Gareth Owen (sound designer)

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For other people with the same name, see Gareth Owen (disambiguation).
Gareth Owen
Born
Gareth John Owen

(1979-08-20) 20 August 1979 (age 44)
Sheffield, England
NationalityBritish
EducationUniversity of Plymouth, University of Salford (honorary)
OccupationTheatrical Sound Designer
Years active1998–present
Height1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
SpouseCarmen Bierens
Children3
AwardsTony, Olivier, Drama Desk, Critics Circle, WhatsOnStage, ProSound, Jeff, Craig Noel, Dora, Helen Hayes, Green Room & BroadwayWorld.
Websitewww.garethowensound.com Edit this at Wikidata

Gareth Owen is an eleven time Tony & Olivier Award-winning / nominated[1] sound designer specialising in musical theatre in London's West End, on Broadway and internationally.

Early life[edit]

Gareth John Owen was born in Sheffield, England, a son of two teachers,[2] both of whom specialised in special needs education. At the age of nine the family moved to the Cayman Islands where Owen attended Cayman Islands Middle School. Upon returning to the UK the family moved to St. Ives in Cornwall where Owen attended both Mounts Bay School and Penwith Sixth Form College[3] before going to the University of Plymouth[4] in Plymouth, to study for a bachelor's degree in underwater science. While at university he worked in nightclubs[5] as a lighting and sound engineer, and as a boatman and beach lifeguard in St. Ives.[6]

Career[edit]

Owen initially began working in live sound when the Penzance nightclub he was working at started to present live bands which Owen was asked to mix. From here he secured work with Birmingham's SSE Audio Group[7] which lead to an early career in rock & roll, working at festivals such as Glastonbury, Reading, Party in the Park, and T4 on the Beach; and mixing acts such as Def Leppard, The Stereophonics, B B King, The Spice Girls and The Rolling Stones.

Owens theatre career began when he was invited to mix the musical The Blues Brothers which was running at what is now the Trafalgar Studios in Londons west end. About this time, Owen is quoted as saying in an interview "I didn't have a lot of money so I bought a tent and lived in the band's garden".[8] From here he was offered a job as sound designer for the UK tour of Stephen Schwartz' musical Godspell,[9] beginning a collaboration which would continue until the present day.[10] Owen went on to design a number of shows in a freelance capacity, before joining London's Orbital Sound as a full-time sound designer.[11] In late 2009, Owen left Orbital Sound and formed his own company, Gareth Owen Sound.[12]

Since 2010, Owen has since worked with composers including Alan Menken,[13] Andrew Lloyd Webber,[14] Stephen Schwartz,[15] Björn Ulvaeus,[16] Glen Ballard, Max Martin,[17] David Bryan,[18] George Stiles, Cyndi Lauper, Pete Townsend,[19] Alan Silvestri,[20] Alicia Keys,[21] David Foster, Tom Kitt[22] and Stephen Sondheim.[23] Owen has also created musicals based on the music of pop icons such as Michael Jackson, Donna Summer, and The Beatles;[24] and is a collaborator with top directors including Robert De Niro,[25] Christopher Ashley,[26] Jerry Zaks,[27] Des McAnuff,[28] Luke Sheppard,[29] Jerry Mitchell,[30] Laurence Connor,[31] Christopher Wheeldon,[32] Terry Johnson, Michael Grief, Emerald Fennell,[33] Scott Schwartz, Michael Arden[34] and Sir Trevor Nunn.[35]

Broadway musical theatre[edit]

Sound designer Gareth Owen and director Robert De Niro backstage at Bronx Tale on Broadway.

Owen has worked as sound designer on the following Broadway productions[36] in New York City:

West End musical theatre[edit]

Musical supervisor Dominick Amendum, composer Stephen Schwartz and sound designer Gareth Owen at the orchestra rehearsal of DreamWorks Prince of Egypt in 2021.

Owen has worked as sound designer on the following West End musical productions[39] in London:

Sixteen-time Grammy winning artiste Alicia Keys with Broadway sound designer Gareth Owen at the first preview of Key's Hell's Kitchen on Broadway.

International and regional musical theatre[edit]

Gareth Owen and wife Carmen Bierens at the 2022 Tony Awards in New York.

Owen has worked as sound designer on the following productions around the world:

West End straight plays[edit]

Sound designer Gareth Owen and comedian Lee Evans during Barking in Essex rehearsals in London in 2013.

Owen has worked as sound designer on the following West End straight plays in London, although the timeline suggests he is no longer active in this particular discipline:

Technical achievements[edit]

MJ: The Musical mixing console at the Neil Simon Theater on Broadway.

Owen is credited with a long list of technical achievements and industry firsts.

A pioneer in the field of immersive theatre sound, Owen was the first person to use the object based wave field synthesis immersive audio in both Londons West End[41] and on New Yorks Broadway,[42] for the musicals Come from Away and Diana, respectively. He created the world's first sound design to incorporate object based mixing in to a rotating auditorium[43] for Andrew Lloyd Webbers Cinderella musical at the Gillian Lynne Theatre in London; and what was, at the time, the largest SoundScape installation in the world[44] for arena musical Starlight Express. Owen is also credited as the first person to integrate wireless tracking of performers in to an object based sound system on Broadway,[45] this time for MJ the Musical. Indeed, he and his team are credited with creating one of the industry standard control applications for live immersive audio,[46] d&b's EnSnap,[47] used on multiple shows and productions around the world.[48]

& Juliet mixing console at the Stephen Sondheim Theater on Broadway.

Owen's use and development of cutting-edge technologies is not limited to immersive audio. He is believed to have designed the show with the largest number of radio mics ever used on a west end musical,[49] 42nd Street at Londons Drury Lane. He was the first person to use the d&b KSL line array system[50] on both a Broadway show and on a west end musical, in both cases for Back to the Future the musical. He was the first person to use the d&b XSL line array system on a Broadway show, this time for & Juliet at the Sondheim theater. Owen was the first person to use a DiGiCo mixing console in theatre,[51] the now defunct D5, for the UK Tour of the Cliff Richard musical Summer Holiday.[52] He is credited as being the first to use both the Avid Venue mixing console[53] and the Avid S6L mixing console in theatre, for the shows Annie Get Your Gun and Broadways Come From Away respectively. Owen was one of the early adopters of computer game audio engines to create dynamic sound effects in theatre, notably on Broadway's Back to the Future musical.[54]

Business ventures[edit]

The Fourier Audio transform.engine at the NAMM trade show in Los Angeles.

Owen is co-founder and CCO of audio hardware manufacturer Fourier Audio,[55] where he is "working to redefine the future of pro audio".[56] In 2023, he and his co-founders Henry Harrod and Peter Bridgman sold Fourier Audio to live mixing desk manufacturer DiGiCo for an undisclosed multi-million pound sum.[57] From this springboard they went on to release the transform.engine, a revolutionary VST plugin host, designed exclusively for the live environment.[58]

Owen is also a co-founder of the software house Show Control Ltd, a company specialising in the coding and development of dedicated theatrical show control systems.[59] There is little information available regarding this endeavour beyond a list of the developed software on Owen's website.[60]

Other endeavours[edit]

Honorary Doctorate at Salford University
Honorary Doctorate at Salford University

In 2009, Owen joined a steering committee that eventually formed the Association of Sound Designers[61] where he served as a committee member for the maximum term of five years, from 2012 to 2018.[62]

In 2022, Owen was presented with an Honorary Doctorate[63] from the University of Salford.[64]

Selected awards[edit]

Owen collects the Olivier Award for Best Sound Design at the 2019 Olivier Awards
Year Nominated work Category Result Notes
2024 Back to the Future Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Sound Design Pending
2024 The Who's Tommy Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Sound Design Pending
2023 The Who's Tommy Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Sound Design of a Musical Won
2023 & Juliet Tony Award for Best Sound Design of a Musical Nominated
2023 & Juliet BroadwayWorld Award for Best Sound Design of a Musical Won
2022 MJ: The Musical Tony Award for Best Sound Design of a Musical Won
2022 MJ: The Musical Drama Desk Award for Best Sound Design of a Musical Won
2022 Back to the Future Olivier Award for Best Sound Design Nominated
2022 Back to the Future WhatsOnStage Award for Best Sound Design Won
2020 Come From Away BroadwayWorld Award for Best Sound Design of the Decade Nominated
2020 Come From Away Green Room Award for Best Sound Design Won
2020 Come From Away WhatsOnStage Award for Best Sound Design Won
2020 & Juliet WhatsOnStage Award for Best Sound Design Nominated
2019 Come From Away Olivier Award for Best Sound Design Won
2019 The Donna Summer Musical NAACP Theatre Award for Best Sound Larger Theatre Nominated
2018 Starlight Express (Bochum) Pro Sound Award for Best Immersive Design Won
2018 Carmen La Cubana BroadwayWorld Germany Award for Best Sound Design Won
2018 Bat Out of Hell The Musical AV Technology Award for Best Use of Audio Solutions[65] Won
2018 Come From Away BroadwayWorld Toronto Award for Best Original Sound Design Won
2018 Bat Out of Hell The Musical Olivier Award for Best Sound Design Nominated
2018 Come From Away BroadwayWorld Award for Best Sound Design Won
2018 Summer Craig Noel Award for Best Sound Design Nominated
2017 Bat Out of Hell The Musical AV Technology Award for Best Sound Design Won
2017 Come From Away Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Sound Design Won
2017 Bat Out of Hell The Musical BroadwayWorld Award for Best Sound Design Won
2017 Come From Away Dora Award for Best Sound Design Won
2017 Individual Recognition Pro Sound Award for Sound Engineer of the Year[66] Won
2017 Come From Away Helen Hayes Award for Best Sound Design Won
2016 A Bronx Tale BroadwayWorld Award for Best Sound Design Won
2015 Memphis the Musical Olivier Award for Best Sound Design Won
2015 Memphis the Musical Pro Sound Award for Best Theatre Sound[67] Won
2015 Hunchback of Notre Dame BroadwayWorld Award for Best Sound Design Nominated
2014 Merrily We Roll Along Olivier Award for Best Sound Design Won
2013 Top Hat Olivier Award for Best Sound Design Nominated
2014 I Can't Sing! Pro Sound Award for Best Theatre Sound Won
2012 End of the Rainbow Tony Award for Best Sound Design of a Musical Nominated
2011 End of the Rainbow Olivier Award for Best Sound Design Nominated
2010 A Little Night Music Tony Award for Best Sound Design of a Musical Nominated

References[edit]

  1. ^ Janssen, Sarah (13 December 2022). The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2023. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-5107-7246-5.
  2. ^ "HeadLiner Radio Interviews Gareth Owen". Spotify. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
  3. ^ Vergnault, Olivier (21 April 2019). "Cornish man wins three theatre Oscars". CornwallLive. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  4. ^ "Sound Designer Gareth Owen". prezi.com. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  5. ^ "Gareth Owen, musical theatre sound designer". AV Magazine. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  6. ^ Dale, Andy (16 March 2020). "St Ives Life Saving Club". St Ives Community Land Trust. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  7. ^ Harvey, Steve (29 July 2016). "How SSE became a Go-To for Festival Sound". Pro Sound News. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  8. ^ Smurthwaite, Nick (13 March 2017). "Gareth Owen: I didn't get into theatre to do sound effects. I love music". The Stage. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  9. ^ "Godspell, Liverpool". the Guardian. 21 February 2002. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  10. ^ Gans, Andrew (31 March 2020). "Original London Cast Recording of Stephen Schwartz's The Prince of Egypt Will Be Released in April". Playbill. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  11. ^ Mutter, Zoe (18 October 2019). "Gareth Owen, musical theatre sound designer". AV Magazine. Archived from the original on 15 January 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  12. ^ "Gareth Owen Sound Ltd". Companies House. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  13. ^ "The Hunchback of Notre Dame - Disneys Musical at Ronacher | Schedule & Tickets". Musical Vienna. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
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  16. ^ Jones, Sarah; Perkins, Meghan (20 April 2020). "Mamma Mia Immerses Guests In A Party Soundscape". Live Design Online. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
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  18. ^ "Memphis extends booking at Shaftesbury to October 2015 | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
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  20. ^ Silvestri, The Film Music of Alan. "BEST NEW MUSICAL: Back To The Future: The Musical - 2022 What's On..." The Film Music of Alan Silvestri. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  21. ^ Rosky, Nicole. "Alicia Keys Says the Goal is Broadway for HELL'S KITCHEN". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  22. ^ Margrira (12 September 2023). "Alicia Keys' Musical 'HELL'S KITCHEN' Soars with Stellar Team and Creative Talent". NJURBANNEWS. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
  23. ^ "Meet the Sound Designers". Avid. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  24. ^ "Gareth Owen: Theatre Sound Designer". Sound on Sound. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  25. ^ Gerard, Jeremy (15 June 2016). "Robert De Niro Will Co-Direct Broadway Musical Version Of 'A Bronx Tale'". Deadline. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  26. ^ "Artistic Team". Fords Theatre. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  27. ^ Miltenberger, Lauren (13 February 2020). "American Idol Winner Nick Fradiani Will Star in A Bronx Tale North American Tour". Purdue Convocations. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  28. ^ "The Sounds of Summer – FOH | Front of House Magazine". Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  29. ^ "& Juliet - Musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre". Luke Sheppard. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  30. ^ "Casting announced for Off-Broadway production of KINKY BOOTS". West End Best Friend. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  31. ^ Waite, Jacob (27 July 2022). "Gareth Owen harnesses d&b Y-Series to sound out famed UK musicals". TPi. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  32. ^ "Meet the Tony Nominees: Gareth Owen Brings a New Kind of Sound to Broadway in MJ | TheaterMania". www.theatermania.com. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  33. ^ "Broadway.com". Broadway.com. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
  34. ^ "Masque Sound Custom Audio Package Resonates With Audiences At U.S. Premiere Of New Musical, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME". Masque Sound. 21 August 2015. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  35. ^ Cox, Gordon (12 March 2019). "Listen: The Secrets of Broadway Sound Design". Variety. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  36. ^ "Gareth Owen Playbill Vault". Playbill. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  37. ^ McPhee, Ryan (2 March 2020). "Michael Jackson Musical MJ Assembles Creative Team". Playbill. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
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  39. ^ "Gareth Owen Broadway and Theatre Credits". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  40. ^ "Transforming StarLight Express through Immersive Audio". Avid. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  41. ^ Light, Redacción ISP Audio &. "Come From Away: d&b Soundscape debuts in London's West End". Revista ISP Audio & Light (in European Spanish). Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  42. ^ Lane, Rob (23 May 2022). "d&b Soundscape helps to bring the 'King of Pop' to life in MJ: The Musical". Installation. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  43. ^ McGrath, Dan. "Object-based audio meets a rotating auditorium". AV Magazine. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  44. ^ "d&b Soundscape transforms Starlight Express". www.dbsoundscape.com. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  45. ^ "zactrack SMART Celebrates A Broadway First, Tracking Sound For "MJ The Musical"". Live Design Online. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  46. ^ "d&b En-Snap cue automation". www.fast-and-wide.com. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  47. ^ Gumble, Daniel (14 December 2020). "d&b develops new Soundscape software with Gareth Owen Sound". Audio Media International. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  48. ^ Lane, Rob (23 February 2022). "d&b Soundscape drives Björk's Cornucopia tour in LA and San Fran". Installation. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  49. ^ Ramsey, Colby (26 June 2017). "42nd Street breaks new musical ground with Shure UHF-R". Audio Media International. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  50. ^ "d&b KSL goes back to the future". www.entouragepro.com. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  51. ^ "Orbital tours UK with Digico on Summer Holiday - Orbital Sound - Audio and Communication Equipment Hire and Sales". www.orbitalsound.com. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  52. ^ Web, UK Theatre. "Tour archive for Summer Holiday (Musical). 3rd March 1997-7th November 1998 [TOUR]". UK Theatre Web. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  53. ^ "Venue Empowered Installs? [Archive] - Avid Pro Audio Community". duc.avid.com. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  54. ^ "The Sound Design of Back to the Future: The Musical". Krotos. 5 April 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  55. ^ Waite, Jacob (29 July 2021). "Fourier Audio Startup Set to Transform Live Events". TPi. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  56. ^ "Fourer Audio : Who we are". Fourier Audio. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
  57. ^ Staff, Mix (2 October 2023). "DiGiCo Acquires Fourier Audio". Mixonline. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  58. ^ Shuler, Christopher (25 October 2023). "DiGiCo and Fourier Audio Set to Transform Live Sound". Mixonline. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  59. ^ "Rob Halliday: Want to work in theatre? Learn how to write code". The Stage. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  60. ^ "Gareth Owen | Sound Design". Gareth Owen. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  61. ^ "Who We Are". The Association of Sound Designers. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  62. ^ "The History of the ASD". The Association of Sound Designers. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  63. ^ "West End sound designer Gareth Owen receives award for contribution to theatre". The Stage. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  64. ^ "Tony Award Winning Sound Designer Receives Honorary Doctorate". Salford University. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  65. ^ "AV Tech 2018 Winners". AV Technology Awards Awards. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  66. ^ "Pro Sound Award Winners 2017". The Pro Sound Awards. Retrieved 22 October 2017.
  67. ^ "Pro Sound Award for Best Theatre Sound". The Pro Sound Awards. Archived from the original on 30 October 2015. Retrieved 23 October 2015.

External links[edit]

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