Initiatives of theHamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft

Music WorX Founder Award 2023: Double award for Soundvest

The young start-up from Berlin beat off the competition at the Music WorX Pitch 2023 with a leasing platform for classical instruments.

Music WorX Founder Award 2023: Double award for Soundvest -

As part of the Music WorX Pitch, the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg and Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft presented three prestigious Music WorX start-up awards last Thursday. Two jury awards of 2,000 euros each and an audience award of 500 euros were presented. The start-up Soundvest impressed under the motto "Invest in Instruments. Support Talents." not only impressed the expert jury, but also the audience. The concept: private investors invest in the stable investment of classical musical instruments, while musicians gain access to these instruments via a leasing platform. The team led by Philipp Klotz, Diego Maldonado Rosas and Ignacio Rojas won the Jury Award for the most promising business model and the Audience Award.

The jury of nine experts particularly praised the democratised access to high-priced musical instruments and the broad applicability of the idea. The double award of the two Music WorX start-up prizes is not only a milestone for Soundvest, but also a confirmation of the comprehensive Music WorX funding programme, which supports start-ups at the interface of music and technology in successfully bringing their ideas to market.

"Music WorX honours innovative business ideas in the music industry and promotes networking within the scene. Young companies in particular can benefit from this exchange of creative ideas from all over Europe. In this way, we are also supporting the start-up scene in Hamburg in a very practical way. I would like to congratulate the winners of this year's Music WorX start-up award."

Dr Carsten Brosda, Senator for Culture and Media
The start-up Soundvest is delighted about the double award. f.l.t.r.: Philipp Klotz, Diego Maldonado Rosas. jan-Marius Komorek
The start-up Soundvest is delighted about the double award. f.l.t.r.: Philipp Klotz, Diego Maldonado Rosas. jan-Marius Komorek

A second prize of 2,000 euros for the best development went to Renata Bueno Tavares, Daniel Motta and Daniel Häggman from Piumosso - a platform that connects high-calibre orchestral musicians with the concert market. The jury praised the successful team composition and noticeable dedication to the business idea.

During the pitch, atopia, the metaverse for cultural experiences around Annabell Vacano and Valentin Diehl, and Ontoworks, the AI tool for the production of music videos around Kevin Cerncic, Henrik Naujoks and Sean Mc Fadden, also impressed with their innovative business models.

The geographical diversity of the participants, who came from Munich, Marburg, Berlin and Helsinki in 2023, means that the Music WorX programme creates clear added value for Hamburg. The close networking with established Hamburg companies, represented by highly qualified coaches and jury members from companies such as Warner Music, Scholz & Friends and the Music City Network, not only enables participants to develop their business ideas, but also creates a valuable platform for potential business relationships. This innovative approach attracts start-ups from all over Europe to Hamburg and makes the city a magnet for forward-looking creative companies.

"I am particularly pleased that all participating start-ups in 2023 have once again emphasised the tailor-made, committed and at the same time pleasant support in Hamburg. With the support of an experienced team and the extensive Hamburg network, all start-ups made great progress in developing their business model in Hamburg during the three months of the incubator phase. The Hanseatic city is simply a good place to turn ideas into business models. We are now looking forward to the teams' next steps."

Egbert Rühl, Managing Director Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft

The Music WorX expert jury in 2023 consisted of:

  • Oke Göttlich (Göttlich GmbH)
  • Dr Astrid Bernicke (Ministry of Culture and Media)
  • Johannes Rösing (Ministry of Culture and Media)
  • Agnes Chung (musicube GmbH | Songtradr)
  • Lena Ingwersen (Music Cities Network | Keychange Innovator)
  • Julian Krohn (Scholz & Friends)
  • Marec Lerche (Warner Music Central Europe)
  • Katharina Köhler (Music Manager Deichkind | female force mgmt)
  • Jakob Höflich (Cyanite)

The 2023 teams:

  • Atopia is the "metaverse for art and culture". The project brings together museums, galleries, cultural venues and stages on a VR-compatible multiplayer platform to make cultural experiences accessible to everyone, everywhere.
  • The Piumosso platform connects top classical musicians with the concert market. The team wants to make it easier for choirs, festival orchestras, churches, studios, agencies and the general public to find professional and technically skilled musicians.
  • Democratising classical music is the goal of Soundvest. The digital platform enables musicians to lease expensive instruments at fair prices. This is financed by investors who can invest their money in instruments that increase in value.
  • Ontoworks uses advanced AI technology to add a visual component to audio projects. Artists can upload their music, audio books or podcasts and have them enhanced with customised, AI-generated animations.


About the Music WorX Accelerator:

With Music WorX, the Ministry of Culture and Media has been specifically promoting the development of innovative business models in the music industry since 2011. It has been organising the Music WorX Incubator together with Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft since 2014. Successful companies such as Sofa Concerts, Tinitracks, Ikonphon, Groovecat/Cyanite and NOYS VR have already been supported in the programme.

About Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft

Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft is the city's organisation for the promotion of Hamburg's creative industries. As a direct contact and service centre, it is open to all creative players and companies in the Hanseatic city. More knowledge, space, funding and innovation for Hamburg's creatives - that is the mission to which the Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft has dedicated itself since 2010.

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Contact person

Clara Tischer -
  • Clara Tischer
  • Communication
  • 040 2372435-32
  • Kurzbiografie
  • Clara Tischer ist Ansprechpartnerin für den Bereich Kommunikation der Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft. Ihren Bachelor in Kultur-, Kommunikations- und Medienwissenschaften machte sie an der Universität Bremen. Anschließend zog es sie in den hohen Norden – an der Universität Kopenhagen beschäftige sie sich in dem Masterstudiengang „Applied Cultural Analysis“ mit anthropologischer Forschung und sammelte Erfahrungen in verschiedenen PR- und Werbeagenturen in den Bereichen Strategie und Text.

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