LAS VEGAS — Timeless Communications named renowned editor, author, lecturer, musician, audio installer and FOH engineer George Petersen the new editor of FRONT of HOUSE magazine, effective immediately. Petersen, the former editor of Mix magazine, pledged to take FOH to the “next level.”
“It is an exciting time for live events in general, professional audio specifically,” says Terry Lowe, president of Timeless, publisher of FOH, PLSN and Stage Directions magazines. “So this is the perfect time to hand the keys of FOH to George. He’s a brilliant engineer, an excellent musician, a great writer, and absolutely dedicated to the arts. Most importantly to me, having known him for so long, he’s a great leader for a team that enjoys promoting the industry and educating those who love it.”
“I’ve known Terry [Lowe] for years having worked with him at Mix, and have long admired the first-rate group of magazines and media properties he’s created,” Petersen says. “I’ve also admired the great staff he’s assembled over the years. These are passionate folks — my kinda people.”
Prolific Career
Petersen hails from San Francisco, but as a young boy his family moved to Italy where he spent his early teens mixing sound, playing drums in clubs, and teaching himself electronics. “Given the ‘reliability’ of those late 1960s P.A.’s … let’s just say my skills in repairing and modifying gear proved helpful!” he laughs. He would return to the city by the bay and earn degrees in chemistry, technical theatre, and life sciences/entomology from California State University Hayward. He worked his way through all those degrees operating and repairing AV gear, mixing bands, and somehow also became an IATSE Journeyman installing 35/70 mm projection and Dolby Stereo theatre equipment. Petersen would do his postgraduate work in film at San Francisco State where he taught classes in cinematography, editing, and sound design.
FOH readers know him from 1981 on, when he joined the editorial staff at Mix, quickly becoming editor, and then executive editor. During these years, he also was a columnist and senior technical editor to Sound & Video Contractor.
He is a respected author of five best-selling books and hundreds of products reviews in addition to more than 1,500 articles on audio technology. He’s also a sought after lecturer, frequently seen at the podium of industry events worldwide. He plays drums and sings with the original rock band Ariel, who is currently recording its fifth album. Artists who have appeared on their past projects include Ronnie Montrose, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, Brad Gillis and Bill “Sputnik” Spooner among others.
Petersen admits that there is more than the obvious that has drawn him to FOH at this time. “With the recent developments in sound reinforcement technology, ranging from compact line arrays, new DSP plugins, and measurement systems to tablet and iOS controllers … well, I’ve never been in a more exciting time for the industry. What can I say? I’m jazzed about leading the FOH team.”
“We expect great things out of this Renaissance man, and we know he won’t disappoint!” quips Lowe.
Petersen lives with his wife and two musical dogs (no word if they will be contributing writers) in a 125-year-old Victorian house on an island in SF. He also keeps busy doing research as an audio archaeology, studying the early days of recording and P.A. systems. Buy him a drink and he’ll dazzle you with information about under-appreciated audio pioneers E.C. Wente and Harry Olson.
He can be reached at george@fohonline.com.
