Austin Freshwater has been appointed as the next Managing Director of digital audio mixing console specialist DiGiCo, effective immediately.
The directors of DiGiCo’s parent company, Audiotonix, which also oversees entertainment technology brands Allen & Heath, Calrec, DiGiGrid, Group One Limited, KLANG:technologies, Solid State Logic and newly-acquired Sound Devices LLC made this decision, in part, thanks to Freshwater’s outstanding performance against the unpredictable landscape of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We were talking about Austin moving into the MD position just before Covid-19 hit, by which time it didn’t feel right for me to run off into the hills,” says Audiotonix CEO James Gordon, who had made the role his own over the past 14 years. “I don't think it would have sent the right message to our customers and teams.”
During the past 18 months, Freshwater stepped up behind the scenes when the unforeseen impact on live events took hold, presenting him with a huge challenge far sooner than anyone was expecting.
“[Freshwater’s] performance and behavior over the last 18 months have been nothing short of phenomenal,” says Gordon. “He's done an amazing job in a company that, to be very honest, is used to winning all of the time.”
