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Audrey Arbeeny is CEO/ Executive Producer of Audiobrain, founded in 2003. Audiobrain’s sonic branding includes Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Google, Holland America Line, IBM, KIA Motors Corp, Microsoft, Merck, Logitech, Whirlpool, Toshiba, and more. She also has significant background in psychology, biomusicology, and psychoacoustics, and conducts research in these areas. Projects range from Heart/Health wearables to surgical robotics. She has been Music Supervisor for the past 11 Olympic Broadcasts with NBC, for which she received 2 Emmy Awards. With over 25 years specializing in sonic branding, Audiobrain is at the forefront of emerging technologies, and their sonic imprints are heard millions of times a day worldwide, and has appeared in many publications, podcasts on the use of intentional music sound and voice. |
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Matthew Bennett is a composer, sound artist, sensory designer, and founder of the design firm Acoustic Ecology. His mission is to make the global soundscape of products and technology more beautiful, functional, inclusive, and sustainable. Previously, he was Director of the Sound + Sensory Design Program at Microsoft, responsible for the sound of the company’s major platforms. His work is recognized around the world and heard on more than a billion devices every day. |
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Karlheinz Brandenburg has been a driving force behind some of today’s most innovative digital audio technology, notably the mp3 and MPEG audio standards. He is acclaimed for pioneering work in digital audio coding and psychoacoustics. His honors include the AES Silver Medal, the IEEE Masaru Ibuka Consumer Electronic Award, the German Future Award, which he shared with his colleagues and the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. Furthermore he is member in the Hall of Fame of the Consumer Electronics Association. In April 2014, Brandenburg was inducted as an innovator into the Internet Hall of Fame. He holds three honorary Ph.D. degrees. Dr. Brandenburg holds about 100 patents. He is CEO of the Brandenburg Labs GmbH, a senior professor at the Institute for Media Technology at Technische Universität Ilmenau and former director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT in Ilmenau, Germany. |
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Henry has created user experience sound for over two decades, whilst being at the forefront of defining our future soundscapes and developing thinking around sound in UX. He has created interaction sounds and notifications for billions of devices worldwide, whilst developing some of the most brand-recognisable sounds in the world. He previously worked for 13 years at Nokia and Microsoft, before setting up his own consultancy and working on a range of tech products from smart glasses, navigational aids for the visually-impaired, smart door locks, and hospital alarms and patient-monitoring alarms. Henry recently moved back in-house and now works as a Senior UX Sound Designer for Google. |
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Klaus Frieler is a Systematic Musicologist with a background in Physics. He is currently a statistical and methodological consultant of Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics, Frankfurt a.M. Germany, after years of working on research projects in computational musicology and music psychology as well as teaching systematic musicology at the University of Hamburg and elsewhere. Since many years, he is involved with the Audio Branding industry as a scientific advisor. He is also working as music expert witness, with a speciality in pre-emptive copyright checks for audio branding using state-of-the-art computational tools he created and helped developing. |
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Vanessa Goh started out as a copywriter in Singapore before her pursuit of new experiences took her to the advertising agencies of Chicago, and then to the digital playground of the Bay Area. She learnt from the best minds at agencies like DDB, BBDO, Ogilvy, and DigitasLBi, before joining Pandora SiriusXM as a Creative Director at Studio Resonate. She’s been involved in audio advertising and sonic branding for almost two decades and is currently the Creative Strategist Lead for JAPAC at Spotify Advertising. |
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Elisa Harris is a founding partner of the global sonic branding agency Sonicbrand. Sonicbrand was first established in 1999 and at the time was one of the first specialist agencies in the world for strategic music and sound. In 2009 Elisa (along with two other partners) launched a second agency, CORD Worldwide, which was sold in 2018, allowing the re-establishment of Sonicbrand as the home for their clients. Sonicbrand’s clients include Shell International AG, DHL, Visa, Maggi, NESCAFÉ, Lego, Pilsner Urquell, Purina ONE, Santander, The National Lottery and more. Elisa has developed and produced some of Sonicbrand’s most celebrated and successful sonic brands, including ‘The Sound of Shell’, ‘The Sound of Santander’ and ‘La Figura NESCAFÉ’. Working closely with the very best in composition, sound design and voice, recording with world-class musicians in some of the most celebrated studios in the world, Elisa’s clear and methodical approach has led to some of the most wide-reaching, multi-market roll-outs of sonic branding in the world. Born into a family of professional musicians, Elisa studied contemporary orchestral composition with Sir Harrison Birtwistle in London and voice at the Royal College of Music. She has two small children that sing, play the piano and the French horn. |
 Simon Heeger – 2WEI
Simon Heeger is co-founder and managing partner of 2WEI, a cinematic music artist and music production house based in Hamburg & Berlin, Germany and Venice Beach, California. He, along with Christian Vorländer, established the company in 2016, bringing their combined skills from the advertising and film music industry. Since then, they have created music for over 700 ad campaigns, more than 150 game trailers and 300 sync placements. Their music has been streamed hundreds of millions of times on Spotify & Apple Music, and with +530k YouTube subscribers, they are one of the most successful epic music artists worldwide. |
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Chris has been creating audio for user experience and interactive media for over 25 years. After studying Music Synthesis at Berklee College of Music, he began his career doing live sound for Blue Man Group. He then moved into web audio which led to over a decade of designing sound for video games, including franchises such as Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Burnout Paradise, God of War III and Kinect Adventures. In 2012, he made the transition into product sound with Microsoft HoloLens. At HoloLens, he designed UX sound, sonic branding, and 3D audio. For two years, as Symmetry Audio, he’s designed VR audio for Unity, HBO, and Technicolor, as well as creating UX sound for Google. In 2017, he joined Amazon as Senior UX Sound Designer, where he worked on the audio identity of Alexa, Fire TV, and the standalone gaming system Amazon Glow. He has now returned to the games industry as Audio Manager at Insomniac, a developer of Sony Playstation. |
 Rainer Hirt – audity
Studies in communication design at the University of Applied Sciences, Konstanz (Master of Arts). Co-Founder of audity, a company specialised in functional sounds for brands and products. Author and co-producer of the compendium »Audio Branding«. Rainer is supervising various research projects with several universities and has been, since 2008, juror of the international Red Dot Design Award. Lecturer for Audible Design at the HTWG Konstanz. |
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Dr. Daniel Hug, sound and interaction designer, explores the world of sound through art, design, theoretical investigation and applied research. He is the co-founder and co-director of the Sound Design master’s program at Zurich University of the Arts, and an international lecturer in Sound Studies and Sound Design. With his practice-based and interdisciplinary research, Hug has had a significant impact on the field of sonic interaction design. As member of the steering committee of the Audio Mostly conference and founder of the sound design and consultancy company “Hear Me Interact!”, he connects the worlds of academia and business. His current interests include sound design for health technology and exercise, sound design methodology, and participatory sound design processes. |
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Jodi Krangle has been a full-time voice actor since 2007 and has worked with clients from major brands all over the world including Dell, Lindt & Kraft. Over the years, and doing what she does, she’s learned a lot about sound and how it influences people.
In November of 2019, she started a podcast on this subject called Audio Branding: The hidden gem of marketing and has produced over 230 episodes. The podcast discusses the power of sound and how it influences us in the context of advertising, marketing, music and science. She also organizes discussions around this subject with various knowledgeable panelists on Clubhouse in her House, The Power of Sound.
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Sara has a background in philosophy of science (University of Bologna, 2004) and electroacoustic music composition (Conservatory of Bologna, 2006). With a strong background in classical music, she has been a professional piano and saxophone player and has been active in Europe’s contemporary music and sound art scene since the early 2000s. In 2012, she founded the first sound design studio in Asia, designing sound identities for spaces (Singapore Changi Airport, Giugiaro Architettura Milano), products (FIAMM Electric Vehicles), and brands (Ducati Motors, BMW Asia, Volkswagen Asia). Back in Europe, she obtained a PhD in Design cum laude on the topic of Data Sonification from Politecnico di Milano (2021). Since then, she has discovered a real passion for research and remains in academia. She held postdoctoral positions at the Center for Design, Northeastern University, Boston (2021/2022) and Critical Alarms Lab, TU Delft, Netherlands (2022/2023). She considers herself an activist on the importance of sound and listening as means to connect and make sense of the world and on the ethical responsibility of designers in creating a better world for all. |
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Amy Lilley, a native of South Africa, brings a wealth of experience to the music industry. Her career has seen her work with Platoon and Apple Music Publishing, and she initially made her mark by founding an inclusive queer live music venue in Cape Town, showcasing her dedication to fostering diverse musical communities. With a comprehensive understanding of the music business, Amy is well-versed in copyright, publishing, data analysis, and community management. Her knowledge and expertise make her an ideal partner for artists and their marketing teams who are looking to succeed in the modern music industry. Amy understands that building a strong and engaged fan community is crucial for an artist’s success. As an advocate for innovation and inclusion, she is committed to supporting artists and their teams in their quest for success. |
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Connor Moore is a seasoned design leader focused in the audio ux and audio branding space. For the last 15 years, Connor has been able to work with some of the most forward thinking brands creating innovative sound solutions that drive functionality and build brand affinity. These clients span a range of industry and include the likes of Google, Lucid Motors, Peloton, Uber, Airbnb and State Farm to name a few. Connor founded CMoore Sound at a time when brands first began considering sound and music as a core part of their identity systems and quickly became one of the most trusted experts in developing branded audio ecosystems in the technology sector. He has been featured in the New Yorker, The Guardian, NPR’s Marketplace and Google’s Design Series for topics covering the role of sound for brands in advertising, product and experiential activations. |
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Daniel Müllensiefen studied Systematic Musicology, Historic Musicology and Journalism at the universities of Hamburg (Germany) and Salamanca (Spain). He did his doctoral dissertation in Systematic Musicology on memory for melodies at the University of Hamburg. Since 2006 he has been working at Goldsmiths, University of London, now a Professor in Psychology and co-director of the Master’s course in Music Mind and Brain. In 2010 he was appointed as Scientist in Residence with the London-based advertising agency adam&eveDDB where he acted as a consultant and researcher, mainly on questions regarding the role of music in advertising and other commercial settings. In 2016 he received the prestigious Anneliese-Maier research prize from the Humboldt foundation and since then he is also affiliated with the Hochschule für Musik in Hannover. |
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Mathilde Neu is specialized in content creation, communications and project management, and works on communications and press relations strategies to support innovative music projects. She co-founded Music Tech France and the Resonance agency. Created in 2019 during the MaMA music convention, Music Tech France (MTF) is an association bringing together business players whose core business is innovation in music to form a strong community. Today, MTF has a membership of around 80 organisations and represents its network to institutions. MTF is also co-founder of Music Tech Europe, a European network. Co-founded with Natacha Ordas, Resonance is the first communications and business consulting agency for music innovators. The agency provides communications, press relations, development and business research support to create and share the right message with the right people. |
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Abby North is a highly respected music rights manager who has made significant contributions to the music industry. She is best known as one of the founders of Unchained Melody Publishing, and the principal of North Music Group, which provides music rights, music publishing and sound recording administration services. Abby North’s company, Music Data Services has developed CWR and rights management tools, and provides CWR conversion services to original publishers worldwide. Abby’s expertise in music rights management and metadata analytics has made her a sought- after speaker and consultant in the music industry. Abby has been actively involved in various songwriter and artist advocacy initiatives. She is on SONA’s Advisory Board, is a member of Board of the Los Angeles chapter of the AIMP and is Vice Chair of IAFAR. Abby is a member of the CISAC SPF CWR Working Group, the ISNI Music Consultation Group and ICMP’s Metadata Working Group. In 2022, AIMP Los Angeles named North Music Group Independent Music Publisher of the Year. Abby’s dedication, hard work and expertise have made her one of the most influential figures in music rights management and independent music publishing. |
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Creator of the concept of MOGO® or ‘musical logo’, Rajeev Raja conceived BrandMusiq as a full servicesonic branding company in 2011. Rajeev brings on board over 25 years of experience in branding on the one hand, and music on the other. He was ex-National Creative Director of the multinational ad agency DDB in India and is also known as one of India’s finest Jazz and Fusion flautists. This unique combination helps BrandMusiq merge brand understanding, consumer insight and musical expression in a manner that delivers tremendous value for clients. |
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Emma Rodero is a Full Professor of Media Psychology and Neurocommunication at Pompeu Fabra University (Spain), Ph.D. in Communication, Ph.D. in Psychology, Master in Pathology of Voice, and Master in Psychology of Cognition. She is the Director of the Media Psychology Lab (UPF), where she analyzes people’s physiological responses to understand how they perceive, process, and respond to different media messages, especially audio (radio, voice, audio branding, podcast…). She is the author of twelve books and eighty scientific papers about how people process voice and audio. |
 Hazel Savage – Musiio
With 15 years experience in the industry, Hazel is a music-tech lifer, guitarist and former CEO/Co-Founder at Musiio. She started her music-tech journey as an early employee at Shazam and spent time understanding the pain points of the industry at Pandora, Universal and HMV before launching Musiio in 2018 and then selling the business to SoundCloud in 2022. Hazel travels globally speaking at conferences and talking to catalogue owners about the value of artificial intelligence integration and digital transformation in the music industry. As a female founder in the heavily male-dominated industries of music and tech, Hazel seeks to offer insights with interesting and humorous anecdotes, as well as easy-to-follow explanations and use cases of artificial intelligence technology. |
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Takayuki Suzuki is CEO of ParadeALL, strategic EnterTech consultant based in Tokyo, Japan, bridging music and technology across Japan, US, EU and China. Aș entrepreneur, he leads MetaTokyo, multiverse entertainment studio for metaverse. In addition to this, he takes on various roles such as advisory board member of SXSW Pitch, Belgium MusicTech Accelerator, Director of JASRAC, Japanese major music copyright organization and etc. His career has included roles as Head of Mobile at MTV Japan and most recently Head of Digital Business Development for Universal Music Japan. He is also angel investor, guitarist and ramen lover. |
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Collette is the co-founder of Joker Deck, a platform that allows startups to submit their decks to investors in a minute or less. Whilst completing her economics degree at UC Berkeley, Collette worked in business development on the Global Digital Strategy team at Universal Music Group; consulted for Island Records and Sony Music Nashville; and spearheaded web 3.0 projects in executive roles in the creation of NFTs, ERC-20 tokens, and DAOs. In her free time, she consults early stage companies and produces out of a studio in Oakland, California. |
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Hugo Verweij leads sound design efforts on Apple’s Design Team. His work can be heard across a number of Apple platforms. Hugo has a deep appreciation for functional sound design that helps, guides, and delights the user – whether it’s through a notification sound or a subtle button click. Prior to joining Apple, Hugo taught sound design and music production at HKU University of the Arts Utrecht in the Netherlands. Underwhelmed by ringtones available at the time, Hugo launched Cleartones – a marketplace for unobtrusive, minimalist ringtones. Apple caught wind of Hugo’s project and hired him to work on sounds for iOS 7. Hugo’s talk Designing Sound at the World Wide Developers Conference gives a peek behind the curtain of the design process of Apple’s iconic sounds that can be heard all around the world. |
Audrey Arbeeny – 
Matthew Bennett – 
Karlheinz Brandenburg – 
Klaus Frieler – 
Vanessa Goh – 
Elisa Harris – 
Chris Hegstrom – 
Daniel Hug – 
Jodi Krangle – 
Sara Lenzi – 
Amy Lilley – 
Connor Moore – 
Daniel Müllensiefen – 
Mathilde Neu – 
Abby North – 
Rajeev Raja – 
Emma Rodero – 
Takayuki Suzuki – 
Collette Tibbetts – 