The BIMM (British and Irish Modern Music Institute) in Birmingham opened a new recording facility at the start of the 2018/19 academic year, with an Audient ASP8024 Heritage Edition console at its centre. The facility was designed from the ground up, calling on the expertise of college principal Antony Greaves, UK studio design and build company The Studio People, BIMM Tutors and Audient. The facility has been in continuous use since.

The studio is the stage for tutor Steve Osborne (who has produced/worked on tracks by U2, Happy Mondays, Massive Attack) to host a Music Production degree course students and enables them to apply their skills in a professional-level recording environment.

‘It is primarily used for educational purposes, but a range of commercial and outreach projects are also being recorded, including a new single for a DJ and orchestra group, and various student commercial bands which are being developed concurrently with their studies,’ Music Production Course Leader/Tutor, Dr Paul Rogers confirms. ‘It is also used with other courses as an introduction to studio session playing and will be used in our forthcoming Music Production Diploma which launches this year.

‘We have also had some high-profile guests visiting the studio and providing hands on masterclasses for the students through the desk, including world renowned mastering engineer Mandy Parnell, and producer Romesh Dodangoda who has worked on many successful releases for artists such as Motorhead, Bring Me The Horizon and Funeral For A Friend.’

Fully satisfied with the large-format console, BIMM Birmingham subsequently invested in 45 Audient iD4 USB audio interfaces for its Mac suites. ‘We use iD4s in combination with iMacs, Midi keyboards and Ableton Push Controllers. The iD4s are great for quickly plugging in our Large Diaphragm Condenser mics and monitoring through the Beyer Dynamic headphones. These are accessed by almost every degree course at some point,’ Rogers explains.

Whie compact, the iD4s incorporate the Audient console mic preamp, ensuring students get the Audient sound both in the studio, as well as in the Mac lab. Indeed this aligns with the educational facility’s outlook, as Rogers explains: ‘BIMM Birmingham is committed to keeping pace with current industry trends in music technology and we work hard to reflect this in maintaining the latest gear and approaches to recording and production.

‘We have been developing contemporary production workflow environments as well as utilising the enduring traditional recording studio model. We are also expanding our ability to provide immersive sound environments including 7.1 surround systems and ambisonic recording technology and continue to have our ears to the ground to discover the latest innovations and media formats.’

The future looks to be packed with great initiatives at BIMM Birmingham too. Examples are full-day recording sessions as part of a Rethinking Education event; Experience Day events to create sound to moving image projects and further masterclasses, including sessions with Black Sabbath producer, Mike Exeter, and others.

More: www.audient.com