Masters of Sound

Who is the Masters of Sound team?

First and foremost, the people behind Masters of Sound are passionate about the art of creating music. Through our careers in music, film, radio, and television industries we have come to know and love a number of recording engineers and producers who have by-and large gone unrecognized for the incredible work they’ve done. Our goal with this site and TV series currently under development, is to shine the spotlight on these talented people responsible for so much of the music we love today.

Jim Ladd – Host

JIM LADD has been a top-rated on-air personality for over three decades, having championed free form rock radio on KMET, KLSX, & KLOS-FM. His weekly Innerview program aired on 160+ radio
stations for 12 years, providing in-depth pieces with artists including: John Lennon, U2, Stevie Nicks, The Eagles and Led Zeppelin. He has hosted legendary concerts including The Who’s Tommy 25th anniversary; Knebworth 1990, and The Wall in Berlin with over 1 billion TV viewers worldwide. Jim was named one of the “120 Most Influential People In The Music Industry” by Album Network Magazine, nominated for Rock Radio Personality of The Year from Radio and Records and Billboard magazines, and in 2005 received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Pictured: Elliot Scheiner, Robert Ballantyne, Phil Ramone, and Carl Jacobson

Robert Ballantyne

With over 30 years experience in the film and television industry, Robert Ballantyne currently serves as Executive in Charge of Production for Pursuit Productions/Paul Stojanovich Productions. He has been instrumental in the start up and production of such programs as I Witness Video on NBC, American Detective for ABC and COPS for FOX. Ballantyne graduated from Film School in London and also attended San Jose State University. He currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife Diane.

Pictured: Carl Jacobson, Robert Ballantyne, and Shawn Clement

Shawn Clement

Shawn Clement has established himself as a multi-faceted composer in a wide variety of genres and styles. Clement’s vast body of work (over 200 credits) has included Buffy the Vampire Slayer, We Married Margo (winner of the Audience Favorite Award at the HBO/U.S. Comedy & Arts Festival), and video games including Sony’s Open Season, and Warner Bros’ Batman: Vengance. Recently Clement scored Quantum Quest, an animated film which boasts an all-star cast including Chris Pine, Samuel L. Jackson, Hayden Christensen, Amanda Peet, James Earl Jones, and William Shatner. The film premieres in theaters in late 2010. In recognition of his accomplishments, ASCAP presented Clement with the Film and Television Music Award for Most Performed Underscore. Clement grew up in Massachusetts, studied at Berklee College of Music, and moved to Los Angeles to pursue his dream of composing for film and television.

Carl Jacobson

Jacobson is a recognized force in music technology marketing with over 15 years of experience in bringing empowering solutions to music makers and music listeners. He is currently the Vice President of Marketing for Nimbit, the music industry’s leading fan-commerce and promotion platform for self-managed artists, managers, and record labels. He was recently the Vice President of Marketing for Cakewalk one of the world’s foremost providers of music software and hardware, and in the past worked in Internet broadcasting and for major and independent record labels. In his career, Jacobson has been fortunate to help musical legends including Ray Charles in the creation of their music; charities and television shows like Extreme Makeover Home Edition to benefit at risk youth and disabled musicians; and industry giants such as Gibson, Intel, and Microsoft in bringing their solutions to the music marketplace. In 2006, Carl’s work was spotlighted in Kevin Roberts, CEO of Saatchi and Saatchi’s book The Lovemarks Effect.