With its official opening set for 19 September, The Visconti Studio is set to take its place on the Kingston University London campus.
Set up in partnership between the university and record producer Tony Visconti, The Visconti Studio is part of a research and teaching project centred around the heritage of technology, associated practices and the sound of analogue recording. The project will allow students training in recording techniques, as well as the use and maintenance of equipment.
It will be based around a 300m2 octagonal live room and stocked with vintage and rare recording equipment – some from Studer, Neve, Neumann and Universal Audio. The tape-based facility will also feature a collection of instruments including a Mellotron, a Hammond organ and Steinway concert grand piano.
Other partners on this project include the British Library and the London Science Museum. Tony Visconti will be a key contributor to the project's research and enterprise outputs. The project will see him working with students and staff of Kingston University, as well as invited artists, to produce records. The studio will also be available for commercial hire.
‘It’s for real. It will open in September,’ Visconti promises on his Facebook page.
