cv

Basics

Name Soumya Sai Vanka
Label Doctoral Researcher
Email soumyasaiv@gmail.com
Phone 44 7825205482
Url https://sai-soum.github.io/
Summary As a musician, songwriter, producer, and artist, I offer a uniqueperspective to AI research in multitrack mixing. My research approachis user-centric, incorporating real-world practices and involvingprototyping and extensive user evaluations. With a background inPhysics, I bring logical thinking to the table, and my participation in co-curriculars and team activities demonstrates my well-rounded skills forboth individual and collaborative success. I am an active volunteer andthrive on exploring new topics, cultures, and traveling.

Work

  • 2023.11 - 2024.03
    Part-time trainee intern
    Steinberg Media Technologies gmbH, Hamburg, Germany
    My roles involve training machine learning models with internal data. I am also briefly accustomed to plugin development and assist in prototyping research to technology.
  • 2022.08 - 2022.12
    Part-time trainee intern
    Steinberg Media Technologies gmbH, Hamburg, Germany
    My roles involve training machine learning models with internal data. I am also briefly accustomed to plugin development and assist in prototyping research to technology.
  • 2022.01 - 2022.03
    Visiting Lecturer
    Sri Satya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, Anantapur Campus, Puttaparthi, India
    Taught a part of the course on Mathematical Physics to the undergraduate students.

Education

  • 2021.09 - 2025.12

    London, UK

    PhD
    Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
    • Deep Learning for Audio and Music
    • Machine Learning
    • Recording and Production Techniques
    • Music Information Retrieval
  • 2018.07 - 2020.06

    Puducherry, India

    Master of Science (MSc) in Physics
    Pondicherry University, Puducherry, India
    • Non Linear Dynamics
    • Mathematical Physics (I and II)
  • 2015.06 - 2018.04

    Puttaparthi, India

    Bachelor of Science (BSc) [Hons] in Physics
    Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, Puttaparthi, India
    • Set theory
    • Multivariate Calculus
    • Differentiable Equations
    • Linear Algebra
    • Electronics [Digital and Analog]
    • Mathematical Physics (I and II)
    • [Python, C, C++, Scilab]

Awards

Publications

  • 2024.01
    The Role of Communication and Reference Songs in the Mixing Process: Insights From Professional Mix Engineers
    Journal of the Audio Engineering Society
    Effective music mixing requires technical and creative finesse, but clear communication with the client is crucial. The mixing engineer must grasp the client's expectations and preferences and collaborate to achieve the desired sound. The tacit agreement for the desired sound of the mix is established using guides like reference songs and demo mixes exchanged between the artist and the engineer.
  • 2023.10
    AI for Multitrack Mixing - A Workshop
    Audio Engineering Society Show NYC
    This workshop explores the application of AI technologies in multitrack mixing, providing insights into the future of mixing workflows.
  • 2023.05
    Adoption of AI Technology in Music Mixing Workflow: An Investigation
    154th Audio Engineering Society Convention
    The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in the music industry is driving a significant change in the way music is being composed, produced and mixed. This study investigates the current state of AI in the mixing workflows and its adoption by different user groups.
  • 2022.12
    Deep Learning for Automatic Mixing
    Proc. of the 23rd Int. Society for Music Information Retrieval Conf. (ISMIR)
    Mixing is a central task within audio post-production where expert knowledge is required to deliver professional quality content. This tutorial discusses deep learning approaches for automatic mixing, addressing challenges and providing insights for researchers and practitioners.
  • 2021.12
    Intelligent Music Production: Music Production Style Transfer and Analysis of Mix Similarity
    16th Digital Music Research Network (DMRN+ 16) Workshop
    We present a poster introducing the idea of mixing style transfer as a user centric approach to AI-based mixing.

Skills

general
Academic Writing
Audio Data Processing
Deep Learning
Data Visualisation
Qualitative Studies and Analysis
Regression and Classification
Audio Engineering and Production
Saxophonist
Public Speaking
Collaboration
tools

Languages

English
Fluent
Hindi
Fluent
Telugu
Native

Projects

  • 2024.02 - 2024.02
    The Sound of One Hand CLAPping
    Evolutionary search over VSTi synthesiser parameters using CLAP embeddings as a fitness function. Project for Timbre Hackathon 2024
    • Genetic Algorithm
    • CLAP