ROLI is not just a company of specialists, but a community of polymaths creating new synergies between the professional and the personal.
After high school, Roland moved to Japan to practise Zen Buddhism. He earned a degree in Classical Chinese and Sanskrit Philosophy from Harvard University. His diverse achievements led to a scholarship to pursue an MA in Design Products at the RCA. There he invented the award-winning Seaboard GRAND and ROLI was born.
Making music and creating new sounds has always been Rafael’s passion. Encouraging the ROLI software development team for yet more features? if it means a better sound, it’s a must for Rafael.
Originally from Greece, Niko's lived, studied and worked as a singer, percussionist and film composer in 4 different countries and speaks 4 languages. He now applies his skills to support and in his free time, practices Wing Chun with friends and writes music and reads alone.
Daniel’s years of professional experience cover mechanical engineering, industrial design and entrepreneurship. Originally from San Francisco, he moved to London to attend the RCA and went on to start two design and technology companies in the UK. When time allows though, he loves time with the family, music and board sports.
An Ecuadorian designer/engineer now designing ROLI's spaces, Santiago helped perfect the production of the Seaboard's elastomer keywave. His designs use the physical and the digital to create playful, unexpected interactions and experiences.
With a BSc in Creative Music & Sound Technology and diverse professional experience, Chesney supports ROLI’s CEO. When not at ROLI he can be found performing with his band, exploring hidden corners of London, or learning about nature and science.
An avid outdoorsman, Danny has taught whitewater kayaking and guided wilderness trips in the Northeast and Alaska and is now dedicated to maintaining the smooth flow of ROLI's sales process. He once paddled alone down the length of the Grand Canyon.
With two degrees in logistics acquired in Paris, Nicolas contributes to the smooth running of the full end to end supply-chain operations at ROLI. You might also find him running through London or digging for some records to fill his collection.
Mike is a software engineer and brings to ROLI his experience of developing video technologies and his academic background in music technology. He enjoys hiking in the mountains, particularly in his native Scotland where he has bagged 7 Munros in a single day.
As an experienced carpenter and electronics enthusiast, with early works that include building The XX their interactive stage light-boxes, Jack divides his time improving ROLIs’ dynamic spaces and helping to build, test and develop ROLI’s ground - breaking products. He has a lifelong obsession with rhythm and aims to be as ambidextrous at ROLI as he is with the drums.
After obtaining a Masters from Imperial College, Noora worked as an engineer, estimator, and entrepreneur in different parts of the world. Her diverse background led her to the intersection of data and product at ROLI. When she’s not teaching machines to learn, she designs hand-embroidered clothing for her social enterprise, Taita Leila.
A multi-instrumentalist and composer, Jared uses his musical and technical background to ensure ROLI’s creators have a seamless software experience. He loves exploring musical styles from across the world and learning new instruments.
Ian was selected to exhibit at the New Designers exhibition in London in 2015 with a new product and service proposal for sterilising baby feeding bottles. He can be found creating a touch of sustain on his guitar and has performed at the likes of Latitude and the Great Escape Festivals.
Before completing his masters and PhD in anthropology, Matt studied sound engineering. He's traveled all over, including building a log cabin in an Alaskan forest. When not building or fixing things for ROLI he is probably riding his motorbike, pointing a camera at something or tattooing someone.
After 15 years touring the world as Keyboard Technician for artists such as Britney Spears, Lionel Richie and Leonard Cohen, Dan now leads the ROLI creator support team. He still tinkers with modular synthesisers and loves physics and cosmology.
Laura has worked in the tech industry for over 14 years, from small scale and start up enterprise to global blue chip market and world leaders including TomTom. Before work Laura can be found running the streets of east London or at a Barre class.
After studying Computing at Imperial College, Heen became ROLI's first Product Demonstrator having now performed at The Royal Albert Hall and Abbey Road. He loves jamming, travelling and eating fried chicken.
As a multi-instrumentalist across several genres, David loves making music. He applies two decades of MI industry experience to expanding ROLI’s international markets, feeding also his love of travel, languages and cultural diversity. He is also family-focused and enjoys exploring the Czech landscape, reading and practicing martial arts.
Shantha has a diverse background spanning climate change in government to consultancy to Dyson. At Dyson, he led the company’s first strategy team and latterly oversaw sales and marketing across Europe. He has a PhD in Molecular Biology, and is trustee of Centre for Sustainable Energy.
With experience in everything from global branding to product design, Yuta works on design engineering, bringing innovative ideas to life. His philosophy is to always try to strike a balance between rigour and creativity.
Originally from Belarus, Viyaleta decided to follow a passion for figures, numbers, formulas and logical processes. She is currently studying towards obtaining a full accounting qualification. In her spare time, she enjoys watching musicals, salsa dancing, and meeting friends.
A recent RCA Product Design graduate, Yu Kyung works with ROLI's product designers. For six years, she taught kids to sing and dance at a Sunday school, and she loves exploring London, cooking and making beautiful leather things.
With a background fluctuating between music performance and software development, Dimitri now works as a Software Tester for ROLI. He likes playing the drums and baking sourdough bread.
Having enjoyed working for both big and small companies, Andrew now leads the front-end and API development team at ROLI. Andrew plays a few stringed instruments, is trying to learn the double bass, and is currently exploring creating digitally manipulated acoustic music.
A music and tech enthusiast, Sherene leads the strategy for ROLI.COM and maintaining an exceptional customer experience for the brand’s online presence. You can often find her at concerts or dancing with friends around London.
As a sound designer, recording artist and recent graduate from The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, Purvi shares her knowledge and enthusiasm of technology with ROLI creators. She enjoys cultural diversity having lived in many cities, is always up for a challenging trek and can be found singing non-stop.
Toby's career in the games industry spans three decades and he has been instrumental in driving large scale projects. In addition to software development, Toby has enjoyed playing music from an early age starting with the violin.
With a creative and technical background in the games industry, Lewis now puts that to use while testing ROLI software. He’s a composer with a passion for exploring how people can experience and interact with music.
For over 20 years, Jim has brought legendary gaming franchises to market including Halo 3, Half-Life, and Counter-Strike. He co-founded Jerry Bruckheimer’s games division, and was the founding GM for Zynga’s Seattle studio. He is excited to bring the art of gaming to the world of music as the VP of Product.
Jay has toured the world a few times over as a drummer – playing gigs, festivals and tv/radio shows of all shapes and sizes. At ROLI, he specializes in providing technical support for FXpansion products and also helps with creating drum-related content. He enjoys cheese, ale and scenic walks.
With extensive experience heading up social for brands, most recently Etsy, Jon has a passion for finding new creative ways to engage and grow online communities. He's also a seasoned bassist who holds a degree in Popular Music Performance and a love for the UK's craft beer scene.
When not answering support requests from his dog-filled office in Germany, Alex is writing and recording songs with Fallow Deer Fawn. He graduated from the University of Applied Sciences in Düsseldorf with a diploma in social education and an MA in Culture, Aesthetics & Media.
With wide-ranging technical experience primarily in software QA and development, Makiko leads ROLI’s Software QA team and is passionate about making continuous improvements for better quality. She is a classically trained pianist and loves playing the violin in a chamber music group as a learner.
With a degree in French that took her to the island of Martinique for a year, Jemilla pursued a career in law where she has worked with many global startups and VC funds. When she is not being the legal eagle of the business, she loves to discover new restaurants, play football and travel.
With a BA in Japanese and an MA in international affairs, Tim worked as a human rights advocate before his passion for music technology led him to ROLI. Tim works with the CEO and Executive Office team, and he loves hiking, climbing and playing an analog modular synth.
Xorge has fifteen years of experience in engineering. He is passionate about design, manufacturing and creating groundbreaking products. Xorge is also a salsa dancer and has a black belt in karate.
Sam has worked at several music and tech companies and has been in love with music production since 2011. At ROLI, he uses his marketing expertise to deliver compelling campaigns for our global community. When he’s not at ROLI, you can find him digging for cassettes, photographing musicians and watching Marvel films.
With a wealth of experience across digital and graphic design, Matt has worked in a range of creative agencies on brands such as McLaren F1, Barclays, Umbro & Sky. He enjoys photography, reading and playing sports with his two kids.
A background in civil engineering and a BSc and MA in musical instruments makes Sheldon uniquely suited to manage ROLI's hardware programme. Sheldon likes to make acoustic instruments in his free time.
A professional trombonist and singer, Elizabeth has performed globally and on TV shows like American Idol. She now creates opportunities to unite the US music and technology communities and loves learning about food and culture.
After spending his younger years teaching guitar at a music school in his native Wolverhampton, Tom graduated from the University of Hertfordshire with an MSc in Audio Programming. He joined the web team at ROLI after a role as a QA Engineer at FXpansion.
Following a career as a professional footballer, Anthony remains enthusiastic about sport and wellbeing. Now with 20 years of sales experience, holding senior roles for various Sony divisions, he’s helping to build ROLI's success in to new international markets.
Tim grew up in the San Francisco Bay area and brings an extensive background in consumer electronics and supply chain to his role as CFO at ROLI. When not working with innovative technology companies, he can usually be found traveling the world playing golf.
Damian has over 20 years in B2B and B2C sales, marketing, and retail. He played a key role in expanding the Portable Navigation Device (PND) market in the UK, building and driving TomTom to clear and sustained market leadership. He also helped set up AFC Wimbledon, of whom he remains a lifelong supporter.
With years of experience in electronic music production and music technology, Lawrence now works to ensure ROLI and FXpansion products reach the highest possible standards. He enjoys composing, cycling long distances, and spending more time than perhaps necessary to make the perfect cup of coffee.
A highly experienced embedded engineer who has designed over 60 instruments including award winning medical equipment, Murtaza brings a wealth of knowledge to the development of new products for ROLI. He enjoys playing bridge and badminton.
Over the past thirteen years, Dewald has helped companies such as GoPro and Garmin grow their sales. A proud citizen of the Rainbow Nation (South Africa), he is excited to drum up Sales at ROLI and you'll be sure to hear him talking about travel, music and tech.
Jessica loves being outdoors (when the weather is nice), exploring new places, and is a keen festival goer. With a background in advertising production, she now puts her organizational skills to great use as part of the People Operations team at ROLI.
After recently graduating from LCC, Noeleen left her finance role in 2015 to pursue an exciting career in something she was truly passionate about. When she isn’t behind a screen, she’ll be found training as an aerial artist and attending contortion classes.
After a degree in Modern Languages, Nick qualified as an accountant and worked at a variety of tech companies before joining ROLI as Financial Controller. Outside of work, Nick is a not very fast runner, a half-decent chess player, and a fanatical supporter of his son’s U-10 football team.
With a degree in Sociology, Mimi is passionate about the study of culture, society and the power of human beings. She uses her knowledge to assist in the important task of growing the ROLI team. She also enjoys listening to R&B, crocheting and competing in dance-off competitions.