Abstract:

We are investigating how musical forms may originate and evolve in artificially created worlds inhabited by virtual communities of musicians and listeners. Origins and evolution are not, however, studied here in the context of genetic mutations, but rather in the context of cultural conventions. We consider that variations in musical styles, for example, result from the emergence of new rules and/or from the shifting of existing conventions for music making. In this paper we introduce fundamental theoretical and philosophical issues that substantiate our research.