Testimonials

  • "John's great to work with. He's recorded, mixed and mastered a lot of projects for me -- including live orchestral, electronica and ambient -- and his work has always been terrific."
    - Cliff Martinez, Composer
  • "John's expertise and massive experience contributes to smooth scoring sessions, with excellent results. I've worked with John on many scores over the years, and he has delivered perfect recordings on every one of them."
    - Frederik Wiedmann, composer
  • "Happiness is having John Rodd take your score mix to the finish line. I've worked with John on a wide variety of projects, and have been abundantly grateful for his work every time. His professionalism and collaborative approach is downright refreshing. There's no magic pixie dust when it comes to mixing (although he does have tasty gear)...it's just good ears, devotion to the craft, and many years of experience, all of which John has in spades."
    - Matt Bowen, composer
  • "On my score project, John was organized, methodical and thoughtful. He was able to wrangle a very complex set of source tracks and mix them to an even more complex set of stem mixes, yet never losing the musicality of the work. Ultimately, the client was thrilled and my music has never sounded better!"
    - Carl Johnson, composer
  • "Not only does John understand the technical details of mixing to the highest degree, but when mixing the score for the film Mosley he understood the soul of my music and cared for it as much as I did. After a long and exhausting writing process, there was no better gift that to relax knowing my music was in John's capable hands... and having the score sound like I always hoped it would. Thank you John."
    - Alain Mayrand, composer
  • "My large live orchestral score for Kinect STAR WARS needed a very specific sound, and I knew I could rely on my long-time collaborator John Rodd to deliver exactly the sound that I needed. The sound of this new Star Wars score needed to exactly match the rich legacy of the John Williams STAR WARS scores - and John Rodd completely nailed it. The 89 piece London Symphony Orchestra and the London Voices choir sounded glorious, and has thrilled my clients at LucasArts and Microsoft. John has outstanding musical sensibilities, knowledge of the orchestra, and an amazing ear for richness of sound.... and is also a really great guy to work with. Highly recommended."
    - Gordy Haab, Composer
  • "I really appreciate how well John listened to my directions and worked to come through with the sound I had in my head. That means a lot to me. Being a engineer myself in a previous life, I can say with certainty that John is a real pro. I really enjoyed working in his beautiful studio. Looking forward to the next time!"
    - Jack Wall, Composer
  • "The 5.1 score for our film 'TimeScapes' was an eclectic mix of rock guitar, electronica, and virtual orchestras, but John took it all in his stride, and made it all sound like it belonged. I was impressed with the width and fatness of the finished mixes, which just had that indefinable 'sheen' and quality that people expect from a high budget production. The director was blown away, and everyone came away happy. Most of all though, John is a pleasure to work with, keeping cool, calm and collected, and never taking issue with multiple rounds of tweaks and changes, which could drive a lesser man to drink. We ended up getting John to master the soundtrack album too. Thanks John for your help with TimeScapes - for a movie with no dialogue, the music is super important - and a big part of our success with the film on iTunes and elsewhere."
    - Nigel John Stanford, Composer
  • "John is a brilliant contributor to the scoring process and a real pleasure and asset to have on the team. I consult him early on in my scores to ensure the integrity of the recording and mixing as I'm determining the recording venue and finalizing the ensemble. As a recording and mixing engineer, John has the perfect combination of overarching project oversight down to the consideration of the smallest audio and musical details in the score. He is a terrific collaborator and technician and contributes an inspired stylistic and dramatic interpretation of the mix creating a perfect acoustic space for the score. Highly recommended."
    - Leah Curtis, Composer
  • "John has built a beautiful world-class studio with stunning state-of-the-art equipment. Listening back to a recently completed project that we worked together on, I'm impressed by what I feel is the finest gear in his studio: his ears."
    - Douglas Pipes, Composer
  • "It was such a pleasure working with John for the first time on Heroes of Stalingrad. Having spent months on composition and orchestration, I knew I had to hire the man with the golden ears to make my score sound perfect! With his incredible attention to detail, over two decades of experience and top of the line hardware, John exceeded my expectations. He delivered a final mix that really brought clarity and richness that I didn't even know was there! Subsequently John mixed my music for Mass Effect 3, and demonstrated an ability to nicely balance everything that goes on in an orchestral/synth hybrid score, which is no easy task, especially with Mass Effect's multi-layered, multi-textural style. He was able to enhance my compositions in a way that allows the listener to easily pick out each individual synth element in the mix. I'm totally thrilled with the results! Add in John's cheery and professional attitude, and you've got a winning combination."
    - Sam Hulick, Composer
  • "I recently had the privilege of working with John on an unusually complex advertising scoring project. The short duration of advertising cues often results in every nuance and gesture being subject to an extreme level of scrutiny, an atmosphere that John navigated with patience and class. A large orchestra recorded on a scoring stage needed the sonic depth and brilliance to translate in a 5.1 theatrical release; but also yield a stereo broadcast mix sufficiently reminiscent of the demo to avoid creating client approval problems. It was the classic "make it sound the same, only better" conundrum...which John understood and managed superbly and efficiently. All involved are thrilled with the final product (which, by the way, sounds worlds better than the demo...) and I can't thank John enough for the good nature with which he met every request, even at the end of a long day of mixing. Thanks, John---it was a real pleasure."
    - John Adair, Composer
  • "John is a great engineer/ mixer for film scoring. He has a strong grasp on the rapidly changing technology and also has solid skills in the traditions of creating a cinematic sound. His work on my score to Primeval involved combining traditional African recordings with electronics and orchestra. It was extremely complex and I am very pleased with the result."
    - John Frizzell, Composer
  • "Working with John was great. Being able to turn my score over to someone to mix and having an outside ear that I trusted was extremely valuable. He did a great job of giving my virtual instrument score the depth and scope needed, and sitting in the theatre at the premiere I had a big smile on my face. I'm very excited about working with him again at the next available opportunity."
    - Jeff Tymoschuk, Composer
  • "While many of us composers work hard to make a good impression with our final product..... it's often the case that we are our own worst critics when it comes to mixing our own music. At the end of the day, what myself (and many of my colleagues) want the most, is someone whose ears we trust to take our music and deliver it to its final destination in the best shape it can be in. I've had the pleasure of working with John Rodd on several different occasions, with several different styles of music. The one most important thing that I've taken away from all of our collaborations is that I can trust John to do his absolute best, and to work until everyone is happy. As far as reputations go.... those are priceless qualities to have."
    - Greg Tripi, Composer
  • John mixed a series of concert pieces that I had recorded with a 70 piece orchestra. It was very reassuring to hand the project over to such a competent, knowledgeable, and friendly person as John. I'm looking forward to the next chance we can work together.
    - Iain Kelso, Composer
  • "John is amazing to work with: so attentive to details, and his good nature and sense of humor puts everyone in the room at ease. Most recently he recorded and mixed a score of mine with a 38 piece orchestra. The session went so smoothly with John at the console; we recorded 50 minutes of music in 6 hours, finished 20 minutes early, and his mixes sound fantastic."
    - George Shaw, Composer
  • "John Rodd did a masterful job on our project, which combined a multitude of very disparate live audio and midi tracks, samples and plug-ins. John wove them together in such a way as to make them sound coherent and cohesive, as if they were all recorded in the same acoustic space, each instrument transparent in its own appropriate place. Furthermore, his attitude was consistently helpful and solution-oriented when it came to solving particular problems with our mix. John went above and beyond the call of duty and was key to making our score one of which we could all be proud. Thanks again, John!"
    - J.A.C. Redford & John Bisharat, Composers
  • "John Rodd was the perfect choice for me to work with on The Nine. Great, musical mixes and the height of professionalism in every way. John was very thorough and careful to not let anything fall through the cracks, and nothing did. The results were first rate, and I could not be happier."
    - Steve Bramson, Composer
  • "John's approach is polished, meticulously careful, and of the highest sonic quality. He's also a stand-up guy and a pleasure to work with: a great asset for any composer!"
    - Ceiri Torjussen, Composer
  • "John has both mixed and engineered projects for me and he excelled in both areas. You won't find another mixer who takes your music more seriously. I'd recommend him to any composer."
    - Andrew Kaiser, Composer
  • "John walks the extra mile to deliver to his clients the best possible mix of their music. He fearlessly works with whatever limitations (or shall I say, obstacles) the composer has.... and his final mixes are unbelievably great. As a person, he is a joy to work with -- always positive, encouraging, loyal, and resourceful. He is a professional who takes the composer's very best interests to heart."
    - Penka Kouneva, Composer
  • "John is a great guy and a great engineer. He was very prepared, organized, has excellent musical sensibilities, knowledge, techniques and most importantly...fun to work with."
    - Joong Han Chung, Composer
  • "John is a top notch, killer scoring mixer with some serious skills. Not only did he make my music sound fantastic in the short amount of time that he was given, but he even taught me a few Japanese courtesies that really helped me impress the clients. John definitely has many tricks up his sleeve (of course the biggest one is creating magical mixes). If I was choosing my dream team of music collaborators, John would be my first pick!"
    - Jamie Christopherson, Composer - Soundelux Design Music Group
  • "I've worked with a lot of scoring mixers, each with their own distinctive methods of mixing a score. In my opinion, John stood out from the rest of the pack by being completely attentive to my session, taking meticulous notes on every cue. In my race to meet a deadline, John constantly reminded me of things I would have overlooked, saving me hours of tedious backtracking. Highly recommended."
    - Kevin Kliesch, Composer
  • "John exudes professionalism in every way. Very prepared, competent and knowledgeable. One could call him assiduous and not be exaggerating! Any potential pitfalls were addressed before the session, so the actual tracking was a breeze. He was all about making me happy with the sound, with no pretension at all. I felt like I was the most important composer he's ever worked with, and I would gladly use him again!"
    - Christian Bacon, Composer
  • "Extremely professional, detail oriented and with an excellent ear and attitude! These are some of the qualities that make John Rodd a "one of a kind" recording engineer that I will be thrilled to be working with again"
    - Aldo Shllaku, Composer
  • "John was extremely capable, sensitive & responsive to the specific needs of the project, and was able to bring the music to life within the time and budget constraints. We were emulating nostalgic recordings and John's suggestions and expertise allowed us to revisit the past while simultaneously bringing the mixes entirely up to date."
    - Joel Evans, Composer
  • "John not only has the sensitive ears of a dog (that is a good thing) he's also caring and loyal like one. John not only exudes professionalism, but he has a warm heart as well."
    - Cody Westheimer, Composer
  • "John is such a great team player when it comes to recording your film score, because he loves his work. He is focused, committed, well organized, knowledgeable, and most importantly passionate about producing the best musical result possible. I would recommend John to any composer who wants a superb sounding score."
    - David James Nielsen, Composer
  • "The only mixer I can trust with my music is John. He's great! No matter how difficult the orchestral session, John skillfully handles it with ease."
    - Rich Ragsdale, Composer
  • "My score wouldn't have happened without John. He is extremely talented, professional and always has an upbeat "can-do" attitude. I can't wait to work with him again."
    - Zack Ryan, Composer
  • "John is simply the best! He is talented, detail-oriented, and one of the most calm and collected engineers I know. He really put me at ease, so that I could work on composing great music, and have zero worries about potential disasters at the scoring session. My session with John was the absolute smoothest session I've ever had!! I also got an amazing live mix! And another thing...there is no way you can work with this guy, and not have him become a great friend. As I said, he is simply the best!"
    - Holly Amber Church, Composer
  • "Not only is John extremely dependable, knowledgeable, and professional but his sense of humor never fails to make each experience more fun and memorable. The first time you work with him won't be your last!"
    - Julia Newmann, Composer
  • "John is a consummate professional who is extremely flexible working in any musical medium. He's the only one I'll work with from now on."
    - Jeff Thomson, Composer
Los Angeles-based John Rodd is able to legally work in the U.S.A., the EU and Canada (without a work visa)