our founder & team
Our Team
Nettie Freed
Owner & Founder + Creative Director
Nettie Freed is an artist, songwriter, & creative director from Santa Monica, CA. After a decade of recording and traveling to Nashville, Nettie finally moved to Tennessee in 2020. Her years of experience in studios, on set productions, & business management inspired the construction of Spellbound Recorders. Working in professional studios in Los Angeles from the age of 8, her intimacy of the business only drives her passion to nurture the working creative. Born in Los Angeles to an old-school music industry family, her grandfather is Alan Freed, the disc-jockey personality credited by many music historians as having coined the phrase "Rock 'n Roll'," & her father is the renowned music publisher Lance Freed.
Daryl Hill
Chief of Operations
Daryl Hill, a North Alabama-native, moved to Nashville with his family back in high-school. He immediately began his career spanning 40 years in construction and major industrial work, with expertise in heating, air, electrical, & plumbing. Daryl's heating & air installation + service business spanning nearly 2 decades grossed over a million dollars a year. In addition to his mechanical & engineering skills, Daryl's musical roots & family lineage run deep in the blues and gospel. He is responsible for Wilson County's first weekly "blues jam" where he gathered the community and spread awareness of the genre. An accomplished guitarist & songwriter himself, Daryl combined his passion for building & project management with his deep love of music & the arts.
Architecture Team
Steven Durr
Acoustician
Over the last 50 years, Steven Durr has played an integral part in the design of facilities for both recording and performance. Steve and his team have designed over 2,000 recording studios. Steve has been fortunate to work with some amazing clients including Sony Nashville, Garth Brooks, Mark Ronson, Taylor Swift, Willie Nelson, Electric Lady Studios, Disney, The Library of Congress, Austin City Limits, Vanderbilt University, and now, Spellbound Recorders. The most important design principles for Steve are vibe and emotion. If the vibe isn’t right, it doesn’t matter who the player is. According to his philosophy, if the work environment (both live and in the studio) can’t convey the emotional experience needed, then the work isn’t done. Principles of audio and acoustics are common threads in each project, however Steve and his team tailor each project to the end user and owner.
Matt Schlachter
Architect
After moving to Nashville, TN in 2011, Matt found himself under the tutelage of one of the most respected acoustical minds in the country, Steven Durr. Steve has graciously shared his knowledge and experience with Matt and showed how it was possible to fuse the music and design industries in one firm. Matt’s professional highlights include working on various types of design and engineering projects with the Black Keys, FAME studios, and Nick Jonas. Matt has earned degrees in both Architecture (Bachelors, UIUC 2007) and Audio Engineering (Associates, TFA 2011). He is a member of The American Institute of Architects (Assoc. AIA), Acoustical Society of America (ASA), Audio Engineering Society (AES), National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) and is a voting member of The Recording Academy (the GRAMMYS).
Joe Kaplan
Architectural Lighting
Joe Kaplan, a Texas native, began his career lighting shows for Jefferson Airplane, Carlos Santana, Janis Joplin, and Jimi Hendrix. In 1985, he opened an office in San Antonio, designing lighting for banking industry offices and upscale residences. He soon relocated his firm, KGM Lighting, to Los Angeles when he received the commission to light the St. James’ Club, the storied Sunset Strip establishment now dubbed The Sunset Tower. He and his partners thrived in the exclusive world of casino and hospitality design, with involvement in such top-level casino projects as Las Vegas's Palms, Bellagio, and Paris, and countless others. Now working independently out of his hometown of San Antonio, Joe continues to design. Spellbound has the honor of being his first recording studio featuring custom, state of the art LED lighting design and unique fixtures. Joe is also an accomplished guitarist and audiophile.