Lyle Greenfield - Creative Director

Bang’s founder is a former agency writer and creative director (J. Walter Thompson, Saatchi & Saatchi) who decided in 1990 that his true calling was to work on the “music side.” He initially set up shop in legendary hip-hop studio Calliope Productions in New York City. In addition to music production, he established Bang as an indie label, releasing artistic projects with distribution by Rhino Records, MCA Int’l and MTV.  Lyle was a founding member of The Association of Music Producers (AMP), and is the President of AMP’s National Board. (In his spare time, he built the first winery on the South Fork of Long Island — and served as president of the Long Island Wine Council for four years.)

Brian Jones - Executive Producer

Brian Jones began his career as the front man in his own indie rock band, writing songs and touring the country. A few years in the dual roles of performer and manager led to an unexpected engagement: In 1996 Brian was invited to join the William Morris Agency, the entertainment industry powerhouse, to work with the company’s A-List artist roster. In 2000 he returned to the music-making side, joining New York’s BANG Music as composer and senior producer. By 2004 he established himself as one of the shop’s most prolific composers and musicians and was made a full partner in the company. Brian’s writing credits range from multiple TV series (Shear Genius, Blow Out, House Wars, MTV’s Summer On The Strip) to dozens of national spots, from Verizon and Mini Cooper to Victoria’s Secret and McDonald’s.

Aaron Green - Executive Producer

As co-founder of LA’s Studio 8 Sound and Media On Demand Productions, Aaron Green started in feature film production at a young age.  In the mid 1990’s he transitioned into post production audio and has made sound waves in the entertainment industry for more than a decade now. Focusing on the audio post arena, his production and creative credits have grown to embrace sound design and music supervision on over 80 feature films and television series (Collateral, XXX, Basic, Holes, Miracle and Cheaper By The Dozen, and the critically acclaimed hit Fox series "24") as well as dozens of commercials and promos. Aaron’s close relationships with directors, producers and audio supervisors at every major studio in LA have helped make his creative and production services an indispensable resource to the industry.

Brad Stratton – Executive Producer

The newest member of Bang’s New York forces has been around the world of music—literally.  From Polygram-signed recording artist in the Czech Republic performing 120 nights a year throughout Europe…to V.P. / Director of Music Production for D’Arcy New York…to Executive Producer at Sound Lounge Music.  A true Renaissance man, Brad is “all things” that the 21st Century music professional could possibly be: composer, musician, audio engineer, obsessive about quality…and focused on the future of our constantly evolving industry.  And with experience managing a multi-million dollar music budget as well as delivering quality on an indie shoestring, he makes business sense out of making music.

Sara Russo - Senior Producer/Account Executive

Sara began her career in marketing on the ad agency side, first as account executive at DeVito/Verdi on Seagram, then at Lowe Worldwide on GMC. But DJ-ing on college airwaves probably had a greater impact on her ultimate career choice than that Bachelor of Arts in Communications. In the Y2K, she was introduced to Bang’s Lyle Greenfield, who believed that her strategic intelligence, combined with an exuberant passion for music, could be a brilliant mix for the company. Sara Russo is now producing and managing some of the shop’s most important accounts, from fashion to automotive.

Espen Noreger - Composer/Musician/Oil Rigger

Born and raised in Stavanger, Norway, Espen discovered early on that one way to get off the North Sea oil rigs was to be a drummer in a rock band. That band, The Getaway People, recorded two acclaimed albums for Columbia and toured the world. In 2002 Espen was introduced to Bang’s Brian Jones by BMI’s head of Writer Relations and they began collaborating on songwriting and spot scoring (Virgin Atlantic, Samuel Adams Beer, Victoria’s Secret, and various television and film projects). Today, Espen writes and records on both sides of the Atlantic, and is executive producer at Bang’s studios in Norway.

Ryan Billia - Engineer/Sound Designer

A graduate of Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA., Ryan grew up playing drums in garage bands with friends. While in high school in the early '90's, he discovered electronic music and found himself deep in early rave culture.  He bought himself a pair of turntables and as many records as he could find, met some DJ’s and learned the technique.  All the while, he was studying ballet and modern dance with world-renowned teachers in some of the countries most prestigious schools in Boston, NY, and North Carolina. He danced professionally with companies in Hartford and San Francisco until an unfortunate injury cut his career short.  Ryan came to BANG after having worked at Ear Goo in NYC.

Jane Mangini - Composer/Musician

One of the most committed musicians we have ever met, Jane Mangini was born and raised in Florida, then moved to Boston for submersion in music at the Berklee College of Music. Jonathon Mover, of the acclaimed progressive group Einstein, dubbed her “the goddess of polyrhythmic playing.” In 1999, BANG presented Jane an opportunity to write and record in a unique environment—without compromising her live playing. Her sometimes quirky, sometimes heart-wrenching scores have been heard on dozens of spots, series and short films. Since early 2003, she’s released two ground-breaking records of original material on Peak Records, under the artistic name O’2L. Liner notes: Jane and husband/guitarist Al Pitrelli are recording/touring members of the multiplatinum music phenomenon Trans Siberian Orchestra.

Derek Menzies - Composer/Musician

If there’s such thing as a spontaneously combusted musical prodigy, Derek Menzies is it. Self-taught on more than a dozen instruments (guitar, drums, flute, keyboard, saxophone and bass, to name a few), every sound in his mesmerizing compositions are uniquely his. His first "professional" application of his passion for music took place at an NYC facility for troubled youth. As a counselor, he engaged wounded street kids, gang members and recovering junkies in “music-as-healing.”  Derek was “discovered” during recording sessions at Bang for his band Aqua Vibe. Soon after, he was composing tracks for major brands, from Victoria’s Secret to Samuel Adams. In 2004, he won a Boards Magazine “First” award.

Haavard Hana - Composer/Producer

Norwegian-born and musically bred (but drawn to warmer shores), Haavard divides his time between U.S. and European music production. Characterizing his influences as a transcontinental blend of roots blues and rock, DJ remixes and electronica, Haavard has written and recorded original songs for Scrubs (Touchstone Television), Furnance (Melee Entertainment) and Good Luck Chuck (Lionsgate Pictures), along with spots for Washington Mutual, Victoria’s Secret, Hewlett Packard and, yes, Swiffer!  Today, he is LA-based, producing and writing for Bang at Studio 8.

Paul N. J. Ottosson - Sound Designer/Supervising Sound Editor

Bang at Studio 8 is proud to represent one of the most respected Sound Designers/Supervising Sound Editors working in film today. Paul N. J. Ottosson was most recently Supervising Sound Editor and Designer for Spider-Man 3, a position he held on these major titles, as well: Stranger Than Fiction, The Grudge, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, RV, Spider-Man 2 and the 79th Oscar “Special Segment,” to name a few. His sound design credits are prodigious, impacting visual scenarios ranging from heart-pounding action to covertly evocative…to the height of high-tech.

Kevin Fisher – Songwriter

Kevin Fisher wrote his first song when he was two years old. Since that fateful day, Kevin has written over a thousand songs, performed all over the world, garnered basketfuls of accomplishments (not the least of which was losing on Star Search) and most recently, had a couple of his songs hit the country charts. He has two gold records (Rascal Flatts, Sara Evans) a platinum record (Rascal Flatts) and a tepid cup of coffee on his desk (Starbucks).  His band Naked to the World recorded four CDs, was awarded Acoustic Band of the Year by National Academy of Songwriters.

John Leveque – Supervising Sound Editor

John Leveque has been honored with four Academy Award nominations for Under Siege, The Fugitive, Clear and Present Danger and Batman Forever and has won two British Academy Awards for The Fugitive and Under Siege.  John has been working in sound for over thirty years and has shown his talents in such films as Doom, Elf, The Core, The Sum of All Fears, Scary Movie and Three Kings, just to name a few.  He is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.

Odin Benitez – Supervising Sound Editor

Odin Benitez’s most recent work can be seen in the film version of Sex and the City and Old Dogs starring John Travolta and Robin Williams.  His credits include National Treasure: Book of Secrets, Fred Claus, Evan Almighty, Wild Hogs, Barnyard, The Ant Bully, Fun with Dick and Jane, National Treasure, The Cat In The Hat and Bruce Almighty among many, many more.  Odin has received two Golden Reel nominations for his work on The Nutty Professor and the short film Handicapper General.