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Electroacoustic music studios

The University of Birmingham has a long history of excellence in the field of electroacoustic music composition and presentation.

Our state-of-the-art studios have served to train some of the field's leading practitioners. Currently they consist of bespoke studios and other spaces within the Bramall Music Building, providing world-leading facilities for multichannel electronic music composition and related research.

Former students teach at major institutions within the UK and around the world, including at Harvard University, the University of Manchester, the University of Sheffield, Edinburgh University, the University of Huddersfield, the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand, the University of Malaysia, Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, and many more.

The world-renowned BEAST system has presented concerts across Europe, and for more than 25 years has represented the highest level of presentation in electroacoustic music.

Postgraduate students have the opportunity to work with BEAST, both having their works presented, and gaining valuable practical experience in the fields of sound reinforcement and audio technology through working on BEAST events in Birmingham, and in many cases abroad.

BEASTdome, our semi-permanently installed system in the Bramall Building's Dome rehearsal room, provides further opportunities for students and researchers to work with an advanced multichannel concert system in a regularly accessible space.

BEAST and the studios are at the forefront of research into composition large-scale multichannel electroacoustic systems, and is now capable of mounting concert systems with in excess of 100 individual loudspeakers, each discretely addressable.

Elgar Concert Hall with BEAST equipment and blue light

Courses

The Department of Music offers a number of undergraduate and postgraduate courses which involve electroacoustic music. Topics include:

  • Electronic Music Composition
  • Mixed Instrumental/Vocal and Electroacoustic Composition
  • Live or Real-Time Electroacoustics
  • Programming with SuperCollider, Max/MSP, etc.
  • Live Coding
  • Network Music Systems
  • Laptop Ensemble Composition, Theory and Practice
  • Multichannel electroacoustic techniques and sound diffusion
  • Sound Installations
  • Sound Recording, including Ambisonic and field recording.
  • Non-standard Synthesis
  • Sonification
  • History and Aesthetics of Electronic Music

Studio 1

Our flagship multichannel studio for postgraduate use is intended for large-scale multichannel electroacoustic composition as well as special projects. It is the most extensive of the six studios available.

The studio is based on an Apple Mac Pro computer with two MOTU 24Ao AVB interfaces. Whilst the room is designed with flexibility in mind its default configuration is as follows:

  • x12 ear-level Genelec 8030 loudspeakers.
  • x8 high Genelec 8030 loudspeakers (approx. 2.5m from ground).
  • x8 diffuse Genelec 1029 loudspeakers. (These are positioned on a shelf around the perimeter of the room and point towards the ceiling.)
  • x2 Genelec 7060 subwoofers.
  • x2 Genelec 1037 loudspeakers for midfield stereophonic monitoring.

Bespoke acoustic treatment and design by Acoustic Dimensions, including room within room architecture, provides a quiet environment.

Studio 2

Studio 2 is one of the five multichannel studios available for postgraduate students. It uses a speaker configuration of 2 + 10 + 2 subwoofers (including speakers at height).

The studio is based on an Apple Mac Xeon computer with a MOTU 896HD audio interface.

The main audio monitoring is provided by high-quality active ATC SCM50A speakers. For work on 8-channel compositions, monitoring is also provided via four pairs of active Genelec 8030A speakers, with further speakers suspended from the ceiling.

Bespoke acoustic treatment and design by Acoustic Dimensions, including room within room architecture, provides a quiet environment.

Hardware includes

  • Apple Mac Pro (Intel Xeon E5) computer
  • Apple Thunderbolt Display 27”
  • MOTU 896HD audio interface
  • ATC SCM50A monitor speakers
  • 10 x Genelec 8030A speakers
  • 2 x Genelec 7050B sub-woofers
  • 2 x DACS 8-channel volume control
  • DACS custom switcher
  • DACS custom cross-over
  • Korg MicroKontrol MIDI keyboard

Studio 3

Studio 3 is one of the five multichannel studios available for postgraduate students. It uses a speaker configuration of 2 + 10 + 2 subwoofers (including speakers at height).

The studio is based on an Apple Mac Xeon computer with a MOTU 896HD audio interface.

The main audio monitoring is provided by high-quality active ATC SCM50A speakers. For work on 8-channel compositions, monitoring is also provided via four pairs of active Genelec 8030A speakers, with further speakers suspended from the ceiling.

Bespoke acoustic treatment and design by Acoustic Dimensions, including room within room architecture, provides a quiet environment.

Hardware includes

  • Apple Mac Intel Xeon computer
  • 2 x Apple 20" TFT video displays
  • MOTU 896HD audio interface
  • ATC SCM50A monitor speakers
  • 10 x Genelec 8030A speakers
  • 2 x Genelec 7050B sub-woofers
  • 2 x DACS 8-channel volume control
  • DACS custom switcher
  • DACS custom cross-over
  • Korg MicroKontrol MIDI keyboard

Studio 4

Studio 4 is one of the five multichannel studios available for postgraduate students. It uses a 5.1 speaker configuration.

The studio is based on an Apple Mac Xeon computer with a MOTU 896HD audio interface.

The main audio monitoring is provided by high-quality active Genelec 8030A speakers, and a Genelec subwoofer.

Bespoke acoustic treatment and design by Acoustic Dimensions, including room within room architecture, provides a quiet environment.

Hardware includes

  • Apple Mac Pro (Intel Xeon E5) computer
  • Apple Thunderbolt Display 27”
  • 2x 20" Apple TFT video displays
  • MOTU 896 audio interface
  • Genelec 8030A monitor speakers
  • Genelec 7050B sub-woofer
  • DACS multi-channel volume control
  • DAT recorder

Studio 5

Studio 5 is a semi-anechoic recording room.

It is used by postgraduate composers, and by undergraduates when supervised by their course tutor. It provides an environment for recording with extremely low levels of ambient noise.

The room is linked via dedicated trunk lines (both analog and audio over ethernet) with Studio 4 and the Recording Room.

Studio 6 / Cluster

Studio 6 is a 17 station iMac computer cluster used by undergraduate and postgraduate students in the Music Department. It serves both as a teaching space, and as a general use lab.

Amongst the available software applications are:

  • REAPER
  • Audiosculpt
  • Cubase Studio
  • GRM Tools
  • Max/MSP
  • SuperCollider
  • Sibelius

Studio 7 / Recording room

Studio 7 is used as a Recording Control Room and stereo composition studio by undergraduate and postgraduate students studying composition and sound recording. Trunk lines provide up to 80 audio-over-ethernet connections to the Elgar Hall, Studio 5, and elsewhere within the building.

Bespoke acoustic treatment and design by Acoustic Dimensions, including room within room architecture, provides a quiet environment.

Hardware includes:

  • Apple Mac Pro computer
  • Roland REAC desk and MADI interface
  • Genelec monitoring system

Software

The following is a list of the most prominent software used in our electroacoustic music studios, with links to information where available Dozens of other software applications are also provided in the studios.