Title: Journey into Singularity
Composer: Mathias Wehr 
Duration: 19.30 min.
Grade: 6
Instrumentation: Brass Band


DESCRIPTION OF THE WORK:
Artificial intelligence: solution or threat? The term ‘technological singularity’ refers to the moment when artificial intelligence (AI) will surpass human intelligence and, as a result, rapidly improve itself, accelerating technological progress to such an extent that the future of humanity after this event will no longer be predictable. The first superintelligence would therefore be humanity's last invention, as from that moment onwards, future inventions would be developed largely by machines. The term became popular thanks to the book ‘The Singularity is Near’ published in 1998 by American computer pioneer and author Raymond Kurzweil, who sets the date of the singularity at 2045. What at first glance seems like a distant futuristic vision has been becoming increasingly tangible in recent years. The theory of singularity is much more than a science fiction game. The predicted date for singularity has been postponed several times by decades by futurologists. What is certain, however, is that we are already on a journey into singularity and it is very likely that it will occur in a surprising way, perhaps even for those involved in its development.


Journey into Singularity was commissioned by the German Brass Band Federation and was the compulsory piece for the 2022 German Brass Band Championship in the Championship Division.