Client Requirement: To specify and install a recording studio offering excellent recording and playback quality for educational use and in-house music productions which can also be used for writing music to film too.
Andrew Quartermain from the Pro Corda Trust contacted Kazbar Systems after finding us online with a view to obtaining advice on converting an upper room in the Guesten Hall into a recording studio / production facility as part of the Lottery Funded expansion and renovation of Leiston Abbey (where Pro Corda is based) and the educational courses Pro Corda provide.
Leiston Abbey is a 13th century monastery, English Heritage have recently approved renovations to the Lady Chapel (where the roof has been put back on for the first time since the Dissolution of the Monasteries).
Other renovations underway include the large Barn, where the Thatched Roof is currently being replaced.
The Guesten Hall is a three story event space. The Basement is a cafeteria and social space, the first floor is an educational and performance area while the upper deck is where we have installed Pro Corda’s new Recording Studio. The Studio has a door which opens out onto a mezzanine floor looking out over the performance area below.
Centre of the Recording Studio is an Apple iMac connected to a MOTU Audio Interface. Pro Corda required Sibelius software to be installed, as a key part of the education they provide for String related music. Other software installed is Logic Pro X, Waves Effects and Native Instruments Komplete 10 Ultimate which provides a massive sound suite of excellently sampled acoustic instruments as well as alternative Synth and Effects plugins.
Although the iMac has a large 27” Display, Pro Corda needed a larger 42” second LCD Display mounted higher up on a wall to provide better viewing for students during tutorials within the studio.
For recording vocals and instruments, Pro Corda chose the Telefunken CU29 Copperhead microphone. This is an excellent all round choice for both male and female vocalists. The CU29 is mounted to an SE Stand 1 (for stability) with an SE Reflexion Filter which helps to contain the sound immediately around the microphone resulting in an excellent recording.
Also installed is an Audient ASP008 8 Channel Microphone Preamp. This is connected to a wall box which has microphone feeds from the performance area on the floor below. This way when Pro Corda have a live performance, they can make a high quality recording.
Pro Corda is a not-for-profit registered charity whose work offers education to youngsters via music workshops centred around String Ensembles. Pro Corda is supported by The National Lottery and BBC Children in Need
