Tour de Fierce Research
Tour de Fierce Research is an independent interdisciplinary research initiative founded by Joseph Stanek exploring embodiment, aesthetics, creativity, and the evolving relationship between art, science, and human development. Through original frameworks, DOI-archived scholarship, and practice-led inquiry, the initiative contributes new conceptual infrastructure to emerging conversations in NeuroArts, vocal pedagogy, and artistic cognition.​
​Committed to transparency, rigor, and open research principles, Tour de Fierce Research develops scholarship rooted not only in theory, but in lived artistic practice, performance, and real-world aesthetic environments.
RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE
ORCID Registered Researcher
DOI
Registered Publications
ZENODO
Archived for Open Access
RESEARCHGATE
Research Network Profile
GOOGLE SCHOLAR
Scholarly Profile Indexed
NATS
National Association of Teachers of Singing
OPEN RESEARCH
CC BY 4.0 Open License
THE EMBODIMENT GAP
Conceptual Foundations for
Singing Voice Pedagogy in the Age of AI
Accepted for publication • Forthcoming in the Journal of Singing
Voice pedagogy faces an unprecedented threshold. As AI systems grow increasingly capable of generating singing voices that bypass human physiological processes entirely, the voice studio — and the teacher inside it — becomes the essential environment in which embodied vocal knowledge is transmitted, evaluated, and protected. This article establishes the conceptual foundations for understanding what that means, and what the field must do about it.
NeuroArts Expansion Series
NeuroArts Expansion Series
Author: Joseph Stanek, Tour de Fierce Research
The NeuroArts Expansion Series is a scholarly monograph sequence advancing a foundational argument: that artistic practice generates original knowledge, and that the field of NeuroArts cannot reach its investigative horizon without structural frameworks that recognize and incorporate that knowledge at the point of origination.
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Across five essays, the series introduces named theoretical constructs — including Artist-Led Origination, Applied Aesthetic Contexts, Diachronic Aesthetic Knowledge, Reciprocal Embodied Literacy, and the ETUDE framework — that together propose a new research architecture for the next generation of arts-science inquiry. All essays are published open-access on Zenodo under CC BY 4.0 and indexed across major research platforms.
Pioneering the Field of Forensic Listening
FEATURED IN AI MUSIC
AI Detection Report: 2024 International Songwriting Competition: Evidence of undisclosed and undetected AI-generated songs receiving awards despite prohibition, undermining fair competition for songwriters
Author: Joseph Stanek
Abstract: This report presents a forensic audit of award-winning entries in the 2024 International Songwriting Competition (ISC), documenting evidence of undisclosed and undetected AI-generated music receiving official recognition despite explicit prohibitions. The investigation integrates audio forensics, open-source intelligence (OSINT), metadata analysis, and publicly documented admissions by credited entrants to evaluate authorship credibility and workflow plausibility.
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Findings identify structural, stylistic, and behavioral patterns consistent with contemporary text-to-music generative AI systems rather than human songwriting processes. The revised print edition consolidates technical analyses, evidentiary figures, and procedural context to support independent verification, institutional review, and scholarly citation. This work contributes to ongoing discussions on AI detection, authorship integrity, and policy enforcement in creative competitions.
Publication Keywords:
AI-generated music
music forensics
songwriting competitions
generative AI in music
International Songwriting Competition (ISC)
music awards
competition compliance
Research Leadership & NeuroArts Affiliation
Tour de Fierce Research is led by Joseph “Seph” Stanek, an arts-led principal investigator whose work operates at the intersection of embodied performance, neuroaesthetics, and applied research on emotional regulation. His research profile is featured by the NeuroArts Resource Center, an interdisciplinary hub connecting scientists, artists, and institutions advancing the NeuroArts field.
Areas of Research
I. AI-Generated Music & Audio Forensics
Investigating spectrogram patterns, encoder behavior, metadata anomalies, and statistical irregularities to evaluate AI-authored musical compositions in real-world audio files.
Current flagship report (Print Edition):
AI Detection Report | 2024 International Songwriting Competition (Print Edition)
A revised forensic audit examining how AI-generated songs were awarded top honors in the 2024 International Songwriting Competition despite an explicit prohibition on AI involvement.
Permanent archived Print Edition (DOI): https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18465961
II. Human Evolution & the Vocal Apparatus
Research on how the human voice developed to its current stage, spanning anatomical adaptations, respiratory evolution, speech biomechanics, and the evolutionary pressures responsible for distinguishing our voices from all other primate species.
Flagship report:
[Set for publication in Aeon magazine, 2026]
III. Psychoacoustics & Human Perception of Voice
Exploring how humans perceive timbre, vibrato, resonance, pitch accuracy, and vocal expression; documenting how human perception can be used to distinguish human voices from early generative audio models.
Flagship report:
Forthcoming: "Ear-Based Detection of Early AI 'Singing'"
IV. Evolution of Musicality & Acoustic Communication
Comparative studies of human and non-human primate vocalizations, evolutionary functions of pitch manipulation, and music's evolutionary roots as survival in the wild.
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Flagship report:
Forthcoming: "The Lost Frontiers of the Human Voice"
V. Cultural Narratives, Media Framing & Musical Legacy
Investigating how media institutions, awards programs, and marketing narratives influence public understanding of musical history. This line of research analyzes discrepancies between cultural storytelling and verifiable historical record — and how these shifts reshape legacy, attribution, and collective memory in the arts.
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Flagship report:
"George Strait is Not the King of Country Music: A Clarification on Cultural Titles, Institutional Memory, and the True King of Country Music"
Methodology & Scientific Approach
Tour de Fierce Research integrates:
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Audio-forensic analysis, including metadata, encoders, spectrograms, and expert human auditory analysis
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Evolutionary Biology
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Vocal Anatomy and Pedagogy
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Performance science
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Cognitive neuroscience
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Acoustic engineering
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Behavioral psychology
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Ethical review principles
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Historical source verification & archival research (see our clarification on the “King of Country Music” title)
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Each study is accompanied by clear limitations, confidence levels, and source transparency.
About Tour de Fierce Research
Tour de Fierce Research bridges scientific understanding and artistic practice. Founded by Joseph Stanek, this initiative exists to protect human creativity, advance vocal science, and promote honest, evidence-based discourse as advances in technology continue to reshape the arts.
Contact / Press
For interviews, permissions, and collaboration requests: contact@tourdefierce.vip