Contributed articles cover aspects of the following topics related to the Harmony Search Algorithm: analytical studies; improved, hybrid and multi-objective variants; parameter tuning; and large-scale applications. The book also contains papers discussing recent advances on the following topics: genetic algorithms; evolutionary strategies; the firefly algorithm and cuckoo search; particle swarm optimization and ant colony optimization; simulated annealing; and local search techniques.

This book offers a valuable snapshot of the current status of the Harmony Search Algorithm and related techniques, and will be a useful reference for practising researchers and advanced students in computer science and engineering.