The musician behind ArcaLyra
Hi, I’m Birk.
I was born in Karlsruhe in 1992 and come from a small village in the Karlsruhe area of Germany. Music has been part of my life since I was six. At eight, I discovered my father’s old clarinet — and I’ve stayed with the instrument ever since, apart from a longer break during my studies.
Since taking it up again, I’ve been more enthusiastic about playing than ever. Today, I lead the clarinet section in two orchestras: my local music society’s orchestra and a select orchestra. Being accepted into the latter still makes me happy and proud. I’ve met people who share my passion and who ultimately gave me the idea for ArcaLyra.
Alongside the clarinet, I occasionally play piano and drums. More recently, I’ve also taken on mallet percussion in a project orchestra.
My path here was far from straightforward. After finishing school in Pforzheim in 2012, I studied mechanical engineering for four semesters before going on to complete a degree in Digital Film Design. My professional work has included managing 3D vehicle models for Mercedes configurators.
I’ve always been interested in a lot of different things. Technology, design, music, computing, hands-on projects — ideally, I would have explored them all at once. Choosing one path always meant leaving plenty of other ideas behind. I found that difficult.
How that became ArcaLyra
I’ve been working extensively with AI tools since early 2025. Suddenly, I could take on projects that had previously been out of reach because I lacked certain skills or simply didn’t have the time.
Even before that, I had taught myself many things. I enjoy spending time on a problem, understanding how everything fits together and learning what I need to solve it. What AI has changed most for me is how much of that I can actually put into practice.
With ArcaLyra, I use it to extend my own capabilities: for programming, technical details, testing and tasks I would otherwise need to outsource. That lets me give more attention to the app’s structure, how it feels to use and the musical ideas behind it.
I make the decisions myself. I use ArcaLyra in rehearsals, notice things that bother me and keep working on them. Other musicians’ experiences and feedback also play a part. That’s where many of the improvements come from.
Why I still take a critical view of AI
These tools make so much possible for me, but that doesn’t mean I welcome their development without reservations. Working with them every day is precisely what makes the prospect of increasingly capable and autonomous systems a serious concern for me.
I worry that we could give them tasks and freedom to act without adequately understanding the consequences. I can’t predict whether or how that might happen. Even so, my personal position is clear: I would like to see a halt to the development of ever more powerful, autonomous AI, with more attention given to making good use of the capabilities we already have.
That concern is just as much a part of my story as my enthusiasm for what I can create with these tools.
What ArcaLyra means to me personally
Working on it lets me bring my different interests together. I can prepare and oversee some processes while making time between steps for my family, the garden or music. On other days, I spend fourteen hours at my computer. Developing and releasing an app involves a great deal more than programming, after all.
For me, ArcaLyra is a chance to turn my ideas into something other people can actually use. I want to keep developing an app I enjoy making music with myself, and one that helps other people in their everyday musical lives too.
And if you notice something while playing that could work better, tell me. So much of ArcaLyra starts with exactly that kind of feedback.