Industry insights from sound graduate Jamie Ford

Published: 11/06/2020

Sound engineer Jamie Ford has travelled the world since graduating from the BA Production Technology and Management programme in 2017.

He’s currently the Head of Sound on Magic Mike Live Australia and recent credits include the German tour of Mamma Mia!, the UK tour of Jersey Boys, Lungs and A Very Expensive Poison at London’s Old Vic, and Bat Out of Hell in the West End.

He recently ”˜returned’ to RCS for an online meeting with soon-to-graduate Sound students who are ready to take their first steps on the professional path.

Jamie at work at the King’s Theatre in Edinburgh

“I really enjoyed seeing the next wave of people coming into the industry. Looking at the industry can be a bit scary at the moment but in many ways, it’s the best point to be. Pretty much every designer, associate and operator is sitting at home doing nothing and are dying to do something to do with shows. Email them, ask them questions, have a Zoom coffee. Use this lockdown to your advantage!”

“Join the ASD (Association of Sound Designers), its Future Professional membership is ideal for students and grads and gives access to an amazing wealth of knowledge, skills and people. Benefit from all the seminars, panels and training and become Dante certified be productive if that’s what you want to do.”

Looking back on his studies at RCS, he said he loved the buzz of the building: “You could walk down the corridors and hear trumpets in one room, Shakespeare in the next and Legally Blonde in the third.

“I loved my work with the musical theatre department, from the Ath to the Chandler, out to Sloans for Candid Cabaret and the Scottish Youth Theatre. It really cemented my love for musical theatre and prepared me for my career.”

He cites the high production values of RCS performances and the way students were treated as professionals: “Staff were always there to guide and support but the shows ran on the backs of the students, which put you in a good place for the industry.”

Jamie has worked consistently since graduating, taking him from Scotland to Saudi Arabia. So what are the highlights so far?

“A Very Expensive Poison at The Old Vic by Lucy Prebble. I was Sound number 1 for this amazing production exploring the background and death of Alexander ’Sasha’ Litvinenko, the Russian spy poisoned with polonium 210. Everyone other than Sasha is still alive and came to see the show doctors, police officers and family members which made our passion to tell his story even stronger.”

Visit BA Production Technology and Management to find out more about studying on this three-year programme at RCS.