How to use the new Splice Sounds Plugin (beta)
Learn how to use the new Splice Sounds Plugin to find loops and one-shots in new ways and get even more out of the Splice Sounds library.

What is a bridge in a song? How to write a bridge
Let’s take a look at what a bridge is, what functions it serves, and how to write an effective one for your own music.

Q&A: MIT SHASS and the future of education in the age of AIThe MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (SHASS) was founded in 1950 in response to “a new era emerging from social upheaval and the disasters of war,” as outlined in the 1949 Lewis Committee Report. The report’s findings emphasized MIT’s role and responsibility in the new nuclear age, which called for doubling down on genuine “integration” of scientific and technical topics with humanistic scholarship and teaching. Only that way, the committee wrote, could MIT tackle “the most difficult and complicated problems confronting our generation.”As SHASS marks its 75th anniversary, Dean Agustín Rayo answers questions about why the need for developing students with broad minds and human understanding is as urgent as ever, given pressing challenges in the midst of a new technological revolution.Q: Many universities are responding to artificial intelligence by launching new technical programs or updating curricula. You’ve suggested the change is deeper than that. Why?A: Artificial intelligence isn’t just changing the way students learn — it’s transforming every aspect of society. The labor market is experiencing a dramatic shift, upending traditional paths to financial stability. And AI is changing the ways we bring meaning to our lives: the ways we build relationships, the ways we pay attention, and the things we enjoy doing.The upshot is that the most important question universities need to ask is not how to adapt our pedagogy to AI — although we certainly need to address that. The most important question we need to ask is how to provide an education that brings real value to students in the age of AI. We need to ensure that universities provide students with the tools they need to find a path to financial security and to build meaningful lives.We need to produce students with minds that are both nimble and broad. We need our students to not only be able to execute tasks effectively, but also have the judgment to determine which tasks are worth executing. We need students who have a moral compass, and who understand how the world works, in all of its political, economic, and human complexity. We need students who know how to think critically, and who have excellent communication and leadership skills.Q: What role do the humanities, arts, and social sciences play in preparing MIT students for that future?A: They’re essential, and are rightly a core part of an MIT education: MIT has long required its undergraduates take at least eight courses in HASS disciplines to graduate.Fields like philosophy, political science, economics, literature, history, music, and anthropology are crucial to developing the parts of our lives that are essentially human — the parts that will not be replaced by AI.They are crucial to developing critical thinking and a moral compass. They are crucial to understanding people — our values, institutions, cultures, and ways of thinking. They are crucial to creating students who are broad thinkers who understand the way the world works. They are crucial to developing students who are excellent communicators and are able to describe their projects — and their lives — in a way that endows them with meaning.Our students understand this. Here is how one of them put the point: “Engineering gives me the tools to measure the world; the humanities teach me how to interpret it. That balance has shaped both how I do science and why I do it.” (Full interview here.)Q: Some people worry that emphasizing humanistic study could dilute MIT’s technological edge. How do you respond to that concern?A: I think the opposite is true. MIT is an important engine for social mobility in the United States, and a catalyst for entrepreneurship, which has added billions of dollars to the American economy. That cannot be separated from the fact that we are a technical institution, which brings together the country’s most talented undergraduates — regardless of socioeconomic background — and transforms them into the next generation of our country's top scientific and engineering leaders. MIT plays an incredibly important role in our country. So, the last thing I want to do is mess with our secret sauce.But I also think that the age of AI is forcing us to rethink what it means to be a top engineer. Think about artificial intelligence itself. The challenges we face are not just technical. Issues like bias, accountability, governance, and the societal impact of automation are no less important. Understanding those dimensions helps technologists design better systems and anticipate real-world consequences.Strengthening the humanities at MIT isn’t a departure from our core mission — it’s a way of ensuring that our technical leadership continues to matter in the world.Q: What kinds of changes is MIT SHASS pursuing to support this vision?A: There’s a lot going on! We’ve launched the MIT Human Insight Collaborative (MITHIC) as a way of strengthening research in the humanities, arts, and social sciences, and of deepening collaboration with colleagues across MIT.We’re shaping the undergraduate experience to ensure that every MIT student engages with the big societal questions shaping our time, from democratic resilience to climate change to the ethics of new technologies.We’re building stronger connections through initiatives like the creation of shared faculty positions with the MIT Schwarzman College of Computing (SCC). And we recently launched a new Music Technology and Computation Graduate Program with the School of Engineering.We’re partnering with SERC (the SCC’s Social and Ethical Responsibilities of Computing) to design new classes on the intersection of computing and human-centered issues, such as ethics.And we’re elevating the humanities — for their own sake, and as a space for experimentation, bringing together students, faculty, and partners to explore new forms of research, teaching, and public engagement.This is a very exciting time for SHASS.

What is modulation in music?
Learn about the different definitions and creative use cases of modulation in music.

Gavin Brivik on scoring Faces of Death, sound design techniques, and collaboration
In this interview, award-winning composer Gavin Brivik discusses his creative process behind composing the score for Faces of Death.

How to create vocal harmonies: A step-by-step guide
Explore the qualities that make a vocal harmony effective and learn how to write your own harmonies from scratch.

Watch salem ilese make a song with an assortment of mystery sounds
Watch singer-songwriter salem ilese write a demo out of nothing but the objects and prompts within our box.

Introducing the Splice Sounds Plugin (now in beta)
We’re excited to introduce the Splice Sounds Plugin, now available in public beta—bringing Splice’s entire sound library (and additional brand-new features) directly into any DAW.

What is an audio interface (and why would you need one)?
Learn about how an audio interface works, why you would need one as a musician, and which interfaces you should consider in 2026.

Get a free granular synth texture for Splice INSTRUMENT
Download our free granular synth preset for Splice INSTRUMENT—grab these presets during the drop window and they’re yours to keep forever.

KSHMR gives an exclusive tour of his legendary LA studio
Join legendary producer, artist, and sample pack creator KSHMR on an exclusive studio tour and hear his insights and anecdotes for music producers.

Get a free electric piano for Splice INSTRUMENT
Download our free electric piano preset for Splice INSTRUMENT—grab these presets during the drop window and they’re yours to keep forever.

Seeing soundsGrowing up in Mexico and Texas, Mariano Salcedo ’25 couldn’t readily indulge his passion for creating music. “There are no bands in Mexican public schools,” he says. While some families could pay for instruments and lessons, others, like Salcedo’s, were less fortunate.“I’ve always loved music,” he continues. “I was a listener.” Salcedo, the Alex Rigopulos (1992) Fellow in Music Technology and Computation, earned an BS in Artificial Intelligence and Decision Making from MIT, where he explored signal processing in machine learning and how a classical understanding of signals can inform how we understand AI. Now he’s one of five master’s students in the Music Technology and Computation Graduate Program’s inaugural cohort. The program, directed by professor of the practice in music technology Eran Egozy ’93, MNG ’95, is a collaboration between the Music and Theater Arts Section in the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (SHASS), and the School of Engineering. It invites practitioners to study, discover, and develop new computational approaches to music. It also includes a speaker series that exposes students and the broader MIT community to music industry professionals, artists, technologists, and other researchers.Rigopulos ’92, SM ’94 is a video game designer, musician, and former CEO of Harmonix Music Systems, a company he co-founded with Egozy in 1995. Harmonix is now a part of Epic Games, where Rigopulos is the director of game development music.“MIT is where I was first able to pursue my passion for music technology decades ago, and that experience was the springboard for a long and fulfilling career,” says Rigopulos. “So, when MIT launched an advanced degree program in music technology, I was thrilled to fund a fellowship to help propel this exciting new program.”Salcedo’s research focuses on neural cellular automata (NCA), which merges classical cellular automata with machine learning techniques to grow images that can regenerate. When paired with a stimulus like music, these images can “show” sounds in action.“This approach enables anyone to create music-driven visuals while leveraging the expressive and sometimes unpredictable dynamics of self-organized systems,” Salcedo says. Through the web interface Salcedo designed, users can adjust the relationship between the music’s energy and the NCA system to create unique visual performances using any music audio stream.“I want the visuals to complement and elevate the listening experience,” he says.Egozy is enthusiastic about Salcedo’s work and his commitment to further exploring its possibilities. “He is a beautiful example of a multidisciplinary researcher who thinks deeply about how to best use technology to enhance and expand human creativity,” he says.Salcedo has been selected to deliver the student address at the 2026 Advanced Degree Ceremony for SHASS. “It’s an honor, and it’s daunting,” he says. “It feels like a huge responsibility,” though one he’s eager to embrace. His selection also pleases Egozy. “I am super excited that Marino was chosen to deliver this year’s keynote,” he enthuses. Changing gearsSalcedo began his MIT journey as a mechanical engineering (MechE) student, applying to MIT through the Questbridge program. “I heard if you like engineering and science that attending MIT would be a great choice,” he recalls. “Nerds are welcomed and embraced.” While he dutifully worked toward completing his MechE curriculum, music and technology came calling after a chance encounter with a large language model (LLM).“I was introduced to an LLM chatbot and was blown away,” he recalls. “This was something that was speaking to me. I was both awed and frightened.” After his encounter with the chatbot, Salcedo switched his major from mechanical engineering to artificial intelligence and decision-making.“I basically started over, after being two-thirds of the way through the MechE curriculum,” he says. He learned about the possibilities available with AI but also confronted some of the challenges bedeviling researchers and developers, including its potential power, ensuring its responsible use, human bias, limited access for people from underrepresented groups, and a lack of diversity among developers. He decided he might be able to change that picture.“I thought, one more person in the field could make a difference,” he says. While completing his undergraduate studies, Salcedo’s love of music resurfaced. “I began DJing at MIT and was hooked,” he says. While he hadn’t learned to play a traditional instrument, he discovered he could create engaging soundscapes with technology. “I bought a digital audio work station to help me make music,” he continues.Egozy and Salcedo met in 2024, while Salcedo completed an Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program rotation as a game developer in Egozy’s lab. “He was incredibly curious and has grown tremendously over a very short time period,” Egozy says. Egozy became an informal, although important, mentor to Salcedo. “He brings great energy and thoughtfulness to his work, and to supporting others in the [music technology and computation graduate] program,” Egozy notes.Salcedo also took a class with Egozy, 21M.385/21M.585/6.4450 (Interactive Music Systems), which further fed his appetite for the creativity he craved while also allowing him to indulge his fascination with music’s possibilities. By taking advantage of courses in the SHASS curriculum, he further developed his understanding of music theory and related technologies. “I took a class with professor Leslie Tilley, 21M.240 (Critically Thinking in Music), which helped establish a valuable framework for understanding music making,” he says, “while a class like 6.3000 (Signal Processing) helped me connect intuition with science.” Working across disciplinesWhile Salcedo is passionate about his music and his research, he’s also invested in building relationships with his fellow students. He’s a member of the fraternity Sigma Nu, where he says he “found a home and community.” He also took a MISTI trip to Chile in summer 2023, where he conducted music technology research. Salcedo praises the culture of camaraderie at MIT and is grateful for its influence on his work as a scholar. “MIT has taught me how to learn,” he says.Professors encouraged him to present his research and findings. He presented his work — Artificial Dancing Intelligence: Neural Cellular Automata for Visual Performance of Music — at the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence conference in Singapore in January 2026. Salcedo believes his research can potentially move beyond music visualization. “What if we could improve the ways we model self-organized systems?” he asks. “That is, systems like multicellular organisms, flocks of birds, or societies that interact locally but exhibit interesting behaviors.” Any system, Salcedo says, where the whole is more than the sum of its parts. Developing the technology used to design his application can potentially help answer important ethical questions regarding AI’s continued expansion and growth. The path to his work’s development is both daunting and lonely, but those challenges feed his work ethic. “It’s intimidating to pursue this path when the academy is currently focused on LLMs,” he says. “But it’s also important to explain and explore the base technology before digging into more nuanced work, which can help audiences understand it better.” Knowing that he has the support of his professors helps Salcedo maintain excitement for his ideas. “They only ask that we ground our interests in research,” he says. His investigations are impacting his work as a musician. “My music has gotten more interesting because of the classes I’m taking,” he says. He’s also interested in understanding whose music the academy and the world hears, exploring biases toward Western music in the canon and exploring how to reduce biases related to which kinds of music are valued.“The work we do as technologists is far less subjective than we’re led to believe,” he believes.Salcedo is especially grateful for the support he’s received during his time at MIT. “Program faculty encourage a variety of pursuits,” he says, “and ask us to advance our individual aims, rather than focusing on theirs.” During his time in the graduate program, he notes with enthusiasm how often he’s been challenged to pursue his ideas. Ultimately, Salcedo wants people to experience the joy he feels working at the intersection of the humanities and the sciences. Music and technology impact nearly everyone. Inviting audiences into his laboratory as participants in the creative and research processes offers the same kind of satisfaction he gets from crafting a great beat or solving for a thorny technical challenge. Helping audiences understand his work’s value fuels his drive to succeed.“I want users to feel movement and explore sounds and their impact more fully,” he says.

Get free dry acoustic drums for Splice INSTRUMENT
Download our free acoustic drums preset for Splice INSTRUMENT—grab these presets during the drop window and they’re yours to keep forever.

KSHMR talks producing for Justin Bieber and Beyoncé, making sample packs, and more
Globally-acclaimed producer and artist KSHMR discusses his landmark collaborations, greatest learnings, new sample pack, and more.