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ARTIFICIAL intelligence is rapidly reshaping the global music industry, from composing melodies and generating orchestral arrangements to producing entire tracks within seconds. 

As AI-generated music becomes increasingly common on streaming platforms and creative software, educators and musicians across Southeast Asia are grappling with difficult questions surrounding authenticity, creativity, and cultural identity.

For Singapore-based musician and educator Dr Evelyn Lim, artificial intelligence may successfully imitate musical patterns and styles – but it still cannot fully replicate human intention, emotional nuance, and lived experience.

“You get the patterns, the sound, but not necessarily the soul of the composer,” she said. 

An accomplished organist, composer, and teacher with more than three decades of experience, Dr Lim believes AI will continue transforming both music production and music education. However, she cautions that technology should remain a tool rather than a substitute for human creativity.

Her reflections come at a time when AI-generated music is becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish from human-created compositions, raising concerns over originality, artistic integrity, and the future of culturally rooted musical traditions.

A Lifetime Dedicated to Music Education

Dr Lim has spent much of her career shaping generations of musicians in Singapore. Initially trained as a pianist, she later earned a Doctor of Music degree in organ from the University of Michigan before returning to Singapore to teach at institutions including the Methodist School of Music, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore Bible College and Dulwich College Singapore.

In 2002, she was designated Pipe Organ Master of the Klais organ at Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay and founded the Singapore Chapter of the American Guild of Organists to promote appreciation of organ music in the region. 

‘You Get the Patterns, But Not the Soul’

According to Dr Lim, AI excels at replicating patterns, structures, and stylistic formulas commonly found in music.

“As I understand AI, it is efficient in replicating patterns or deriving variations from given sets,” she said.

“AI does a much better job of emulating drum patterns or melodies based on a certain composer’s preference.” 

Yet she believes authentic artistry still depends on the human capacity for intention and interpretation.

“Only the composer can choose when and to what degree and nuance to use those patterns in music, or offer something entirely new,” she explained. 

Why Human Storytelling Still Matters

That distinction becomes even more significant in Southeast Asia, where many musical traditions are deeply connected to storytelling, ritual, and oral culture.

Asked whether AI could replicate the emotional storytelling found in indigenous and traditional music, including those from Sabah, Dr Lim expressed doubts.

“Storytelling is an art that differs from person to person,” she said.

“The storyteller relates not only the set piece, but also engages the emotion of the audience.” 

She added that live performance involves constant interaction between performer and audience – something machines still struggle to interpret accurately.

“There is a certain give and take in live human performances,” she said. 

Can AI Help Preserve Indigenous Music?

Despite her concerns, Dr Lim believes AI may still offer benefits in preserving and promoting traditional cultures.

“I think AI can definitely preserve customs and traditions in that they can be readily made available in situations where live performers are not possible,” she said. 

She noted that AI tools may expose younger musicians and wider audiences to indigenous music traditions that might otherwise remain inaccessible.

For independent composers and students, AI also opens new creative possibilities by allowing users to simulate orchestral sounds and instrumental textures without requiring large ensembles or specialised equipment.

“This is something that would not have been possible in earlier years,” she said. 

The Risk of Becoming ‘Numb’ to AI Music

Still, Dr Lim warns that the oversupply of AI-generated content could gradually desensitise listeners and overshadow authentic artistic expression.

“It’s not a matter of acceptance,” she said. “We have become numb to it.” 

She believes informed musicians and serious listeners still recognise important ethical and artistic boundaries.

“If we want to be taken seriously, we would not rely on a machine to do it for us,” she said. 

Rethinking Music Education in the AI Era

As an educator, however, Dr Lim sees value in integrating AI thoughtfully into music education.

She believes AI can assist students in studying improvisation, orchestration, stylistic analysis, and composition techniques.

“We learn by copying – in this respect it is useful,” she said. 

At the same time, she stresses that students should first develop traditional musical foundations and their own creative identity before depending heavily on technology.

“AI becomes the tool for further exploration,” she said. “It does not speak for them.” 

Looking ahead, Dr Lim believes schools in Singapore and Malaysia must eventually teach students both how AI works and how to critically distinguish machine-generated content from authentic artistic voice.

The Future of ‘Fully Human’ Music

Dr Lim believes history may eventually bring audiences back toward greater appreciation for genuinely human-created music.

“In that light, I think we will first see more and more AI music infiltrating our landscape,” she said.

“When it becomes too common, people may start labelling their own creations as fully original or ‘fully human’.” 

As AI technology continues evolving, the future of music may no longer depend solely on technical perfection, but on authenticity, vulnerability, and emotional truth.

Technology may reproduce patterns.

But for Dr Lim, the human spirit remains the true source of music’s meaning.