Robot guest-conducts the Korean National Symphony Orchestra
A robot graced the stage at the National Theatre of Korea to conduct the Korean National Symphony Orchestra on June 30, marking South Korea’s first robot-conductor public appearance.
EveR 6, the android that co-conducted the performance titled “Absence,“ is a design produced by the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH). The robot is equipped with a humanoid face and has a human-life form with a torso, two arms, a neck and a head.
KITECH trained EveR 6 through “motion capture” technology via sensor attachments that digitally record a conductor’s baton trajectory. The robot is also trained to keep track of the speed of the baton’s movements.
Before the performance, the theatre released a teaser video on its YouTube channel, showing glimpses into the rehearsal and training process.
The robot was joined on stage by conductor Soo-Yeoul Choi, who co-conducted the performance. Choi is reported to have said that one of the most challenging aspects for robots is “real-time interaction and communication,” particularly in the musical context.
He said EveR 6’s “critical weakness” is that it cannot listen. However, Choi also said that “the robot was able to present such detailed moves much better than I had imagined.“
예술과 기술의 만남안드로이드 로봇 에버6 와지휘자 최수열 이 함께하는 국악관현악,국립국악관현악단 ‘부재’지휘자의 부재(不在)를 통해지휘자의 가치를 찾아가는 여정 어떻게 보셨나요댓글을 통해 여러분들의 소감도 들려주세요 pic.twitter.com/cklul89RYg
Choi and EveR 6 both took turns conducting pieces, with the robot guiding three of five pieces and then performed one-piece side by side. After the concert, Choi said:
Cointelegraph reached out to the Korean National Symphony Orchestra for comments from the musicians who were conducted by the android but didn’t immediately get a response.
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