Algorithmic Recommendation and Changing Tastes
A provocation by Dr. Jenny Judge (University of Melbourne)
Suppose a piece of challenging but worthwhile music is recommended to a listener, either by a specialist radio DJ or by a recommender system like Spotify's. Does the mode of recommendation make a difference to the chances that the listener’s taste will be changed by the encounter? If it does, why is this, and what might the consequences be for our musical and civic lives?
This provocation on the infrastructure, incentives, and implications of algorithmic systems is part of the DataX Unruly Intelligences in Music AI pilot project (PIs Thomas Hodgson, Julia Powles, Guang Cheng, Jeff Burke).
About the speaker:
Dr. Jenny Judge is a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Philosophy at the University of Melbourne. She holds a PhD in philosophy (2022) from New York University and a PhD in music (2016) from the University of Cambridge. Dr. Judge's work explores the resonances between music, the philosophy of mind, and digital technology.