GCSP Los Angeles Commission
GCSP Perfect Pitch Competition
Fall 2026 to Spring 2027
Music as an essential part of life is a principle universal to cultures across the world. Music is ceremonial; it helps us learn; it acts as a vessel for self expression; it brings communities together; it is how we cope with emotions; it is how we spark creativity; it positively impacts our health in a number of ways; it brings joy to our lives and has wondrous effects on our brains. But despite all of these wonderful things, the opportunities to interact with music in our modern society are not always equitably available. Musical interactions like performing, playing an instrument, using the latest technology, often favor those without disabilities and the neurotypical. Here's your opportunity to address this issue!
Perfect Pitch is a contest where students in groups of three to five members will develop accessible music technology (think instruments, applications, software, tools) prototypes to be pitched as viable product ideas.
Charge of the Project
Students will form teams of three to five members. Non-engineering majors are welcome and encourage to participate alongside Viterbi students, but there must be at least one Viterbi student on each team.
Teams will have five months (November, 2026 through March, 2027) to develop an idea, prototype, justification, and pitch for their product that facilitates engagement in music for a particular community of people.
Each team will be judged in the following areas:
- Justification of need (background research on community of choice)
- Novelty
- Feasibility
- Viability
- Usefulness in context
Each project should take a person/community-centered approach to research, development and design.
All ideas should be original, meaning they can be derived from existing ideas but not verbatim adoption of lesser know existing products.
Prototypes are required and can be physical or code/software based. All use of artificial intelligence must be documented and reported, including prompts to create code and ideas. Any ideas and information generated by AI to aid in your project must be verified by other reliable sources. The verification process must be reported in project documentation and presentation.
- Description of the challenge
- Specific area/community (as applicable)
- Information proving the challenge
- Description why it is important to address the issue
- What work is being done currently to address the problem, including named organizations (as applicable)
Goals
- To give students a collaborative opportunity to investigate important regional issues
- To provide next generation perspectives on the societal issues that matter the most
- Provide opportunity for students to better understand the greater Los Angeles community
- To gain experience developing problems of practice
- Expose students to Grand Challenge topics and themes
- Provide a list of challenges that can be used for other GCSP experiences and contests
- To provide students experiences to work in interdisciplinary engineering teams
Why Does This Matter?
The challenges students are tasked to solve in both their academic journeys and as new professionals are often previously identified and dictated to them. While this approach has great value, there is also great value in understanding the perspectives on the challenges from the viewpoint of those who are next in line to solve them. By allowing students to dictate the problems they see as major challenges for the future, we create not only an opportunity for innovation, but also foster purpose and passion that will driving engineering forward. We plant the seeds of community around problem solving that will foster ongoing collaboration towards creating a better world. With this, we can convert the theory and understanding into tangible results.
Students who earn the designation of Viterbi Grand Challenges Scholars receive the following:
Participation in the Los Angeles Commission
Students will work in groups in groups based on interest in a particular GCSP theme (Health, Security, Sustainability, Enriching Life) to identify, research, and present challenges. Students will be guided through this process through a series of workshops and dedicated meet up times. Students will be expected to collaborate with their groups, as necessary, outside of the dedicated meetup time.
Students who are interested in participating in the Los Angeles Commission should fit the following description:
- Be an undergraduate student (progressive degree students are welcome)
- Have an interest in engaging with and better understanding complex issues related to society
- Want to participate in a collaborative experience
- Willing to commit to participating in scheduled sessions (schedule will be provided, reasonable accommodations can be made as necessary)
- Interested in the challenges of the greater Los Angeles region and willing to learn more
- Demonstrate cultural humility and a community first perspective
Participants of the Los Angeles Commission do not need to be from Los Angeles. This project is open to undergrads of all academic class statuses.
The results of the project will be made publicly available. Participating students will receive recognition for their role in the project, including a certificate of participation.
The work and sessions for the Los Angeles Committee will be spread over an academic year to accommodate to participants' curricular and co-curricular workload. This will allow students to manage their time between other opportunities they wish to concurrently pursue while participating on the Los Angeles Commission. However, we ask that all members be dedicated to fully engaging in the project and attending related sessions. Where necessary and reasonable, accommodations can be made to address scheduling conflicts.
Tentative General Timeline of Sessions and Milestones
Establish the committee
First meeting- introduction
Problem of Practice workshop
Dedicated meetup time
Check-in: do problems make sense? Are they demonstrated?
Domains and Dimensions workshop
Dedicated meetup time
Dedicated meetup time
Check-in: what are findings thus far
Dedicated meetup time
Dedicated meetup time
Present problems