Before computers were used to create and arrange music, any idea about music creation had to be thought of in the head and tested on paper. By that I mean – the only way to accurately present an idea though music was to put it on paper so that it could be transcribed and understood by others. Bear in mind that this is before any musician had the ability to record and reproduce music using any sort of electronic recording device. Imagine what it must be like to have an idea, but no way of telling others of what you are thinking.
I think that most producers take for granted the ability to actually test out and try new things before submitting it as final work. It’s safe to say that the great composers who existed hundreds of year ago had to fathom these thoughts in their mind and understand what the final project would look like. Today’s music making is as much about experimentation as it is about genuine creation. Often, new instruments and sounds are created not from the use of technology, but by the misuse of it. By bending, shaping, and transforming gear that already exists – music and sound can be created instead of thought of in advance.
http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2013/06/new-york-hosts-music-research-and-music-education-hackathons.html