A Guthman award has been called "The Pulitzer of the new instrument world" by London's The Guardian newspaper
The ten finalists in Georgia Tech School of Music’s 2025 Guthman Musical Instrument Competition have been announced, setting the stage for an electric — and eclectic — music event and performance March 7-8 in Atlanta, Georgia.
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Heralded as “The Pulitzer of the new instrument world”, the Guthman Musical Instrument Competition celebrates musical passion, entrepreneurial spirit, and innovation by showcasing new musical instruments from creative engineers who push the boundaries of design using everything from A.I. to rubber gloves. Past Guthman Competition winners have gone on to build successful music companies and careers based on their final submissions, including Roli, ElectroSpit, Teenage Engineering and Artiphon.
This year’s competition puts the spotlight on 10 innovators selected from a range of entrants globally vying for first place — a $10,000 prize, but perhaps more importantly, the prestige and peer recognition that comes with being chosen to receive what has been referred to as the “X-Prize” of music.
Judging the competition this year are three esteemed music industry luminaries: producer/composer/performer King Britt, music tech visionary Paul McCabe, and sound artist/performer/researcher Laetitia Sonami.
