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It doesn't look good, but the sound ain't bad.

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We're not sure that it's possible to 'cash-in' on the current economic crisis (surely that's a contradiction in terms?), but German artist Johannes Kreidler has at least taken it as the inspiration for his latest work: Charts Music.

First up, he used the stock charts of various major companies to generate melodies. So, if the stock rises, so does the pitch; if it falls, the music does likewise. As you might imagine, Charts Music is full of descending passages.

Next, Kriedler fed his melodies into Microsoft's Songsmith, the composing tool that automatically creates backing tracks.

"It feels like you're descending into financial oblivion in a department store elevator."

These sound eerily positive, so as you watch the notes being plotted on the graphs in the accompanying YouTube video (see below) it feels like you're descending into financial oblivion in a department store elevator.

About halfway through, Kriedler dons his satirical hat and contrasts the financial stats with some of those relating to arms sales and the war in Iraq.

It's an interesting concept, and provides further evidence of Songsmith's growing popularity. Originally designed for creating songs based on your own singing, it's become clear that users are putting all kinds of bizarre audio material through it.

(Via Synthtopia)