Hello Adrian,
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So on the one hand I love this software, but maybe I long for a day when a mistake was a mistake and live performances and one-take recordings were more engaging for that reason.
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This controversy has been going on for many years already; but the controversy will be intensified by the widespread capability to correct performance mistakes in recordings.
Here's a positive way to view this. As listeners, we will be able to choose the kind of listening experience we value, on a case by case basis. If I want to hear the immediacy of a live jazz performance, I can listen to a recording that has been intentionally left uncorrected. Or, I can listen to a live jazz performance!
If I want to hear Chopin played by Van Cliburn exactly as he played it, uncorrected, then I can listen to his historical recording.
If I want to hear some techno music performed intentionally flawlessly, corrected for live performance errors, then I can acquire such a recording.
Both we the listeners and the performing artistics will work it out in the marketplace what music is offered as live uncorrected performances, what music is offered with corrections, and which music is offered both ways.
If one perfers always to hear live uncorrected performances, then the market is likely to satisfy that taste, as there will be many who prefer live uncorrected performances. Those who prefer live uncorrected performances probably need not worry that performance correction made possible by technology such as Celemony's will suck the human character out of recordings. There might even grow to be a more distinct dichotomy between live performances and recordings, so that live performances will be appreciated, and so that performing artists will be rewarded in the marketplace for performing live.
The above speaks about the relationship between the listener and the performing musician. Consider now also the composer. If I want my own composition to be presented to listeners with quality more faithful to my intentions as a composer, not limited by my own piano keyboard skills, then I now have the option to prepare the performance in slow-time rather than real-time. I am thrilled to have that option, since the only only other practical option would be to convince some other better musician to study and perform my composition. My piano compositions may not be worthy to be hear by others; but at least I can now perform my compositions on the piano as I would like them to be heard... after some editing using Celemony's Melodyne. Sigh... if I only could spare the time to do that. I'm so envious of you who get spend time using these products instead of spending rediculous hours making them.
Cheers
-- Mark