For the first time in history, a robot played the cello with a symphony orchestra – Novinky

The concert was held on October 17 in the Malmö Live Concert Hall in the south of the country. This was the first appearance of a new piece written especially for the robot by the Swedish composer Jacob Muhlrad. He is known for combining classical music with modern influences. According to him, it was interesting to watch his musical score translated into code for a robotic cello.

“Suddenly there are other ways to play the cello through this robot, which is very freeing for me as a composer. When you think about what to write for the cello, you are crossing the limits of human anatomy,” he said.

Industrial robotic arms with attached 3D printer parts were designed and developed by researcher and composer Fredrik Gran. He programmed the robot directly based on Muhlrad’s musical score.

Although it is a sophisticated piece of hardware, the system does not use artificial intelligence, Muhlrad noted at the same time. However, there is no objection to introducing it in the future either. However, he tells live musicians that they don’t have to worry about one day being replaced by robots.