Christi van der Colff is an award winning Engineer & Producer with over 23 years in the Music Industry. She is also an avid businesswoman and has a passion for conveying her knowledge of the industry to the students. She won a SAMA (South African Music Award) for Best Engineer for her work on Zahara’s hit album ‘Loliwe’. Christi is also known for her work with Mumford and Sons, One Republic, Jennifer Hudson, Westlife, and Joyous Celebration. Her work in film includes movies like Liefling, The Roar, Jagveld (Hunting Emma), Bhai’s Cafe, The Legend of Tarzan, The Giver, Intonga to name just a few.

You can find out more about Christi van der Colff in her interview on our blog.

Tyler Low completed our Advanced Programme in Music Production and Sound Engineering in 2022, after which he joined our team as a technician.

Before starting the course with us, he had previously studied music performance and sound technology, focussing particularly on composition after which he decided to shift focus towards production and recording.

Some highlights during his time on the course include playing and collaborating with fellow students to assistant engineering the live version of Deity’s Muse’s ERRA. Tyler also began working alongside Mijaelle Dewart of Musical Muse Development to record vocal students and help them with achieving their own goals.

He engineered the recording and mixing of multiple tracks with the group in our studios, making ample use of the skills he had learnt on the course, and he continues to work with them since graduating.

Alongside working at the Institute, Tyler has worked in the live sound industry as a freelancer and aims to develop himself further as both a live and studio engineer. He is also expanding the portfolio of artists and musicians he works with. His long-term goal is to continue working in a recording studio and developing his skills as a live engineer. Find out more about Tyler on his social media account.

Lein Nkosi is the Academic Assistant & Part-Time Lecturer at Abbey Road Institute Johannesburg. Lein’s interest in music began when he started playing drums at church, which kickstarted his fascination and appreciation for the world of harmony and arranging.

Chaylon J McCarthy is a technician, part-time lecturer & student support engineer at Abbey Road Institute Johannesburg. A multi-instrumentalist and producer who graduated from our Advanced Diploma in Music Production and Sound Engineering in March 2021.

His musical background started when he taught himself guitar at age 16 after listening to a Bon Iver record, and since then he’s been playing multiple instruments and building imaginative sonic pictures.

“I’ve always liked lofi, diy-style recording techniques. it sounds more natural to me.”

Chaylon is part of our team of technicians as well as continuing to work as a freelance session musician and producer. His keen ear for detail, and unique approach to production has been valuable in our student recordings and their personal projects.

Ilse is the Assistant Campus Manager at Abbey Road Institute Johannesburg. A distinguished musician, excelling in piano and voice, with a robust foundation in classical music, musical theatre, and jazz. She studied music at University of the Witwatersrand, having been mentored by Joyce Barker, Peggy Haddon, Bruce Cassidy, Denis Wilman, and Ricky Annandale.

Ilse has captivated audiences in leading roles for PACT at the State Theatre in Pretoria, performing alongside some of South Africa’s top artists.

Branching out as a solo artist, Ilse performed her one woman shows to sold out audiences at various theatres. Her highly acclaimed productions include a tribute to Barbara Streisand, as well as performances of Italian contemporary music. She regularly performs at corporate events and private functions. She is a composer of Christian music and runs her own private singing studio, nurturing and training young artists. Ilse is also an Alumnus of the Abbey Road Institute where she completed an Advanced Diploma of Music Production and Sound Engineering.

Ben Ludik is the academic coordinator at Abbey Road Institute Johannesburg.  

He has a passion for supporting and developing artists and producers. His commitment to finding an individual’s unique voice is as much about persistence as it is about having fun in the studio – an ethos he loves to share with his students. 

An award-winning producer and film composer, his creative approach to music production is balanced by an appreciation and understanding of rigorous research methodology. You can find out more about Ben in his interview on our blog.

Charneen de Bruin is a multifaceted creative professional, excelling as a writer, digital AI artist, music reviewer, and playlister. She holds a degree in digital marketing and copywriting, which she has skillfully applied in her career as an advertising copywriter.

At Abbey Road Institute Johannesburg, Charneen leverages her diverse talents and marketing expertise to drive impactful campaigns and engage the music community. Her background in digital marketing and her passion for music make her a vital asset to the institute, where she continually contributes to its growth and success.

Dino received his education at SAE in Australia and has been in the music industry for 28 years, working with international artists both live and in-studio.

He has a passion for sound and finding ways to expand his knowledge and experience. He is the director of Cutting Edge Sound, a sound company that does sales, installations, builds recording studios and does music productions and sound training.

Phat Planet Studios, a large recording and production studio facility was built by him and he ran it for 11 years. He has had the privilege to work with various local artists from all styles and genres and mixed and recorded over 400 albums.

Dino loves to inspire and uses out the box thinking to motivate and stir up a passionate emotion that gets students into their creative space. He believes there are no limits when it comes to personal expression, making him a passionate lecturer here with us.

Tim Lengfeld is one of South Africa’s most prolific Mastering Engineers.  German-born and African raised, Tim has been working in the South African Music Industry for more than 20 years. He has a mile-long rap-sheet of more than 1000 albums, including artists such as Mumford and Sons, Fokofpolisiekar, Freshlyground, Joshua na die Reen, Spoegwolf, Kyle Shepherd, aKing, and Dizu Plaatjies. With an immense amount of experience and 15 SAMAs (South African Music Awards) winning albums under his belt, we are privileged to have him as one of our regular lecturers.

His mastering philosophy includes an emphasis on quality control and listening with a fresh ear. He has a preference for analog equipment and refining the mix rather than dominating it. Tim has been teaching since 2016 and enjoys introducing students to the realities and techniques of Mastering through scenarios from his daily Studio work at TL Mastering.

Kevin Godfrey, a lecturer at Abbey Road Institute Johannesburg is an entrepreneur, business owner, and Electronics Engineer by Qualification. Today, Kevin is the Director of Inventworx Group, a Technology Innovation company, and co-founder of LUMIN8, a company Designing and Manufacturing Technology solutions for Malaria control and other health solutions in Africa.

He is also a passionate musician, and has a passion for the Entertainment Industry, and has worked on various Live events as a Lighting Operator, and occasionally as an Audio Engineer. Kevin played in various bands as a keyboard player. During his career, he fulfilled various roles in training Electronics, Audio, and Business mentoring.

Grant Harris is a Sound Engineer and post-production engineer who has been working in the field for the last 20 years. Completing his sound engineering course in 2002, Grant started working in the film industry as a sound editor, and quickly moved over to specialising as adr-recordist. He has focused on the indie film market but keeps his pulse on the commercial world as well. With his passion and drive to tell stories he is always striving to seek out the newest and best tools and mixing techniques.

Grant is known for Eye in the Sky (2015), The Legend of Tarzan (2016) and Friend Request (2016). He will be joining us for weekly lecturers. Completing his sound engineering course in 2002. He has worked on over 42 films. See his discography below:

Honors & Awards

Thando Magwaza is a highly experienced audio and mixing engineer based in Johannesburg. His passion for the art of Recording and Mixing kicked in when he was studying Civil Engineering. He was constantly consuming music whilst studying at the same time and his passion grew from there.

Thando’s career started at Music House KZN Studio, where he began as an intern and moved up to Assistant Engineer only 6 months later. He then moved to Johannesburg to further his expertise and joined the team at Mastermax Productions. He has worked with the country’s Top and International Award-Winning Artists like Khuli Chana, Naima Kay, Robbie Malinga, and Junior Mambazo. Most notable he worked with the late Richard Mitchell. He was also part of the team, with Lebo M, responsible for the African choir songs of the Lion King 2019 remake. He currently works as a studio engineer at Howard Audio. 

Raised with church music, he became involved with many Gospel music Bands and later ventured into
the broader Music Industry. The desire to acquire more knowledge and experience, led to him
pursuing a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies from the University of KwaZulu Natal. He then
went on to teach music full-time at the Federated Union of Black Arts (FUBA) & at Funda Art Centre,
before deciding to pursue a career as a session and touring Musician. Nkabinde soon became a
sought after Bass Guitarist, working with the likes of Abdullah Ibrahim, Zim Ngqawana, Joyous
Celebration, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Arno Carstens, Ray Phiri, Roy Ayers, Vusi Mahlasela,
Theuns Jordaan, McCoy Mrubata, Miriam Makeba, Ernie Smith & many more.

Concord has toured & performed internationally with great Artists like Johnny Clegg, Ladysmith Black
Mambazo, Ray Phiri, Phil Manzaniera, Zim Ngqawana, Darius Brubeck, Deepak Ram, Freshlyground
& many others. He has also performed with International Artists who toured South Africa, such as
Lionel Loueke (Benin/USA), Roy Ayers (USA), Colin “Black” Vearncombe (U.K.), Sergio Diaz (Brazil),
Efrain Toro (Puerto Rico), Eero Koivistoinen (Finland); Magnus Lindgren (Sweden), Nils Landgren
(Sweden), Bendik Hofseth (Norway); Edyta Gorniak (Poland) & others.
Concord Nkabinde has a driving passion for cross-cultural collaboration projects. The mission of
breaking down virtual boundaries that tend to divide people is a path he has embraced with both
hands and heart.

After her classical training, Jaconell Mouton studied jazz at Tshwane University of Technology in Pretoria, South Africa. She is known to be one of the best musical directors / musicians /arrangers / producers / composers in South Africa. Her work includes being musical director for live shows, live recordings, live dvd recordings, sessions, arrangements and productions both in SA and abroad.

Albums Jaconell worked on over the years won several awards, including SAMA, Tempo

and Ghoema awards. Jaconell won the Ghoema-award for “Best Producer” in 2017.

She has worked with Dave Koz, Stef Bos, Dana Winner, Leo Sayer, Crash Test Dummies and Herman van Veen. 

In 2010 Jaconell Mouton and the late Jeremy Lubbock, 3x Grammy award winning composer and arranger, joined forces and became studio partners, working together on several international projects as songwriters and arrangers for different artists which include names like Fourplay, Chris Botti, Josh Groban, Stevie Wonder, Richard Marx and 3T. Jaconell and Jeremy also worked on the production for Nelson Mandela’s birthday in 2011.

Schalk Joubert is one of South Africa’s most celebrated bassists and a multi award-winning composer, musical director and producer.

He completed a B.Sc. degree (majoring in Psychology and Physiology) at the University of Stellenbosch and a diploma in Creative Writing at the AAA School of Advertising in Cape Town. Thereafter, he studied music at the Conservatorium of the University of Stellenbosch in 1999 as part of their bridging course certificate programme.

He started performing and recording as a professional musician since he was a teenager and has established himself over the last 25 years as one of South Africa’s most prominent bass players within a big variety of genres that ranges from Traditional African Music, Rock & Pop to Classical and Jazz.

He has recorded and performed with many iconic South African and international artists like Hugh Masekela, David Kramer, Crash Test Dummies, Michelle Shocked, Finley Quaye, Anton Goosen, PJ Powers & Zolani Mahola.