Playing to a tech tune

Chattanooga drummer Jonathan Susman, founder of Adiago, is photographed at the Camp House on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Chattanooga drummer Jonathan Susman, founder of Adiago, is photographed at the Camp House on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn.
photo Chattanooga drummer Jonathan Susman, founder of Adiago, is photographed at the Camp House on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn.

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Company: AdagioYear founded: 2014The team: Jonathan Susman, founder and CEO; Craig Tannis, CTO; Alfonso Gómez-Arzola, UI/UX DesignerAbout the founder: Susman, 37, a professional drummer, was also a web manager for alternative weekly newspaper Nashville Scene and worked with Chattanooga Presents on music events such as the Nightfall Concert Series. In November 2014, he founded Gig City Productions, an event and concert production company, which he co-owns. He graduated from University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a bachelor’s degree in marketing.About the company: Adagio is developing an online platform for multi-channel audio applications, essentially bringing a sound-recording studio to any device using web technologies and the cloud. In early 2014, the company placed first in Co.Lab’s pitch event, 48 Hour Launch, and in late 2014 demonstrated some of its work at MozFest London. This March, the company demonstrated its application at US Ignite’s Application Summit. In July, it was one of about a dozen startups chosen to participate in Co.Lab’s GigTank accelerator.The pitch: Adagio is looking to raise $428,000. It plans to use the money for additional programmers and developers; test hardware; additional server space; and legal, accounting and promotional costs. The company got $30,100 from the Mozilla Foundation for the first iteration of its cloud mixer.

Playing to a tech tune

By Mitra Malek

This tech company is being built at the hands of a musician, not the most common pairing. But it's a startup rooted in music, and its founder, Jonathan Susman, has worked in the digital space.

Launched in 2014, Adagio uses the Internet to create collaborative multi-track recording studios. It also offers interactive tools for music education.

Susman has been passionate about music for much of his life. He spent several years touring as part of a reggae and world music band. After that, he lived in Nashville and performed with a band there. Five years ago, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga graduate moved back to the Scenic City. That was about the time local speedy Internet service started, giving Chattanooga its "Gig City" nickname.

"One of the ideas I knew I wanted to explore was how we could use this gigabit network to enhance musicians' rehearsal experience," Susman said during a recent speech at The Church on Main at an event related to the University of Southern California's Annenberg Innovation Lab. "I wanted to create a tool that would allow me to rehearse with my friends, while recording that rehearsal as a multi-track file that I could then go home and manipulate however needed - I could mute the drums out and play along, or listen to just the drums and evaluate my own performance."

Susman eventually connected with Lindsey Frost of the Mozilla Learning Network who encouraged him to start thinking about how his technology could apply to education. "The Adagio team is really helping create what music - and music education - will look like on the next generation of the web," Frost says. "I'm particularly excited that they're using these tools to break down barriers to access, giving students more access to high-quality music teachers and musicians more access to each other. Equity and access have always been at the heart of what this team's about."

Indeed, Susman wants his company's products to be accessible to anyone, so Adagio doesn't require special software, for example. "We don't even want you to be required to create an account," he says.

The company is working on collaborative recording for web browsers, Booth.fm. "It's good for students who don't have time for in-person lessons," Susman says.

Other digital platforms for music creation certainly exist, such as Splice. But, Susman argues, they require expensive software or extensive recording experience.

"Everything changed for me when I was actually in a room and able to play with musicians real time. Where are the next-generation tools that allow new musicians to have that same kind of experience?" he says. "The online music industry is in need of a serious software revival."

He hopes his company will be the one to offer it.

BOX

Company: Adagio

Year founded: 2014

The team: Jonathan Susman, founder and CEO; Craig Tannis, CTO; Alfonso Gmez-Arzola, UI/UX Designer

About the founder: Susman, 37, a professional drummer, was also a web manager for alternative weekly newspaper Nashville Scene and worked with Chattanooga Presents on music events such as the Nightfall Concert Series. In November 2014, he founded Gig City Productions, an event and concert production company, which he co-owns. He graduated from University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a bachelor's degree in marketing.

About the company: Adagio is developing an online platform for multi-channel audio applications, essentially bringing a sound-recording studio to any device using web technologies and the cloud. In early 2014, the company placed first in Co.Lab's pitch event, 48 Hour Launch, and in late 2014 demonstrated some of its work at MozFest London. This March, the company demonstrated its application at US Ignite's Application Summit. In July, it was one of about a dozen startups chosen to participate in Co.Lab's GigTank accelerator.

The pitch: Adagio is looking to raise $428,000. It plans to use the money for additional programmers and developers; test hardware; additional server space; and legal, accounting and promotional costs. The company got $30,100 from the Mozilla Foundation for the first iteration of its cloud mixer.

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