Ian Watson
Head of Live Sound
Ian was born with a passion for sound. His father was a successful musician, studio engineer and record producer who, among many accolades, produced Brenda Fassie’s hit ‘Weekend Special’.
Ian took this passion and family tradition (his brother is the legendary house producer Kyle Watson), and forged his own path as an alternative musician and live sound technician.
Being a member of SA rock group Lithium, he helped to establish the local music scene in Cape Town and South Africa, post 1994. Since then Ian has played in many local acts and continues to write and produce his own music.
A qualified electrical technician (NHD Elec Eng), Ian has also been involved in the local AV industry as a technician since 2003.
Ian has worked on countless shows, most notably, as resident sound engineer at the Armchair Theatre (2003-2008) and Mercury Live (2003-2010) and project manager at Golden Circle Events (2003-2016).
Prior to joining the college Ian worked with local and internationally acclaimed artist Jeremy Loops (2016-present) as his stage, backline and monitor technician. This post saw Ian grow his already impressive experience to include touring the EU, UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Playing everything from club shows to massive festivals featuring artists like Billie Eilish, Mick Jenkins and 21 Pilots (to name just a few).
Ian brings the unique skill set of being a technician and a musician, so is perfectly suited to guide the young student in both technical knowledge and the soft skills required to work with people in the high energy environment of Live Sound.