set a track illustration in music using apple script

I have had moderate success using AI (about the only thing I do with AI) to make a starter for Applescripts for Music. In Google I did a search for: Applescript to set the track images to a chosen file It returned something that appeared to be viable but I didn't test it.

Note that I say moderate success. I think it is patching together bits and pieces from various sources, including some that may have code that is outdated. You sound like you're at about the level I am at with Applescript so hopefully this will provide a starter for you. I have made various scripts starting with an AI generated one, but almost always have to do a fair bit of modification.

I also note you use the term "illustration", but that does not sound to me like what Apple would call it which would more likely be "artwork".

I'm not sure of the exact code to embed an artwork image from a given file path either. I've looked at the Apple Music library in the Script Editor, but it isn't exactly clear. A tag can potentially store multiple images, so the Artwork property of a track is a collection. I don't see a function to assign an image from a file path, but one might nonetheless exist. I can do it in Windows.

See also https://dougscripts.com/itunes/scripts/scripts13.php which is a collection of scripts that manage artwork. Perhaps one there already does what you need.

tt2

I've been trying to do something related, namely copy artwork from a web image and then paste it to a track. Music's way of doing this (vs. iTunes 7 where it was simple) is clumsy and unreliable. You have to open up multiple windows and tabs, and then once I have pasted it, the artwork does not show in the side panel of a playlist window. It is definitely there if viewed in the Artwork tab. Definitely a Music bug. (There; after all these years I have accused Apple of having a bug!)

I tried various suggestions made by AI but they all pop up various errors such as can't make data into expected type and <<class>> errors.

The artwork cache in Music is fickle. Sometimes the only way to fix things is to blow it away and let it get regenerated.

tt2