Berklee presented an American Master Award to Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb on Monday, March 19 as part of the college’s 33rd annual Nashville student trip. A native of Savannah, Georgia, Cobb has made some of the most respected and critically acclaimed albums to come out of Music City, including Chris Stapleton’s Traveller, Jason Isbell’s Southeastern and Something More Than Free, and Sturgill Simpson’s Metamodern Sounds in Country Music.
The award was presented at Warner Music Nashville in front of more than 120 Berklee students and other invited guests. After the ceremony, Cobb gave the students a tour of his studio, the famed RCA Studio A, and answered questions about his process.
“Dave Cobb is the consummate American record producer,” said BerkleeNYC Executive Director Stephen Webber, who presented the award. “His body of work is as important as it is diverse, and his commitment to the emotional integrity of each song serves as an inspiration to us all.”
The winner of Grammy and Country Music Association (CMA) awards, Cobb has also has worked with notable artists including Mary Chapin Carpenter, Jamey Johnson, Lori McKenna, Brandi Carlile, Anderson East, Shooter Jennings, and Brent Cobb.
The American Master Award is presented by Berklee to industry leaders whose openness, generosity, and deep commitment to music education have made a positive impact on the lives of young musicians, providing them opportunities to grow as artists and leaders. Past recipients of the award include T Bone Burnett, Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, Jim Ed Norman, Eddie Bayers, and Tony Bongiovi.
For 33 years, a group of Berklee students has spent its spring break in Nashville, getting an intensive, in-depth look at the music industry and gaining invaluable insight through clinics and workshops with accomplished alumni artists, songwriters, producers, and engineers. The trip, which began with five students, has grown to 120 students each year and has been responsible for hundreds of Berklee alumni choosing Nashville as the place to launch their careers, including Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, and Charlie Worsham. Led by Webber and Pat Pattison, professor of liberal arts, more than 3,500 students have attended the program since its inception.
