• by Amy Corr , Staff Writer @MediaPostOTL, October 29, 2012

The use of a cowbell is optional in an online campaign for the BC Dairy Association. Aspiring music composers in British Columbia can put their talents to the test by creating an original piece of music that will be judged by a herd of cows.

Dairy farmers discovered that cows love music, so much so that they produce more milk when listening to it. This research gave way to “Music Makes More Milk,” an online music composition campaign created by DDB Canada, Tribal DDB Vancouver and DDB Public Relations.

Contestants can create a unique 90-second piece of music online that will first be judged by people who cast online votes.

The top 15 songs will be played for a herd of cows on a BC dairy farm, with videos posted online. The public will then vote for the top 5 songs, which will be played for the cows at a rate of one song per day. Each day, milk production will be measured to determine the grand prize winner of a trip for four to next year’s GRAMMY Awards.

Other finalists will receive iTunes gift cards, B&W Zeppelin Air System and Skullcandy Cassette Over Ear Headphones.

According to Scott Barr, account supervisor, DDB Canada/Vancouver, the goal of the campaign is to “increase milk consumption in BC and highlight the BC Dairy farmers and dairy farming practices.”

Music Makes More Milk launched Oct.10, with the grand-prize winner to be determined on Nov. 26.

Contestants can enter UPC codes from milk products to unlock additional sound effects and instruments to use in their musical piece. To date, there are 599 entrants.

The 300 cow judges reside at Valedoorn Farm and were prepped for the competition with a visit by Coast Symphony Orchestra conductor Edette Gagné and a quartet of classically trained musicians who played an opening act of Mozart numbers.

"The creative team found a great clip online of a guy who stopped by the side of the road with a tuba and started playing it for a herd of cows,” said Dean Lee, creative director, DDB Canada/Vancouver.

“The cows’ reaction to the music was fascinating. With a bit more research we discovered that playing music for cows is actually used by some farmers to calm the herd, and the cows actually produce more milk when they are happy. So it seemed like a perfect fit to help promote BC Dairy's positioning of ‘must drink more milk’ with a way for our target to engage with the farmers, make milk top of mind and help the cows produce more milk."