As a person seeking to have a career in music, people often ask me a certain question. Of course, it’s wearing a different coat every time it’s posed. Sometimes this disguise works so well that I don’t even realize that it’s the question. What is the question, you ask?

Are music and the arts important to our increasingly technical society? Do they have value?

Sometimes people ask me, “Why do you want to be a musician?” Sometimes the question is, “Are you going to be able to make a living composing?” At times, they say, “What are you going to do with your degree?” Sure, these questions aren’t the same as the one above, but the one above is really the root of all the questions.

My answer, absolutely. Music and the arts are definitely important in today’s technical society.

As society progresses, more and more things can be done by computers. We no longer have to calculate numbers manually-a calculator (and probably a phone) can do the majority of any calculations necessary. As all our electronics become more and more powerful, so many things become obsolete.

Music and the arts will never go obsolete.

Have you ever seen a computer create, innovate, or imagine? No? Well, neither have I. These actions require a mind. A human mind. No matter how much the computer scientists try, they have not been able to create a true Artificial Intelligence. Perhaps they have made Virtual Intelligences, but not a true AI.

You may argue that computers can write music and make art. I would disagree. They can generate music and art, but only based on presets that are given to them by a human mind. They are not the true creators. They don’t write their own generative programs.

Music and the arts cannot become obsolete. (At least until we have AIs.)

Now to the second part of the question. Do music and the arts have value?

Yes. Of course they do. People just tend to brush them off, but don’t actually think about what life would be like without them. So many things in the world are art. Clothes are designed by artists, commercials and TV are made by artists, the music on the radio is made by artists. Architects are artists, designing the buildings we see every day. Even the food you eat is originally created by a chef-a food artist. How would you live without this stuff?

Music and the arts are a huge part of what makes culture what it is. Expressing yourself is an art, and that is part of what creates culture. If one says that music and the arts have no value, not only are they wrong, but they are also implying that culture has no value.

In short, I believe that music and the arts are an essential part of human culture. They express the creativity and innovation capable of the human race.