[libertine]

> I think that in my case, and I suspect the case of many of people, one of the most rewarding things is someone connecting with a piece that I made and having it greatly improve their lives

The way you said this makes me think you agree with OP. The piece that You made is the embodiment of your experience, which can connect with someone at a certain level.

It's you, the piece is just the end result.

Could you do the same with an AI music generator where you input a prompt? Maybe the same amount of people would connect with it, but are you as an artist connected with it? Does that prompt embody your expression? I doubt it.