Vault:Classical

Classically trained at The Cleveland Institute of Music and currently working in Phoenix, Arizona as a producer, recording engineer, mastering engineer, and freelance musician, Nathan James brings a fresh and unique perspective to the recording process.  An active member of Phoenix’s musical community, he brings into any venue the wealth of experience gained from having worked with ensembles in halls, churches, and recording studios across the country.

As a recording engineer, Nathan specializes in capturing the subtle nuances of solo, chamber, orchestral, choral, and jazz performances.  During his fruitful employment with the Telarc Music label, Nathan worked with multi-Grammy winning engineers on recordings featuring the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, and for jazz greats like Ray Brown, John Pizzarelli, and Oscar Peterson. While on staff at the Tanglewood Music Festival, Nathan provided audio engineering services for Yo Yo Ma, Dave Brubeck, Joshua Bell, Andre Previn, The Boston Symphony Orchestra, and The Boston Pops.

In 2006, Nathan founded Vault Mastering Studios on Greene St. in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City. There Nathan mastered hundreds of projects for artists around the globe, including Aretha Franklin, Sting, The Fray, John Medeski, Blondie, Joe Jackson,  and Gretchen Parlato.  In 2011, Vault Mastering Studios NYC relocated to Phoenix Arizona where it continues to  provide the same high level, no compromises mastering experience to musicians, engineers, and labels throughout the world.

Now the head engineer for Vault.Classical, Nathan’s passion for sound is propelled by a quest to capture the energy of unique performances with accuracy, detail, and emotion at every level in his recordings.  He is an advocate for local ensembles, classical and contemporary music, high resolution audio, and is an active cellist in several ensembles around Phoenix.  Nathan is also a father of two and a voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.