Tom Chitson

What did you do before joining dBs?

"I spent 12 years working as a sound engineer and system technician for dance music events and festivals. I was lucky enough to do that in Ibiza and North Africa for Void, before joining EGG in London as their head engineer. I was also head of audio for the Scrapyard at Boomtown Fair, as well as a freelance sound engineer for Motion in Bristol for many years."

Why did you first get into live sound?

"Let’s just say I was at an event at an undisclosed location and every hair on my body stood on end as I experienced the overwhelming power of a sound system. I was totally blown away by the physical presence and the feeling that was being generated from a seemingly inanimate object. I simply had to know more."

Any special areas of interest?

"I’m into bass. Low-frequency reproduction and any form of weaponised vibration. I want to disintegrate walls with speakers, I want to make people feel like they're floating on a dance floor. It’s all about that physicality of sound – that's where the passion comes from.

"I’m hoping to explore this further through a Master's soon. I want to look into new ways of controlling low-frequency with the Defcon Audio sound-system I run, alongside two partners. We’ve got the largest stack of subs in the country – 38 in total – so I’d like to explore different formats and collect data from them side-by-side."

What do you love most about what you do?

"Inspiring the next generation of live sound professionals. I can't wait to be stood at a festival, experiencing something that sounds really good, and then turn around and see one of our students on the buttons and the faders. I can't imagine a better feeling than that. Now that I feel accomplished in what I do, it’s all about being the mentor and guide for the new students coming through."

Tell us about your proudest career moment.

"I think my proudest career moment was probably being the monitor engineer for Cradle of Filth when they came through Bristol to play the Marble Factory in Motion. Having grown up in the era of metal and as a fan of underground extreme alternative music, Cradle of Filth had always been a part of that. So, to do the monitors for Dani Filth and not get shouted out (as that’s what he was renowned for doing) was an incredible, incredible moment."

What do you get up to outside of teaching?

"I still love going to shows and being involved in putting on events and crafting systems for them. I’ll always want to be involved in the industry, but when I'm not doing that I like to throw myself down really steep hills on my mountain bike. Death grip and go big or go home."

Tell us something our students may not know about you.

"I used to have a ‘drullet’ – which for anyone who doesn’t know is a dreadlock mullet. Hard to believe now I know..."

‍