A famous musical masterpiece was found to be so mathematically perfect that an algorithm can reconstruct 93% of the score from scratch.
March 31, 2026
Original Paper
Algo Pärt: An Algorithmic Reconstruction of Arvo Pärt's Summa
arXiv · 2603.26989
AI-generated illustration
The Takeaway
While music is usually seen as a human emotional expression, Arvo Pärt's work 'Summa' was found to be essentially a piece of encrypted code. By formalizing his musical style into a strict algorithm, researchers were able to recreate the score almost perfectly without any human artistic input.
From the abstract
Arvo Pärt is one of the most popular contemporary composers, known for his highly original tintinnabuli style. Works in this style are typically composed according to precise procedures and have even been described as algorithmic compositions. To understand how algorithmic Pärt's music exactly is, this paper presents an analysis by synthesis: it proposes an algorithm that almost completely reconstructs the score of Summa, his "most strictly constructed and most encrypted work," according to Pärt