In the wee hours of a mid-January morning in 2015 I landed in Dubai with my band, ready to begin a long sought-after residency at The Music Room, one of the city’s most interesting and prestigious live music venues. A few hours later we met Romario Fernando, the resident soundman, for our first soundcheck and to begin the symbiotic relationship with the engineer who would work alongside us on a nightly basis for the next few months.

I stayed in the warm comfort of that house gig for another two years while Romario left for freelancing and greener pastures, but he and I have remained connected over the last decade. We both became parents around the same time, and as I’ve watched his career evolve, I’ve only had a deepening respect for what he does and how he does it.

Romario is a sound engineer, bass player, father of two, and - as I learned sitting down with him for this chat - a consummate storyteller. It was such a pleasure to reminisce about the good old days in TMR, to find a sympathetic ear for my AV-tech-sound rants, and to hear highlights of some of his most memorable gigs doing sound for legends like Sepultura and Andrea Bocelli.

Most of the people I meet have set up shop in Dubai as adults (like I did), but Romario grew up in Dubai. He remembers when Sheikh Zayed Road truly was a two-lane road, not the 5-a-side super thoroughfare it is today, when half of the neighbourhoods that exist today were nothing but sand dunes, and when the local music scene looked completely unlike it does now. His description of shows ‘back in the day’ completely blew my mind.

He talks about how music (and vitamin D) helped him overcome a period of burnout, the differences in being a sound engineer in studio vs in live venues, how mentorship is interconnected with his vision of entrepreneurship, and how he’s evolved his business to be able to be more hands-on with his kids.

In his own words, Romario says that being behind the mixing desk is the closest you can get to being on stage. His passion for live sound and his determination to make artists sound their best onstage is truly an inspiration.

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