Student Spotlight: Mateo Londo o The producer talks about leaving Berklee to grieve the passing of a close friend and fellow student and then returning to finish his degree. He chronicles these emotions in his new song Pachanga.
By
Editorial Staff
September 6, 2024
Mateo Londo o
What's it like to study at Berklee? Our Student Spotlight series asks students all about their Berklee experience-what they're learning in class, what kinds of projects they're involved in onstage or behind the scenes, how they recharge, and of course, what they're listening to. In this edition, get to know Mateo Londo o, a percussionist and producer from Bogot , Colombia, who recently completed his degree in music production and engineering (MP&E).
Check out Londo os work on his website and follow him on Instagram.
Tell us about your path to Berklee. What made you decide to come here?Music has always been my true passion in life. I am the only musician in my family, and growing up, I was constantly immersed in some form of musical art, driving my parents crazy with all the noise in the garage. Berklee is a dream school for many contemporary musicians, and obviously it was a dream for me too. I knew I would regret not applying, even if it felt out-of-reach. So I prepared my absolute best work and focused all my effort on the potential opportunity of a Berklee acceptance letter. And you know what? It paid off!
My experience at Berklee has been everything and more than I could ever imagine. It wasn't easy, but I wouldn't trade a single moment for the world. In fact my experience was a bit unique, in that I took a seven-year hiatus before returning to finish my degree. In 2015, with only two semesters left before graduating, my close friend and Berklee peer Stacey Park passed away. Her death was extremely unexpected and traumatic. Transparently, my sadness was so consuming that I wasnt able to focus on my education; so I stepped away from Berklee for a little while. It took a long time (a lot of personal growth and healing) to be ready to return to a place that I associated with tremendous pain and joy.
I might not have gone the traditional route, but I accomplished something that I am so proud of.
- Mateo Londo o
Going back to school farther into adulthood meant working multiple full-time jobs, while also balancing classes and more responsibilities than I had my first time around. If I'm being honest, it was really hard. But here I am-a Berklee graduate! I might not have gone the traditional route, but I accomplished something that I am so proud of. I now think of each new opportunity and endeavor with a similar mindset-always give it your all; you never know unless you try.
Whats been your favorite class so far, and what has it taught you? I have truly enjoyed so many of my classes. One that I found endlessly engaging and interesting was MTEC-420 Advanced Mastering, Editing, and Delivery with Jonathan Wyner.
Whats a project youve worked on since coming to Berklee that youve been especially excited about? Pachanga has been my biggest vision goal in all of my Berklee career since joining the MP&E Department. During my first orientation with MP&E in Studio 1 (Shames Family Scoring Stage), the department leaders explained the capability of recording all three Berklee studios simultaneously. It was at that very moment that I made it my mission to be the first student to make it happen. After months of organization, dedication, creative collaboration, and persistence, I received approval from the MP&E Department to move forward with my huge team to make this dream a reality.
Watch Londo os ambitious project come to life in the video for Pachanga, featuring vocalist and Berklee student Gaby Villamizar, who performs as Zesi:
How did the song Pachanga come about, and what does it mean to you?
The Pachanga artwork is an original design by Berklee student Pierangela Dozsa.
In Colombia, our culture is very rich in music, food, and community-but above all, we are joyful. We try to have the mentality that even when life is hard and brings you down, there is still a reason to celebrate. I wanted to write a song that encompassed the feeling of community, with a Latin twist that honored my Colombian heritage. The meaning of pachanga roughly translates to party in Spanish, and I wanted to create something that portrayed the importance of celebrating life regardless of life's ups and downs. Pachanga is meant to take the listener on a celebratory journey of emotions-where a melodic hornline is repeated throughout the song in variations, demonstrating a party through all seasons of life. In addition to pursuing a unique and never-done-before engineering challenge, this project provided the platform for representation and appreciation of Latin culture.
What's next for you? Any projects or opportunities you're looking forward to?I am currently packing up my life in Boston and preparing for a cross-country move to LA. I am mixing three albums, all to be released within the next few months, and I am trying to find a mastering assistant position out in LA.
5 Songs from Mateos Favorite ArtistsWe asked Mateo to pick five songs from some of his all-time favorite artists. Heres what he said:
1. PaMayte, Carlos VivesCarlos Vives is a Colombian artist that I grew up listening to. My parents would play his music while cleaning the house or driving to the store. Carlos Vives's Pa'Mayte is the epitome of happiness in my opinion and always lifts me up when Im feeling down.
2. Beat It, Michael JacksonNeed I say more? The king of pop will always hold the crown, and this song combines my two favorite genres: pop and rock.
3. Halleys Comet, Billie EilishHalley's Comet is an absolutely beautiful song that has had a choke hold on me since it was released. From the pro
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
13/06/2026
Latest expansion pack includes 252 presets
Devious Machines have recently introduced another expansion for their powerful multi-effects plug-in, Infiltrator...
13/06/2026
Create custom DAW/plug-in controllers using prompts
MetaGrid have recently introduced an all-new AI Builder function to their touchscreen-based control surf...
13/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
YES Network and The Gotham Sports App will air seven Athletes Unlimited Softball...
12/06/2026
The United Football League will host its FAST Innovation Suite at the 2026 United Bowl presented by Credit One Bank on Saturday, June 13 at 3:00 p.m. ET at Audi...
12/06/2026
PTZOptics and LayerJot will present live demonstrations at InfoComm 2026 showing how natural-language AI prompting, robotic camera control, and on-device comput...
12/06/2026
MultiDyne Video and Fiber Optic Systems will exhibit at InfoComm 2026, featuring...
12/06/2026
Ateme has announced that Eurovision Services is using Ateme's software-based frame-rate conversion technology for international live event workflows. The de...
12/06/2026
Bitmovin and Simplestream have announced a partnership with Xperi to simplify the launch of OTT streaming services on TiVo OS smart TVs and devices. The collabo...
12/06/2026
Net Insight has announced that a multinational technology company is deploying a...
12/06/2026
MLB Players Inc., the business arm of the MLB Players Association, has announced a partnership with Athletes First to develop and sell brand partnerships across...
12/06/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D) and VuWall have announced the CommandKeyboard-Advanc...
12/06/2026
Comcast Smart Solutions announces a new smart technology deployment with Major L...
12/06/2026
Elevation Worship completed the initial leg of its Elevation Nights 2026 tour ...
12/06/2026
AJA Video Systems has announced KONA IP25 support for Colorfront Transkoder and ...
12/06/2026
Audinate Group Limited (ASX: AD8) will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth C7321, Ce...
12/06/2026
Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould has announced the appointment of Scott Adametz as Chief Technology Officer. The Pac-12 describes the hire as the first CTO appo...
12/06/2026
Grass Valley has announced AMPP Edge Live, a production system combining Grass Valley hardware, NVIDIA Blackwell GPU acceleration, and AMPP OS in a single platf...
12/06/2026
At one time a trailblazer with the launch of the Longhorn Network, the Universit...
12/06/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
12/06/2026
Chyron has announced PAINT 10.4, an update to its illustrated replay and sports ...
12/06/2026
SVP, Production, Mark Gross: With the new schedule, with not having every Sunday night, it has given us an opportunity to take a step back and reimagine what o...
12/06/2026
For Televisa Technical Engineering Manager Roberto N nez Ibarra and the small team of 12 technicians and two production personnel at the IBC things are already ...
12/06/2026
Simple Steps to Better Acoustics - Taming The Small Room
Most of us mix in spare rooms and small spaces, where the acoustics fight us at every turn. At Gear...
12/06/2026
Latest addition expands vintage-inspired effects palette
Meris' Ottobit pedal range draws its inspiration from vintage gaming consoles, and the latest a...
12/06/2026
Soundbox-based chamber strings series expanded
Sonora Cinematic have just announced the launch of the second instalment in their Soundbox-based chamber stri...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
AJA Announces KONA IP25 Integration with Colorfront Software
Brie Clayton June 12, 2026
0 Comments
Collaboration enables uncompressed SMPTE ST 2110 I/O ...
12/06/2026
URSA Cine 12K LF Used to Create Visuals for STUTS' K-Arena Concert
Brie Clayton June 12, 2026
0 Comments
Organic visuals projected on a giant scre...
12/06/2026
MTI FILM Acquires Mango New Edit, Expanding its Global Post-Production Services ...
12/06/2026
AI Point Tracking Speeds Up Complex VFX Tracks in Mocha Pro
Jessie Electa Petrov June 12, 2026
0 Comments
The 2026.5 release adds automatic point trac...
12/06/2026
Bitmovin, a provider of video streaming solutions, has partnered with Simplestream, a provider of OTT and broadcast solutions, and technology provider Xperi, to...
12/06/2026
Leostream Corporation, creator of the world-leading Leostream Remote Desktop Access Platform, today announced Jigsaw24, a leading B2B IT solutions provider wit...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
How Aussie indie games and screen are levelling up with IP 11 June 2026
Ari Harrison, Pro Jank Footy
Head of Games Joey Egger and Ari Harrison of Umbrella sha...
12/06/2026
AgentPerf from Artificial Analysis, the industry's first agentic AI benchmark, gives developers, enterprises and infrastructure providers a clear way to com...
12/06/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils First-Look Images from Villaflor, Santiago Mitre's New Film
Entertainment
12 June 2026
GlobalArgentina
Link copied to ...
12/06/2026
Back to All News
Cross the Boundaries of the Real World into the Spirit Realm i...
12/06/2026
With John Daro, DI Colourist at Warner Bros. Water Tower Color Tuesday 23 June, 10am-1pm or 3-6pm
Restar Corporation
Tokyo
Register here
John Daro is the ...
Student Spotlight: Mateo Londo o The producer talks about leaving Berklee to grieve the passing of a close friend and fellow student and then returning to finish his degree. He chronicles these emotions in his new song Pachanga. 
