collaboration with Florian Thalmann. It is a song, or song system, that has been composed to change with the time of day, the weather, and the listener’s location.

Like video game audio that adapts to gameplay, or a live performer who changes their performance in response to a venue, audience, or emotional state, The Semantic Machine changes according to the context in which it is experienced. There is no single fixed version. The song shifts from moment to moment, and the listener learns more about the work the more they listen. Essentially, this app is a new type of listening experience for a song.

The Semantic Machine explores what recorded music can become when it is no longer fixed. It asks what changes, what remains, and how songs might behave when they are shaped by the world around us.

The project began through a collaboration between Tracy Redhead and Florian Thalmann at Queen Mary University of London as part of the FAST project, and has since developed into a public-facing artwork and case study in transmutable music.

Features include:

• A dynamic song experience that changes with location, time, and weather • Authored musical variations across lyrics, harmony, texture, and mix • Storytelling through shifting lyrics, perspectives, and musical forms • A visual song-world that responds alongside the music • An Explore function that lets listeners hear versions shaped by different locations • A creative exploration of data, place, memory, and recorded music • No personal data is stored by the app

The Semantic Machine is designed for listeners interested in music, sound art, adaptive audio, experimental songwriting, and possible futures for recorded music.