Gayathri: I’m a computer engineer by training, and I’ve led product, technology, and innovation in large organisations for more than 25 years. I’m also a musician, a veena player, so I’ve lived the experience of learning and teaching music. The gap between structured lessons and what actually happens when a student practises at home was something I kept seeing. Teachers lose roughly 25% of their students each year because progress stalls and frustration sets in, and they have almost no visibility into that practice time. That combination of lived experience and a clear, large problem made me want to build something that keeps the teacher at the centre while making practice effective and visible.
Winnowed: How long had you been thinking about this idea before incorporating Melsonic Ltd in June 2024?Gayathri: My last corporate before starting Melsonic
was in education. So for a few years, I was seeing the technology improvements
and new approaches to learning. But it took a few years before taking the leap.
Winnowed: So what exactly is Melsonic? How would you describe
it to a music teacher who has never heard of it?
Gayathri: Melsonic is a teaching companion or a teaching aid for music educators that helps them teach more effectively.
What happens between music lessons is a black hole for teachers who can’t see what their students are up to or influence them during that interval. Without knowing how students are practising at home or where they are struggling, teachers have limited opportunity to intervene before frustration and lack of progress causes many students to give up. Music teachers worldwide lose around 25% of their students each year, costing an estimated £5 billion in lost revenue. On top of this, they spend time sharing lessons or recordings for practice and this takes time away from teaching, representing a further estimated £7 billion in lost revenue globally each year.
Melsonic is an AI teaching companion that lets music teachers see into students’ practice between lessons. By shining a light into what happens in between lessons, and communicate during that period easily, gives teachers more control, and the ability to intervene and support if needed. Also, by using Melsonic for teaching, teachers can save time, which means they can teach more students and make more money.
Teachers can provide students the Melsonic practise player to help their practice at home. No more sharing recordings, or you tube loinks. Teachers upload pdfs of what they teach and Melsonic converts those flat PDFs into interactive, playable scores with audio, metronome, tempo controls, and the ability to loop difficult parts. So practice is now fun. They can even record performances, and share them back with the teacher for feedback. This makes practice more enjoyable, and the more you do of it, the better you get.
The key
is that teachers stay in full control and continue to teach exactly as they did
before. Mind you, Melsonic does not replace the teacher. It is just a teaching
aid, a teaching companion.
Winnowed: Who are the customers you
are building for, and who is actually using it today?
Gayathri: Our primary customers are music teachers (those
who teach online or offline), schools, music schools, music education
providers, etc- anyone who teaches music will benefit from Melsonic. Also, our
technology can be integrated into any music teaching ecosystem.
Winnowed:
And, how much
does it cost to use Melsonic?
Gayathri: Pricing is tiered by the number of students
(for example, independent teachers pay 2000rs
per month for up to 20 students; schools and academies have higher tiers; we
also offer white-label / licensing options). We are currently live in UK and
India.
Winnowed:
Wow! So, you are
already live and generating revenue! That was quick. Would you be able to share
any specific early-adopter stories or your favourite customer quote?
Gayathri: We’ve seen teachers using the platform even
in ways we had not envisaged. When we started off, our focus was on providing
teachers with information about their students’ practice, and support the
practice at home which was a lonely experience. What we are seeing is that
teachers are also using Melsonic for teaching in classrooms . In a group class,
they have Melsonic projected on a screen or white board, and have a piece
playing in a loop, while they are free to walk around and interact with
students and give personalised guidance.
Winnowed: You had mentioned a
specific problem, the gap between structured lessons and what actually
happens when a student practises at home. Didn’t you say this results in
a 25% annual student dropout, billions in lost revenue for teachers,
heavy manual admin etc. How does Melsonic specifically address the “black hole”
of practice between lessons?
Gayathri: All teachers want their student to do well.
And practice is what determines progress. The success of a teacher is also determined
by how well a student does. So it is important for the teacher to be able to
influence practice. Melsonic is clever and is able to automatically collect
data about the practice and share the relevant data about the practice with the
teacher. It listens in to what the student practices and collects this
information. This is done without any manual intervention so it removes any
extra effort on anyone. Students can also securely share and communicate with
the teacher in between lessons through Melsonic. For example, audio recordings
can be submitted for teacher to review and comment on. This is especially
important if you have an exam. We also have teachers who are away as part of a
band, and Melsonic helps to keep them in touch with their students easily while
they are away.
Winnowed: What makes Melsonic
different from other music-education platforms or apps?
Gayathri: Melsonic easily integrates
into the existing teaching workflow. Most alternatives either provide their own
proprietary content, or offer point solutions like scheduling, scrolling sheet
music, payment etc.
Melsonic is deliberately
teacher-first and content-agnostic: it works with the materials teachers
already use, generates interactive playable scores from them, captures practice
history automatically, and fits into existing workflows (one-to-one or group,
online or offline). We also have patent-pending AI feedback technology that
adds individual performance insights. In short, it is an end-to-end companion
that keeps the teacher’s methods and relationships intact rather than replacing
them.
Winnowed: Was there any specific product decision that came
directly from your experience as a veena player/teacher?
Gayathri: Almost all of Melsonic has been shaped by
my own experience. At every point, I would question how it applied in a real
world setting, how would my own teacher react to this. While Melsonic is a
technology solution, user experience, and the ease of use of the platform was
important right from the get go, knowing the community of teachers from my
experience.
Winnowed: Have you reached out to any
government for help or support? After all, Melsonic does support learning!
Gayathri: Melsonic has already secured grants from Women
TechEU and Innovate UK(UK’s innovation agency). The Women TechEU grant is €75,000.
Melsonic was selected from more than 1,300 applicants for that across Europe.
Melsonic was recognised in the BPI Grow Music / Abbey Road programme as top 15
music tech companies in UK in 2025. I have spoken at SXSW London, and demoed at
the UK Houses of Parliament and in European High Commission at Brussels.
Winnowed: What has that validation
meant, and where do you go from here?
Gayathri: The Women TechEU grant, Innovate UK
support, and the BPI Grow Music accelerator (Top 16 UK music-tech companies)
have been important for credibility while we moved from trials into a
revenue-generating product. Recognition such as the SXSW London invitation, the
parliamentary and EU demos, and being a finalist for Outstanding Music
Education Resource at the Music & Drama Education Awards 2027 has helped
open doors with schools and partners.
We are expanding in the UK, India, and the Middle East,
broadening the product, and seeking distribution and education partners in
additional countries. The longer-term goal is a more sustainable teaching
workforce so more students can start and continue learning music.
Winnowed:
Do you have any
specific next milestone?
Gayathri: We are currently in scale up mode, and
talking and showing the product to many customers. We have also created a
version for supporting teachers who teach traditional Indian instruments like
veena or tabla.
Winnowed:
Is there any market
you are prioritising in the coming 12–18 months?
Gayathri: India is our focus for the next 12-18
months. It’s also a personal one for me because my music journey started in
Kerala as a student. So taking Melsonic to India is something close to my heart.
Winnowed: Finally, looking ahead,
what does success look like for Melsonic in three to five years?
Gayathri: I see Melsonic doing well commercially, being globally recognised, and having a presence in multiple regions. But real impact is when Melsonic helps music teachers to do more, and allows them to just do what they love most – teaching. When teachers are empowered, music education becomes more accessible to all, where ever they are, whatever they do. And ultimately it’s about having more music learners who will build the creative industries of the future.
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