It's a Smule World After All

Having realized a 30X gain on my 1997 investment in Tumbleweed, I'm delighted to be incubating Jeff Smith's next venture, Sonic Mule. After taking Tumbleweed public, Jeff retreated to Stanford in pursuit of his doctorate in classical music; he then joined Bessemer as an EIR, where he conceived Sonic Mule (aka Smule). Jeff recruited Ge Wang (Stanford) and Perry Cook (Princeton) -- two of the world's the most prominent professors in computer-music integration and the inventors of Chuck, an open source language that processes and renders sound in real time.

When Jeff's team isn't cleaning out Bessemer's kitchen, they're churning out ass-kicking Chuck-on-iPhone (CHiP) apps. Sonic Lighter (now in the Campaign edition), Sonic Vox (read Apple's review), and Sonic Boom all exceeded our sales projections -- check out the Sonic Lighter's adoption curve in the video below (this is the coolest board update I've ever gotten).



Today Sonic Mule is releasing their latest and greatest app yet-- the Ocarrina. This is the first fully functional and expressive iPhone musical instrument. A true Occarina, it responds to breath, fingerings, and position. It is easy to learn but allows for nuance and mastery. And you can navigate the globe to listen in on Occarina performances around the world. Check out the video and then buy Ocarina for 99 cents.



And this one's for Legend of Zelda fans...


Update: "Smule has done it again," according to This Is How You Build a Great iPhone App at TechCrunch.

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