Tone Explorer is a technology preview from Roland Future Design Lab, made available for music creators to try as a GALAXIAS Labs Experiment. This AI-assisted creative function uses neural networks to guide you in finding the right sound for a musical part. Tone Explorer analyzes the characteristics of a musical phrase and quickly presents you with solid options, from starting points to ultimate destinations. Leveraging the intelligence of machine learning, Tone Explorer helps you freshen ideas, remove writer’s block, and discover the undiscovered. Experience AI-powered sound discovery.
Highlights
- Experimental feature designed to assist the creative process
- Uses advanced neural networks to match tones to phrases
- Roland Future Design Lab technology preview for GALAXIAS
- Developed and designed in collaboration with Qosmo
- Requires GALAXIAS Super Instrument and ZENOLOGY Synthesizer
How can Tone Explorer help you be more creative?
Helps to solve the problem of “too much choice.”
It’s possible to have too much of a good thing. A wide variety of tones at your disposal is great, but it’s difficult to audition and consider them all before the creative fires flicker. With Tone Explorer, you just record an idea, and it makes suggestions for you based on a scoring system. This narrows the options and makes settling on a complementary sound easier.
Suggests phrase and tone combinations you might not think of.
We all have our go-to sounds. And while familiarity can be a benefit, it’s also easy to repeatedly fall into the same patterns and to become creatively stagnant. Tone Explorer helps by finding sounds that work for your idea while presenting choices you may not have considered. This can open new paths to new musical journeys. Tone Explorer’s unique UI helps you stay safe and close to home or explore the outer reaches and test the limits of an idea.
Can speed up the creative process.
Sometimes, there’s a need to create more rapidly, either due to a deadline or simply trying to keep the creative juices flowing. Sometimes, stopping to focus on finding a particular sound for a part can send you down a rabbit hole, robbing you of precious time and energy. What you really need is a good sound for a part, and fast, so you can move on. Tone Explorer can quickly put together a list of appropriate suggestions, so you can shorten the decision-making process and move on with creating.
How does Tone Explorer work?
The model is built by performing metric learning with a neural network consisting of both MIDI and tone data. It then analyzes and calculates the “distance” between phrases and tones to extract compatibility indicators. Tones are given a “score” as a guide to compatibility, and then Tone Explorer provides graphical views of the tone choices for deeper exploration.
What is Roland Future Design Lab?
Roland Future Design Lab is a horizon-scanning R&D group focused on researching, evaluating, and developing new music creation experiences. We study shifts in culture, society, technology, and human expression and build proofs of concept to push the boundaries of what’s possible.
As we innovate with new technologies, Roland Future Design Lab seeks input from music creators to validate our thinking and improve experiences. One approach we take is the technology preview, where we present something in a functional but unfinished form and then watch and listen as you experiment with it.
Technology previews are not finished products and won’t be perfect, but that’s the point. Perfection comes through hearing and applying your feedback.
What is Qosmo?
For the Tone Explorer project, Roland has collaborated with Qosmo AI Creativity and Music Lab. Qosmo is a Tokyo-based collective consisting of AI researchers, engineers, artists, and designers working on expanding human creativity using AI and exploring unknown music.
What is GALAXIAS? Do I need it?
GALAXIAS brings 50 years of legendary Roland synths and drum machines together into one powerful Super Instrument. It enables access to thousands of iconic sounds and dozens of authentic Roland instruments, from vintage to modern, which you can freely combine. GALAXIAS is the interface to Roland Cloud instruments, effects, and sounds and is the host environment for the Tone Explorer technology preview.
What is GALAXIAS Labs?
The Tone Explorer technology preview runs as GALAXIAS Labs Experiment, which means it’s not a finished product or feature. GALAXIAS Labs Experiments are meant to give you an idea of how these kinds of features can fuel your creative journeys in the future, removing common roadblocks in the production process. While discovering a GALAXIAS Labs Experiment, you may be intrigued by the possibilities, but be prepared for a sometimes bumpy ride. Experiments are…well…experimental, so they may have bugs, unintended behavior, or other issues that could affect your experience. Have fun, but expect the unexpected.
Try Tone Explorer today.
Get a glimpse of the future while helping shape it. If you’re currently a Roland Cloud Ultimate member, you already have everything you need to get started.
Tone Explorer Installation Guide
If you are totally new to Roland Cloud, click the link below to take a quick onboarding survey. Then, we’ll send you a coupon for a free three-month membership plus all the information and help you’ll need to get started.
Get Started With Tone Explorer (for non-Roland Cloud Ultimate Members)
System Requirements
Tone Explorer* requires the latest version of the Google Chrome web browser (macOS or Windows).
* Tone Explorer is a web application running on a web browser on macOS and Windows. Google Chrome is confirmed to work. No other browser is supported for this technology preview.
* Tone Explorer works in combination with GALAXIAS and with ZENOLOGY. Please also check their system requirements.
