I Tried AI Harmonies on My Song – Reflections on Suno AI

ecently I decided to experiment with Suno AI, an artificial intelligence tool that can generate complete songs, including vocals and instrumentation. The platform creates music from prompts or audio inputs using generative AI technology.

As a musician, songwriter, and teacher, I was curious to see what would happen if I used AI not to replace music, but simply to assist it.

So I ran a small experiment.

Education should not exist only to prepare people for jobs. Education should help people become thoughtful, compassionate human beings who contribute to their communities.

Schools are social institutions that shape how we understand the world and how we treat one another. They should promote curiosity, responsibility, kindness, and respect.

Ultimately, education should inspire students to ask important questions about life, society, and the future. Our students may be the ones who solve the greatest challenges facing humanity.

Education is where we learn not only knowledge, but also how to live together in a thoughtful and humane way.

In her article Teaching Culturally Diverse Choral Music With Intention and Care, Catherine Bennett reminds us that meaningful multicultural music education requires far more than simply adding “diverse” songs to a program. It calls for intention, care, kindness, and respect for the cultures behind the music. I deeply resonate with this approach, both as a teacher and as someone who grew up surrounded by multiple musical traditions.

I have been thinking a lot about intelligence lately.

In reading about standardized testing and IQ, I learned that these tests were originally created to identify children who might need support. But somewhere along the way, they became something else. They became a way to rank. To sort. To define worth.

And I keep asking myself:

What is intelligence?

Is survival intelligence different from book intelligence?
Is emotional intelligence different from academic intelligence?
Is memorizing information and getting an A the same as understanding something deeply?

As a music teacher, I see this every week.

I see students who cannot memorize quickly but can feel a phrase of music in a way that gives me chills. I see children who struggle with reading but can improvise melodies that are honest and alive. I see sensitivity, imagination, resilience — none of which can be captured by a standardized test.

Artificial intelligence can now write code, compose songs, generate images in seconds. It can solve mathematical problems faster than any human. Does that mean it is more intelligent? Maybe in one narrow category.

But intelligence without empathy? Without love? Without moral depth? What kind of intelligence is that?

I believe education is not just about memorizing facts or mastering technique. True education is a lifelong process of understanding ourselves and the world around us. It’s about curiosity, creativity, emotional safety, and deep listening.

This is why my approach to music is gentle, thoughtful, and human-centered. I strive to create a space where students feel supported, encouraged, and free to express themselves — where learning happens through connection, not pressure.

I teach because I know what it feels like to grow up without guidance. And I want to offer my students something I once needed myself: a safe place to learn, to create, and to be heard.

Pierrot Lunaire by Arnold Schoenberg

Keep going, keep going, keep going