Read text VI to answer question.

The internet went into overdrive when the song "Heart on My Sleeve" first dropped in 2023. Fans were on cloud nine, fully convinced that Drake and The Weeknd had just casually dropped a surprise collaboration. Social media lit up with excitement as listeners praised the track, thinking it was another hit from two of music's biggest creators - and could a whole album be on the way?

But as the song racked up millions of streams on TikTok, the truth surfaced this wasn't a new Drake and The Weeknd collab. In fact, it wasn't them at all. The track was created by a TikTok user, Ghostwriter977, using artificial intelligence to perfectly mimic the two artists' voices. The revelation sent shockwaves across the industry, raising eyebrows and questions about the role of AI in music.

AI-generated music is a polarizing topic; depending on who you ask, it's either the next big innovation or a cultural catastrophe waiting to happen. There's no doubt that artificial intelligence is changing the music industry, but the question remains: is it a tool to unlock new creative frontiers, or is it a threat to the authenticity and soul of music as we know it?

These technologically capable algorithms compose everything from background music to full-fledged songs. Some argue it's an incredible tool for musicians and producers, offering new ways to experiment with sound, composition, and genre - even overcoming writer's block. AI can generate infinite variations of a melody, compose background scores for films, or even write lyrics based on given parameters. AI is more than just a tool for those pushing boundaries - it's a creative partner. It allows artists to break away from traditional musical structures and unlocks a world of possibilities.

But here's the flip side: AI doesn't understand human emotion. It doesn't have the lived experiences that often give music its soul. While an AI can generate a technically proficient melody, can it truly capture the emotional depth of a musician pouring their heart into a track? Critics argue that AI-generated music can feel hollow, lacking the emotion and intention that comes from a human touch. Sure, AI can replicate patterns, styles, and formulas, but does it truly understand why certain notes make us feel a certain way? Many fear that relying too heavily on AI will lead to a flood of cookie-cutter music devoid of real emotion or authenticity.

Looking out for tomorrow, what does AI mean for the future of creativity? Are we moving toward a world where algorithms outpace human artists, churning out music by the minute? This raises concerns for musicians, producers, and even DJs, who worry about their roles being replaced by technology, much like other industries where automation has taken over.

As AI continues to evolve, artists and creators will have to find ways to use AI as a tool while ensuring that the heart of music its ability to move, inspire, and connect remains in human hands. Ultimately, AI-generated music can be a powerful partner, but without careful consideration, it may turn the art of music into just another algorithmic output.

Adapted from https://council.rollingstone.com/blog/

Read text VII to answer question.

The Versificator - acrylic on canvas 600mm x 600mm

The title for this painting comes from George Orwell's dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty Four and refers to a fictional device employed by Ingsoc, the ruling party of Oceania. Its primary purpose is to act as a 'writing machine' to produce both literature and music, whose target audience is the working-class people. The Versificator provides a means of creating output without having any of the party members actually engaged in a creative thought, as it can be seen in the excerpt from Orwell's book:

"The tune had been haunting London for weeks past. It was one of countless similar songs published for the benefit of the proles by a sub-section of the Music Department. The words of these songs were composed without any human intervention whatever on an instrument known as a Versificator. But the woman sang so tunefully as to turn the dreadful rubbish into an almost pleasant sound."

Adapted from: https://www.shardcore.org/spx/2023/11/08/the-versificator/

Read text VI to answer question.

The internet went into overdrive when the song "Heart on My Sleeve" first dropped in 2023. Fans were on cloud nine, fully convinced that Drake and The Weeknd had just casually dropped a surprise collaboration. Social media lit up with excitement as listeners praised the track, thinking it was another hit from two of music's biggest creators - and could a whole album be on the way?

But as the song racked up millions of streams on TikTok, the truth surfaced this wasn't a new Drake and The Weeknd collab. In fact, it wasn't them at all. The track was created by a TikTok user, Ghostwriter977, using artificial intelligence to perfectly mimic the two artists' voices. The revelation sent shockwaves across the industry, raising eyebrows and questions about the role of AI in music.

AI-generated music is a polarizing topic; depending on who you ask, it's either the next big innovation or a cultural catastrophe waiting to happen. There's no doubt that artificial intelligence is changing the music industry, but the question remains: is it a tool to unlock new creative frontiers, or is it a threat to the authenticity and soul of music as we know it?

These technologically capable algorithms compose everything from background music to full-fledged songs. Some argue it's an incredible tool for musicians and producers, offering new ways to experiment with sound, composition, and genre - even overcoming writer's block. AI can generate infinite variations of a melody, compose background scores for films, or even write lyrics based on given parameters. AI is more than just a tool for those pushing boundaries - it's a creative partner. It allows artists to break away from traditional musical structures and unlocks a world of possibilities.

But here's the flip side: AI doesn't understand human emotion. It doesn't have the lived experiences that often give music its soul. While an AI can generate a technically proficient melody, can it truly capture the emotional depth of a musician pouring their heart into a track? Critics argue that AI-generated music can feel hollow, lacking the emotion and intention that comes from a human touch. Sure, AI can replicate patterns, styles, and formulas, but does it truly understand why certain notes make us feel a certain way? Many fear that relying too heavily on AI will lead to a flood of cookie-cutter music devoid of real emotion or authenticity.

Looking out for tomorrow, what does AI mean for the future of creativity? Are we moving toward a world where algorithms outpace human artists, churning out music by the minute? This raises concerns for musicians, producers, and even DJs, who worry about their roles being replaced by technology, much like other industries where automation has taken over.

As AI continues to evolve, artists and creators will have to find ways to use AI as a tool while ensuring that the heart of music its ability to move, inspire, and connect remains in human hands. Ultimately, AI-generated music can be a powerful partner, but without careful consideration, it may turn the art of music into just another algorithmic output.

Adapted from https://council.rollingstone.com/blog/

Read text V to answer question.

More than 58,000 Brazilians are living in Ireland with a growing number working in professional roles, a quarter having Irish partners and more than 40 per cent saying they do not intend to return to Brazil, according to a new report.

The survey, published on Friday by Brazil's embassy in Ireland, suggests 78.5 per cent of the estimated 58,500 Brazilians living in the State have arrived since 2016. Almost two-thirds came to learn English, 61 per cent had a visa specifically allowing them to study but 60 per cent have successfully changed their immigration status since arriving. The report is based on a survey of almost 4,000 Brazilian nationals living in Ireland and research work carried out by consultants.

Despite high levels of fluency in English, participation in the workforce and social engagement with Irish people, 56 per cent of the respondents said they had experienced discrimination. Brazil's ambassador to Ireland, Marcel Biato, said the findings of the survey, highlighting the "seamless" integration of Brazilian people into Irish life, was somehow a good response in a week when an unprovoked assault on a Brazilian man in Limerick made headlines. Mr. Biato said the embassy had been in touch with Brazilians living in Limerick and Irish authorities to ensure everything possible was done to counter the threat of further similar violence happening.

The survey findings suggest there has been a substantial evolution in the type of work being undertaken since Brazilians arrived in the 1990s to work in Irish meat processing plants and on construction sites. Some 85 per cent of those surveyed have higher level qualifications and a growing number work in areas such as information technology and professional services.

It found 61 per cent of Brazilians in Ireland live in Dublin, with 8 per cent in Cork. Some 16.6 per cent reported owning their own homes; a quarter said they had children, two-thirds of whom were born in Ireland. It also found that some 60 per cent of responds had a complete or strong sense of "belonging in Ireland". It also suggests that the number of Brazilian people in Ireland increased by 8,500 between 2022 and when the survey was carried out late last year.

Mr. Biato described the research as "the first of its kind, a pioneering effort to provide a detailed profile of Brazilians living in this country". He said it provided "a wealth of information about many aspects of the personal and professional lives of this population, as well as its main concerns and aspirations".

With the research suggesting more than 80 per cent maintain strong links to home or their culture, Mr. Biato said the embassy was working to support a new generation of Brazilian-Irish who he hoped would be "true ambassadors of their dual inheritance". However, he said this would happen only "if the new generation learns to value diversity and practise tolerance. This is an especially urgent challenge in the face of the threat of the normalisation of anti-immigrant sentiment."

Adapted from https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/social-affairs/2024/04/19/