Partnership connects arts to commercial world

FUSION Entertainment are giving New Zealand musicians the opportunity to showcase their music to the world. In collaboration with Tai Poutini Polytechnic’s Music and Audio Institute of New Zealand (MAINZ), the organisations are launching the FUSION Soundrise Project. 

The Soundrise Project sees two well-established New Zealand brands, who are both passionate about kiwi music, partnering to connect the arts with the commercial world. Students from MAINZ will create original music, representing one of five genres that fits a corporate creative brief before those tracks are put in front of a panel of judges.

The Fusion Soundrise Project, not only gives students the opportunity to experience what it’s like to have a career in music, it is also an opportunity to showcase New Zealand’s music industry to the world – all while creating licensed material that will be loaded onto FUSION’s Stereo Active (a portable, purpose-built marine stereo) and distributed to salespeople and retailers worldwide. The loop is then completed as, not only will these tracks be played in stores and at tradeshows for global exposure, students will be given real world feedback. 

Each year the project will select a “track of the year” based on this market feedback. 
“Our best guess is that these students’ music will be heard in at least 42 countries,” says Marcus Hamilton, Marketing Manager for FUSION Entertainment. “For us it was a no-brainer. We are already playing music, so why wouldn’t we make it New Zealand music? There’s so much amazing Kiwi music that never gets the exposure it deserves. We’re excited to provide an inspiring, real-world opportunity for students.” 

Scott Bulloch, Tutor at MAINZ explains that, “the New Zealand music industry is healthy and our creative industries now generate about as much for the economy as forestry, so there are real jobs. The students that choose to take part in this project are going to learn valuable new skills about what it means to produce music to a corporate brief.”

Harry Lyon, Dean Emeritus of MAINZ adds, “At MAINZ, our focus is not only on teaching music and audio engineering, but also showing students how they can build a career out of their creativity and this partnership with FUSION Entertainment provides real world connection and feedback.”

FUSION Entertainment and MAINZ intend to run the programme each term to update the music available on the Stereo Active and give a new set of students a “leg up” in New Zealand’s creative music industry.