A life spent chasing sound.

The beginning

To be honest, I have been fortunate. I come from an artistic and musical family. I have always been around music and, although I have never been a good performer, I have always been fascinated by sound. My desire to learn as much as I could about creating sounds culminated in acquiring my first synthesizer, an Arp 2600. Once I cut my teeth on that wonderful semi-modular synth I went hunting for more, and when I felt I had achieved a modicum of success as a programmer I began programming synths for some of the Electro and New Wave labels and artists of the time.

Designing sound for the industry

By my mid twenties I had moved away from programming for bands and labels and began working as a sound designer for hardware manufacturers, including Emu, Ensoniq, Akai and Roland. My job was to create the sound ROMs for their synthesizers and samplers. I freelanced for those three companies until I signed with Emu and Ensoniq exclusively as one of their in house sound designers.

When Emu moved into software, my skills adapted with them. I built libraries for Native Instruments, Kiesel, Arturia and Propellerheads, and eventually met Phil Allen, a Capital Radio DJ, and together we formed Samplecraze, a company dedicated to sound libraries for manufacturers and users alike.

Samplecraze and going back to school

A year later Phil and I parted ways and I took Samplecraze on alone, building it over the next twenty years. During that time I decided to move away from pure sound design and into music production. To do it properly I went back to college, took a one year course at the Gateway School of Music and came away with a distinction in Audio Technology. The next decade was spent studying the craft, and I began dipping my toe into the remix world. I was also commissioned by the Cambridge Shakespeare Company to write the score for a production of Macbeth at Alexandra Palace.

Giving back

Over the past twenty years I have run council workshops and youth training schemes for Southwark Council and taught music production to college students for Global Entertainment. I have consulted for a number of the UK's main studios and written several books on audio production. I developed Samplecraze into an educational resource, which led to writing for industry magazines and, in time, to Sound On Sound, where I am a contributing writer and a moderator on what is the premier audio forum on the internet.

Recently the Recording Academy invited me to become a professional member, an approved educator and a mentor to their members. I accepted with no hesitation. I feel honoured and blessed, and I intend to give back as much as I can to an industry that has enriched my life both artistically and spiritually.

Today

I now concentrate solely on teaching students one to one and creating content for Sound On Sound. If you would like to work with me, I would be glad to hear from you.