I am a musician and producer who has had experience in many facts of the industry, having started out as a busker and then moved on to touring and performing with rock bands in Australia, Japan and the UK. Since moving to the UK I have worked as a session bassist and accompanist for live performances on acoustic guitar, and have branched out as an audio engineer and producer after completing a HNC in Music Production in 2006. Most of my recent work has been with other artists, using my extensive experience in songwriting and arranging to assist them in developing and recording their original material. I have just completed a project with an Australian singer-songwriter (release date TBC) where I added full band and string arrangements to her keyboard and vocal tracks. I have also worked on community projects, having facilitated a community band for a Progressive Jewish congregation in London for nearly 20 years, and I frequently lead singalong sessions for clients with mental health issues. Having near-native competency in the Japanese language has allowed me to work with Japanese artists, and I have been called on in the past to interpret and translate for musicians visiting from Japan.…

Dean Staker

I am a musician and producer who has had experience in many facts of the industry, having started out as a busker and then moved on to touring and performing with rock bands in Australia, Japan and the UK. Since moving to the UK I have worked as a session bassist and accompanist for live performances on acoustic guitar, and have branched out as an audio engineer and producer after completing a HNC in Music Production in 2006. Most of my recent work has been with other artists, using my extensive experience in songwriting and arranging to assist them in developing and recording their original material. I have just completed a project with an Australian singer-songwriter (release date TBC) where I added full band and string arrangements to her keyboard and vocal tracks. I have also worked on community projects, having facilitated a community band for a Progressive Jewish congregation in London for nearly 20 years, and I frequently lead singalong sessions for clients with mental health issues. Having near-native competency in the Japanese language has allowed me to work with Japanese artists, and I have been called on in the past to interpret and translate for musicians visiting from Japan.…

Available to hire

I am a musician and producer who has had experience in many facts of the industry, having started out as a busker and then moved on to touring and performing with rock bands in Australia, Japan and the UK. Since moving to the UK I have worked as a session bassist and accompanist for live performances on acoustic guitar, and have branched out as an audio engineer and producer after completing a HNC in Music Production in 2006.

Most of my recent work has been with other artists, using my extensive experience in songwriting and arranging to assist them in developing and recording their original material. I have just completed a project with an Australian singer-songwriter (release date TBC) where I added full band and string arrangements to her keyboard and vocal tracks.

I have also worked on community projects, having facilitated a community band for a Progressive Jewish congregation in London for nearly 20 years, and I frequently lead singalong sessions for clients with mental health issues.

Having near-native competency in the Japanese language has allowed me to work with Japanese artists, and I have been called on in the past to interpret and translate for musicians visiting from Japan.

See more

Language

English
Fluent
Japanese
Fluent

Work Experience

Musician at Freelance
August 20, 2009 - Present
Musician, teacher, composer and producer.
Audio Editor/Content Producer at Japan Top 10 Podcast
October 7, 2019 - March 27, 2022
Audio editing of podcast series, usually working with remotedly recorded dialogue between two hosts, incorporating background music and jingles with featured tracks, and creating a free version and paid version (with bonus content) of each episode. Quality check of episodes edited by other staff. Researching music-related topics in Japanese and English and creating scripts for hosts. Hosting the bi-monthly Indie Artist Interview episodes, interviewing creators of Japanese-related music from around the world in Japanese and English.
Musician in Residence at Finchley Progressive Synagogue
April 21, 2007 - October 18, 2025
Musical leader for religious services and community events, composer of contemporary liturgical music and leader of community band.
Band Leader at Limmud UK
December 27, 2009 - December 31, 2019
Leader of the house band for the Limmud Festival UK which takes place in December each year, accompanying visiting artists for their live performances, liaising with the artists prior to the event to source music to distribute to band members, organising the timetable for rehearsals and ensuring that musicians are present for sound checks.

Education

Higher National Certificate in Music Production at City of Westminster College, London
September 5, 2005 - July 30, 2006
City & Guilds - Sound Engineering at City of Westminster College, London
September 5, 2005 - July 28, 2006
Graduate Diploma in Japanese Studies at Birkbeck College, University of London
October 9, 2023 - July 27, 2024
Post Graduate Certificate in TESOL at York St John University, York, UK
September 30, 2024 - May 22, 2025

Qualifications

Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) - N1
July 1, 2019 - July 31, 2019

Industry Experience

Media & Entertainment, Education, Professional Services