Brief
To coordinate and manage the EU leg of the MusicML Hackathon 2020 - the first hackathon ever hosted at Sony Music UK. The three-day event was arranged to run simultaneously with a parallel MusicML event at The Orchard's New York office. Both events were run in partnership with AWS, and aimed at educating participants on machine learning techniques, while creating prototype business solutions at the apex of music and machine-learning.
The UK event was comprised of four cross-functional teams, made up of a mixture of staff from AWS, Sony Music UK, and The Orchard (UK and remotely from elsewhere in the EU). BRIT-nominated producer DJ Fresh, who also works as a machine-learning engineer, also participated in the UK event.
Response
Working closely with stakeholders from AWS EU & US, The Orchard UK & US, and internally at Sony Music UK, we were able to put together a successful event, which included an executive judging panel, company-wide drinks reception, team presentations (also attended by the US hackathon participants via video-link), and music industry press coverage.
Results
The UK event resulted in three new solutions to real business problems, that have since been taken under consideration by The Orchard and Sony Music UK. The event also boosted the reputation of our tech teams internally, and helped strengthen the dialogue between technical, creative and label teams. The press coverage also enhanced the reputation of both Sony Music and The Orchard as industry leaders in the technical space.
