Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Automated Composing System VS music21

Compare Automated Composing System VS music21 and see what are their differences

Automated Composing System logo Automated Composing System

ACS creates automated arrangements so you can compose music without musical knowledge.

music21 logo music21

Music21 is a Python-based toolkit for computer-aided musicology.
  • Automated Composing System Landing page
    Landing page //
    2018-12-11
  • music21 Landing page
    Landing page //
    2019-10-17

Automated Composing System features and specs

  • Efficiency
    The Automated Composing System (ACS) can generate music quickly, allowing users to produce compositions in a shorter amount of time than manual composing.
  • Consistency
    ACS ensures consistent quality and style across compositions, which is beneficial for projects requiring uniformity.
  • Accessibility
    Even those with limited musical expertise can create compositions, as the system provides tools and guidance to assist in the composing process.
  • Cost-Effectiveness
    By reducing the need for extensive manual labor in composing, ACS can lower production costs associated with music creation.

Possible disadvantages of Automated Composing System

  • Creativity Limitation
    Relying on ACS may limit creative freedom, as the compositions are generated based on predefined parameters and algorithms.
  • Lack of Originality
    Music produced by ACS may lack the unique, personal touch that human composers bring to their work, resulting in similar-sounding compositions.
  • Dependence on Technology
    Users may become overly dependent on the system, which could detract from developing their own composing skills and musical intuition.
  • Technical Issues
    Like any software system, ACS may encounter bugs or technical problems that could hinder the composing process or affect the quality of output.

music21 features and specs

  • Extensive Musicological Tools
    Music21 provides a wide range of tools for musicological analysis, allowing users to perform complex tasks such as harmonic analysis, melodic and rhythmic pattern identification, and more.
  • Python Integration
    Being a Python library, music21 is easily integrated into larger Python workflows and can leverage Python's extensive ecosystem for data processing, visualization, and machine learning.
  • Comprehensive Documentation
    The library comes with well-organized and comprehensive documentation, making it easier for users to learn and implement its features effectively.
  • Cross-Platform Compatibility
    Music21 is compatible with all major operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux, which facilitates its use across different platforms.
  • Open Source
    Music21 is open source, making it free to use and modify according to the needs of the user, encouraging experimentation and custom development.

Possible disadvantages of music21

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Due to its wide array of features, new users might find music21 challenging to learn, especially if they are not familiar with music theory or Python programming.
  • Performance Limitations
    For extremely large datasets or real-time processing needs, music21 may not perform optimally, as it was not primarily designed for high-performance applications.
  • Limited Audio Capabilities
    Music21 is more focused on symbolic music analysis and lacks advanced audio processing capabilities, which might be a limitation for some users who need integrated audio handling.
  • Dependence on External Libraries
    Some functionalities in music21 require additional Python libraries, which might need to be installed separately, adding complexity to the initial setup.

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Automated Composing System and music21)
Audio & Music
42 42%
58% 58
Music Tools
33 33%
67% 67
Tool
39 39%
61% 61
Music
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, music21 seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 13 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Automated Composing System mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Automated Composing System yet. Tracking of Automated Composing System recommendations started around Mar 2021.

music21 mentions (13)

  • A smart way to translate guitar chords into piano sheet music with Python
    I chose Python as a programming language here because, as you could probably guess, there are myriads of libraries in Python for working with music. I found mingus to be the simplest for working with guitar chords and music21 for generating the piano score. It might be possible though to do everything with music21 only, because it's extremely powerful, but I found mixing the two libraries to be easier than... - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago
  • Looking for help to create a program
    If you are interested in doing anything with Python, be sure to check out Music21, which has a lot of cool features — including doing twelve-tone matrix stuff like this — built-in. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Transposition Midi
    Http://web.mit.edu/music21/ Music21 documentation. Source: about 2 years ago
  • [D] Is MusicGPT a viable possibility?
    It's definitely a viable possiblity, and there's quite a few companeis already doing it. If you want to explore doing it yourself, I'd check out https://web.mit.edu/music21/ and build some basic models using LSTM etc. To have some fun using open source MIDI data sets like https://magenta.tensorflow.org/datasets/maestro . Source: over 2 years ago
  • Ask HN: Is there a OS tool which queries MIDI datasets by chord progression/key?
    A little manual, but music21[0] can do the analysis! [0]: http://web.mit.edu/music21/. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Automated Composing System and music21, you can also consider the following products

Sibelius - Sibelius is a virtual score creation tool which allows composers to easily create new piano scores, developed by Avid.

NtEd - Music Score Notation editor.

ChordPulse - ChordPulse is interactive software that’s designed to help you learn music on your instrument.

DaCapo Editor - DaCapo Editor is a free Open Source music sheet editor which allows to easily create nice looking partitions. It is available as a web application as well as a desktop application for Windows, MacOS and Linux.

Guitar Pro - Create, play and share your tabs

ABCexplorer - ABCexplorer is a musical creation utility that comes with advanced support to create, edit, play, convert and manage musical files with ABC text format support.