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Rocker Townshend unveils song composing software

By Sylvia Westall Wed Apr 25, 6:45 PM ET

LONDON (Reuters) - British rocker Pete Townshend on Wednesday unveiled an Internet-based software program that will help music fans compose personalized tracks at the click of a button.

The Who guitarist/songwriter said that with a voice recording, a digital image and a rhythm clapped into a microphone, his new "Method" software will create spontaneous digital music and allow anyone to be a composer, and possibly a rock star.

"You can put data in and get a piece of music out. It's as simple as that," said Townshend, a technical wizard who pioneered the use of the synthesizer more than 35 years ago on the classic tunes "Won't Get Fooled Again" and "Baba O'Riley."

The project, which started percolating during his art school days in the 1960s, was developed by mathematician/composer Lawrence Ball and software developer Dave Snowdon.

From May 1, users will be able to get free access to the Web site (http://www.lifehouse-method.com) for three months, and will be able to compose instrumental tracks that they can e-mail or post on their Web sites. From August 1, it will become a subscription-based service.

Composers such as Townshend and Ball will also take some of the tracks and add instruments and rhythms, to create more complex pieces that could become the basis of future albums.

"It represents a whole new level of rock integration, blending rock and psychedelia with classical and experimental music," Ball said.

Townshend said he hopes the Web site will enable more people to become composers and said it was part of a growing trend towards using the internet to create and distribute music.

He joked that even his girlfriend's dog could inspire music using the software, likening the composing process to sitting for a portrait.

"I as a composer would try to get something out of this dog that would give me the chance to turn the dog into music," he said.

"I might listen to the way it breathes, I might touch it and see how it feels, I might listen to its bark, I might look at the rhythm of his running.

Townshend said he hoped members of the site would share their copyrights.

Reuters