Music is Medicine, Ed Sheeran Vs Taylor Swift, and a Useless Protein Now, Saving Millions of Lives in the Future

We recently showcased a project at Cork Culture Night Tyndall National Institute , which was a creative collaboration between Centre for Advanced Photonics & Process Analysis (CAPPA) Munster Technological University , Cork School of Music, and University College Cork . Our team explored a novel intersection between biology, mathematics, music, and virtual reality. We sonified protein structures, translating the complex 3D arrangements of amino acids into musical compositions through machine learning techniques. The result was a unique audio-visual experience, where people could interact with 3D protein models in virtual reality, all while the corresponding music—sonified protein sequences—played in the background.

The event drew significant attention and provoked a range of interesting discussions. One of the more insightful questions was: "How did you determine the best way to assign musical notes to amino acids?" This question taps into the complexity of mapping one form of expression—biological structure—into another—music. The choices made in this process are inherently subjective and challenge the rigid boundaries between disciplines. Our process involved mathematical modeling, but as with any artistic endeavor, there were layers of creative and partial subjective interpretation.

Another frequently asked question was, "Why do this?" At first glance, translating proteins into music may seem like an abstract exercise, perhaps even a bit wacky too. However, this exploration of the auditory space of proteins has broader implications. The idea that “music is medicine” is not new, but it takes on a different meaning when we start thinking about how musical and biological patterns can intersect. This project left me pondering: could this mapping process be reversed? Could we, in the future, generate proteins with therapeutic value based on musical compositions? This is not merely a creative thought experiment, but a question that may lead to tangible breakthroughs in biomedical research.

Initially, I found myself debating with musicians from CSM over what constituted "good" music in this context. I wanted the sonification to produce music that sounded "nice," but this quickly led me down a philosophical rabbit hole. What is music, after all? Can we objectively define what is considered “good” music? These questions reminded me of the age-old debate over artistic value: Can we rank Ed Sheeran's music against Taylor Swift's? Is one artist "better" than the other, or is it all a matter of subjective taste? Attempting to impose rigid criteria on music creation in this context mirrored this futile exercise—especially in an age where AI is reshaping our understanding of creativity.

This subjective interpretation became particularly relevant when we had to make decisions about the "quality" of the musical output from the sonification process. Was it important for the music to be aesthetically pleasing to a general audience, or should it faithfully represent the biological structures at play? Would everyone in the audience feel the same way about all the music we make? This tension between scientific representation and artistic expression became a central theme, revealing the limitations of both fields when it comes to scoring, grading, or ranking creations that stem from two inherently different realms of human experience.

The inverse of this experiment is equally fascinating for scientists: what happens when we generate new proteins based on music? How do we determine which of these proteins might have functional or therapeutic potential? Beyond screening for mathematical outliers and ensuring structural viability, the possibilities are nearly endless. Proteins that may appear "useless" in their current context might hold great significance in the future, depending on the biological or environmental needs of the time. A protein structure that doesn’t serve an immediate purpose could eventually turn out to be the key to a major medical breakthrough. Proteins with unknown functions are like biological dark matter, awaiting discovery, and perhaps, their time to become essential.

This project raises both scientific and philosophical questions about the boundaries between creativity and functionality, art and science, and the hidden potential of seemingly "useless" entities. The music we generated from proteins was a novel expression, but it also hinted at something deeper: the idea that:

Within the unexplored, the strange, and the seemingly irrelevant may lie the next great discovery—whether that be in the form of an unexpected musical harmony or a life-saving protein.

Huge credit to Isabel Ronan 米彦霖 and Cárthach ó Nuanáin for their creativity. Sabin Tabirca and Dr. Ganga Chinna Rao Devarapu for their inputs and support. Daniela López Henao and Nana Kakazu for helping with the culture night event.

Check some cool soundscapes here: https://cs1.ucc.ie/~imr1/ampc/

PS - Christian Corcoran , looking ahead for some Techno fusion.

#science #culturenight #MTU #UCC #CAPPA