The Art of Curation

Inspired by a panel at the Iceland Airwaves conference with the same title, we wanted to carry on the conversation around this fascinating and hugely relevant topic, because today, thanks to technical evolution, the general population has real power in terms of its ability to influence algorithms, and by extension playlists and other people’s listening habits. Music curation has been transformed from monopoly to accountability, but what does this new relationship say about our society and its ongoing development sonically and socially? And what happens when you add AI's deep pattern recognition capabilities into the mix? Are we heading for a golden age of curated music experiences or a total divergence of technologically influenced charts and playlists, alongside thoroughly human music needs that are catered to by old-school tastemakers?