Survey and Typology of Computer-Assisted Composition Systems
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Computer music is experiencing a rapid change as artificial intelligence (AI) integrates into composers’ musical practice at all levels. We contribute a survey of the field of Computer-Assisted Composition (CAC) since its inception, spanning 62 years of research (1963–2025) . In total, we collect 125 CAC systems and contribute a typology that categorizes them. The typology classifies (1) the metadata about the system, (2) the music composition problem (task and scope), (3) the computing architecture, (4) the human-machine interaction, and (5) the ecosystemic context. Finally, we analyze historical trends, discuss implications, challenges and opportunities from our work, and report on the state of CAC communities.
Source: ACM Computing Surveys
DOI: 10.1145/3812539
Institution: Simon Fraser University
Language: English
Subfield: Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition
Field: Computer Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7155992683