Studio Masters: Producers of Modern Classical Music

The public face of classical music has long belonged to composers and performers, the visionaries who write the notes and the artists who bring them to life on stage. Yet behind today’s most compelling recordings is another kind of musician: the producer. 

Blending deep musical understanding with cutting-edge recording, mixing, and mastering techniques, modern classical producers have transformed how audiences experience the genre. Their work preserves the nuance of a live performance while embracing the clarity, depth, and immersive possibilities of contemporary audio technology. 

“My experience as a producer showed me that recording classical music is about far more than capturing sound,” says PARMA CEO Bob Lord. 

“Its about shaping a memorable experience for the listener. Part of founding PARMA Recordings was a way to ensure that artists and producers had an accessible pathway to explore that creative potential together.” 

In this feature, we spotlight the producers shaping the sound of recorded classical music today and their philosophies surrounding the studio.

Leslie Ann Jones

Leslie Ann Jones grew up immersed in the Los Angeles TV and music scene. Director of Music Recording and Scoring at Skywalker Sound, Jones is a seven-time GRAMMY® Award-winning recording engineer who has recorded albums for artists ranging from Rosemary Clooney to Kronos Quartet. 

For Jones, her ultimate goal when making music is “to engage the listener so they can experience what the artist intended with their music, whether feeling like they are in the audience as an observer or being engaged more on the inside.” 

“I have an emotional reaction to the music as I am recording and producing it and I want the listener to have that same reaction. How that is achieved is different in every recording because every artist is different.”

– Leslie Ann Jones 

Hear Jones’ work as a producer on Talon Smith’s DEBUT, as an audio engineer on the Navona Records album SOUNDTRACK OF THE AMERICAN SOLDIER, winner of “Best Immersive Audio Album” in the 63rd GRAMMY® Awards.

Paul Vazquez

Always passionate about sound, Paul Vazquez founded Digital Mission Audio Services to address the unique needs of the classical community which has since developed into his years-long collaboration with The Crossing. Vazquez’s work can be heard on WYNC, WRTI concert broadcasts of The Crossing, as well as many of their notable commercial releases including GRAMMY® winners The Fifth Century, Zealot Canticles, and BORN.

Brad Michel

Brad Michel, PARMA Recordings’ Senior Producer, North America, is a leading figure in his field, recognized for his exceptional ability to capture the essence of acoustic music. Trained as a classical musician at both Northwestern University and the Eastman School of Music, Michel’s passion for the creative synergy between microphones and music blossomed during his time working in the studios at Eastman. 

With over 30 years of experience, Michel held notable positions at The Boston University School of Music and Soundmirror Inc. His extensive collaboration with Harmonia Mundi, spanning over 25 years, resulted in hundreds of productions that established him, alongside Robina Young, Harmonia Mundi’s executive producer and artistic director, as one of the most prolific and respected recording teams in recent years.

“Helping artists bring their projects to life and ensuring their artistic achievements are presented in the best possible light is the greatest satisfaction,” says Michel.

“Early in my career, I was fortunate to work alongside some of the leading producers in the field, observing how trust, support, and a positive environment enable musicians to give their very best performances.”

Michel led session production, editing, mixing, and mastering for composer Mark Edwards Wilson’s DANGEROUS JOURNEYS on Navona Records.

Jan Košulič

Vice President of Production at PARMA Recordings and Director and Lead Producer at Prague’s Studio Martínek, Jan Košulič brings years of experience to his work with chamber ensembles, choirs, and orchestras around the world.. 

Košulič engineered the orchestra recording for the GRAMMY®-nominated album Something’s Happening: A Christmas Album by American gospel legend CeCe Winans, and produced countless recordings of contemporary classical music with various ensembles and musicians around the world, including the London Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Joseph Alessi, Radek Baborák, and many others. 

Hear Košulič’s work as session producer with the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava and The Kühn Choir of Prague on composer Garth Baxter‘s AND DEATH SHALL HAVE NO DOMINION.

Judith Sherman

Judith Sherman has been nominated for 19 GRAMMY® Awards and won 15 including for Producer Of The Year, Classical eight times. She has worked with contemporary composers on recordings including Steve Reich, Elliot Carter, John Adams, John Corigliano, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass. Notable ensembles include the Alexander String Quartet, Kronos Quartet (Nuevo), Pacifica Quartet, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, and the Cleveland Quartet.

“My hope with each of my projects is some new discovery, either of a neglected but deserving work or composer or of a new, convincing account of an older and known piece,” says Sherman. 

“My job at sessions is to be a helpful but critical listener, to understand what the musicians want to convey, and to help them achieve that. At the end of sessions, I often get what I consider the highest of compliments: ‘That was fun’ and/or ‘I learned so much.'” 

Hear Sherman’s work on SECOND FLIGHT from Dan Goble and Russell Hirshfield.

Blanton Alspaugh

Blanton Alspaugh is an 11-time GRAMMY®-winning producer specializing in classical recordings. Alspaugh earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Music Education from Tennessee Technological University and a Master’s degree in Orchestral Conducting from Rice University. He has been a member of the Soundmirror classical music recording and production team since 1999.

He has worked with a variety of orchestras and musicians, including Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Opera Orchestra, the Harrington String Quartet, William Boggs, Stanislav Pronin, and Emmanuel Feldman. Alspaugh won his first Grammy in 2009 for Best Small Ensemble Performance for Spotless Rose: Hymns to the Virgin Mary.

Hear Alspaugh’s work on ALL IS MIRACLE from Transept.