Bob Clearmountain to Receive Honorary Doctorate at Berklee NYC Graduate Commencement

Berklee NYC will present an honorary Doctor of Music degree to Bob Clearmountain, a mixing engineer and producer whose work has shaped many of the most influential recordings of the past five decades, at its annual graduate commencement on Saturday, June 28. The ceremony will take place at 12:30 p.m. ET in the Appel Room on the sixth floor of Jazz at Lincoln Center.

Clearmountain will be the fifth person to receive an honorary doctorate from Berklee this year, joining André 3000 and Sara Bareilles, recognized at Berklee College of Music’s commencement on May 10, and Tania León and Kelli O’Hara, honored at Boston Conservatory’s ceremony that same day. Composer Patrick Doyle will be celebrated by Berklee Valencia at its commencement on July 7. 

“It’s a privilege to award Bob Clearmountain an honorary doctorate, not only in recognition of his extraordinary impact on the music industry but also in celebration of his deep connection to Power Station at Berklee NYC, where his work helped define the sound of generations,” said Betsie Becker, executive director, Berklee NYC. “His legacy lives on and continues to inspire the artists and producers who create on our campus today.”

About Bob Clearmountain

Bob Clearmountain is a pioneering mixing engineer and producer whose influence can be heard on some of the most iconic records of the last five decades. Described by Sound on Sound as having “his name on more hit records than anyone else in the history of popular music,” Clearmountain has helped define the sound of modern rock, pop, and R&B through his work with legendary artists, such as Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Bryan Adams, Roxy Music, INXS, the Pretenders, Crowded House, and Hall & Oates. 

Born in Connecticut in 1953, Clearmountain began his career in New York City at Mediasound Studios, where his first session was with Duke Ellington. He quickly rose through the ranks, engineering for Kool & the Gang and Sister Sledge. In 1977, he became one of the most requested mix engineers at the newly opened Power Station, helping shape the sound of late 1970s and early ’80s recordings. 

Clearmountain's mixing credits include Bruce Springsteen's Born in the U.S.A., Bryan Adams's Reckless, and Chic’s self-titled debut. He also worked on albums by the Pretenders and Crowded House. His live mixing résumé features some of the most significant broadcasts in music history, including Live Aid (1985), the Concert for New York City (2001), 12-12-12: The Concert for Sandy Relief (2012), and the Foo Fighters’ Taylor Hawkins tribute concerts at Wembley Stadium and Los Angeles (2022). His film and TV credits include The Lost Boys, Legend, Meet the Robinsons, Happy Feet, the Rolling Stones concert documentary Shine a Light, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame shows in 2022, 2023, and 2024. He has earned multiple Grammy and Emmy awards, including wins for Springsteen's We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions and NBC's Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special.

In 1994, Clearmountain built his private MixThis! studio in Pacific Palisades, California, centered around a custom SSL G Series mixing console. In 2020, he upgraded the space for immersive Dolby Atmos mixing. Following the loss of his home and studio in the 2025 Palisades fire, he is now putting the finishing touches on a new mix room, MixThis! FTA (From the Ashes), located behind Apogee Studios in Santa Monica. The new studio features a highly customized, upgraded SSL G Series console similar to the one lost in the fire and is scheduled to open later this year. 

At Apogee Studios, Clearmountain records on the iconic Neve 8068 console originally from New York’s Power Station, the very same desk he used in early sessions with Kool & the Gang, Sister Sledge, and David Bowie, bringing his career full circle. Apogee Studios is a unique creative space that functions both as a professional recording facility and an immersive audio performance venue. It is also home to KCRW-FM’s renowned Apogee Sessions, which have featured more than 100 artists, including Beck, Norah Jones, Alabama Shakes, and Vampire Weekend.

Clearmountain is also closely tied to Apogee Electronics, where his wife, Betty Bennett, serves as CEO. With over 200 major credits and a legacy of innovation, he remains a towering figure in audio production. His commitment to sonic clarity and emotional resonance continues to inspire generations of engineers and musicians.