Mick Schultz Studio

Los Angeles, California

The owners of this newly acquired residential property had been looking for a site with enough space for an accessory building to house a personal recording studio as well as a gym and a pool. The upslope flag lot was just wide enough to accommodate a building, with a long driveway for privacy and to allow for the secondary structure to sit in front of and below the main residence.

Placing the personal studio and production facility for the producer and songwriter husband at the lower level helped create some distance from the house and aided in the soundproofing. The upper level is taken up by the gym, outdoor decks and a new pool and hot tub for the health-conscious young couple.

The pool level forms a natural transition and mediates the sloping topography between the structures. The new building follows the contours of the hill and driveway, but the main roof creates a countermove by sloping up and opening up to the sky to the east.

The studio consists of a tall, airy and light-filled recording room, complemented by an equally generous adjacent control and production room. Also included are a private visitor’s lounge and a sky-lit awards and art gallery that forms a guided pathway to the main studio entrance.

The live recording space features angular ceilings with integrated color-changing light strips and a faceted and triangulated pegboard wall, both designed to optimize the acoustics in the space. Tall windows offer daylight and views to the greenery outside, but can be closed with automated shades for privacy and a more intimate feel.

The control room has many of the same features and is equipped with a custom-built walnut workstation desk and massive freestanding main speakers. Acoustic diffusers in the rear wall are made from the same wood and are framed by a pair of windows leading to the day-lit gallery and entrance hallway.

The mostly white color scheme throughout the building is accented with dark gray fabric panels and a polished concrete floor. The gym above the studio opens up to the deck and all of its four walls feature large windows. The pegboard recurs here again on the ceiling and the floor is covered in rubber.

Discrete flat screens in wood frames are displaying digital art when not used as TV and video monitors, contributing to a serene and residential feeling in the building.