AI Performer Bias: Listeners Like Music Less When They Think it was Performed by an AI

Contextual information can shape the aesthetic judgements of music compositions. Recently, a study proposed the existence of an AI composer bias; namely, listeners tend to like music less when they think (or are told) that it was composed by an AI. In this online study (N = 120), we used a cross-over experimental design to verify whether such bias extends to audiovisual music performance. The participants rated three videos of classic piano music performances in two versions with identical audio: one with a professional pianist who pretended to play, and one with the piano playing automatically, allegedly thanks to an AI. As hypothesised, the participants rated the performances as more likeable, engaging, higher in emotional valence, and of higher quality when the pieces were “performed” by the pianist. Notably, these effects were insensitive to the participants’ musical expertise but moderated by their attitudes toward AI. Interestingly, when asked what differences they had found between the two renditions, the participants confabulated about differences in rhythm, tempo variations, dynamics, and dissonances, pointing to underlying psychological processes, such as expectations and beliefs about humanness. Implications for Aesthetics and the Psychology of Art are discussed.