Estudio 13 Complex Rises in Mexico City by Walters Storyk Design Group (WSDG)

Article source: Walters Storyk Design Group (WSDG) 

A striking new seven-story building featuring a unique glass wall, and a dramatic, balcony-like profile serves as the new home for Estudio 13.  Designed by WSDG to house the triplex 7000 sq. ft. recording studio, the building makes a distinctive addition to Mexico City’s architectural profile.

Three views of Estudio 13 Live Room, Image Courtesy © Francisco Aguilera de Alba

• Acoustic Consultants: Walters Storyk Design Group (WSDG)
• Project: Estudio 13 Complex Rises
  
• Location: Mexico City, Mexico
• Photography: Francisco Aguilera de Alba

Three views of Estudio 13 Live Room, Image Courtesy © Francisco Aguilera de Alba

For over seventeen years, Estudio 13 Head Producer/Musical Director, José Francisco Aguilera, and Studio Operations/Project Manager, Eduardo Acosta recorded a wide variety of live performances on location in major concert halls.  Their original studio was equally busy hosting music, voiceover and radio recording assignments. As their business continued to thrive, their on-going success led to the need for a larger, more acoustically advanced recording space.  In 2013 they contacted WSDG co-principal Sergio Molho, and began a search for a site for a new home for their business.

Three views of Estudio 13 Live Room, Image Courtesy © Francisco Aguilera de Alba

By mid 2015 they had acquired the land, completed plans for a mixed use, seven-story studio/residential building, and had begun the construction phase.  Today, Estudio 13’s ground floor 560 sq. ft.  ‘Piano/Rehearsal Room’ features a prized Bösendorfer Imperial.  Ideal for string sections or choral ensembles, the live room is linked to both of the studio’s control rooms.  The 160 sq. ft. CR A on the 2^nd floor features a 48-channel AWS 948 SSL Console, a 5.1 Monitoring system outfitted with Focal SM9 speakers, and a Sub 6 Focal Subwoofer. The 2^nd fl. is highlighted by a 350 sq. ft. Live Room, which extends, balcony-like over the Piano Room, and boasts a 23 ft. high ceiling, and many windows.  WSDG signature acoustics were developed and fine-tuned by Belo Horizonte, Brazil-based Partner/Acoustician, Renato Cipriano.  With two spacious Iso booths, Estudio 13 is ideal for flawless tracking. Designed primarily for stereo mixing and mastering, the 3^rd fl. 150 sq. ft. CR B and Iso booth is also linked to the Piano Room and, is geared for voice-over and radio recording.  To provide effortless communication between artists, producers and engineers, the entire complex is linked for video as well as audio connectivity.

Estudio 13 CR A, Image Courtesy © Francisco Aguilera de Alba

Miami-based WSDG Partner/Art Director/Interior Designer Silvia Molho worked closely with the clients to develop a handsome, spacious, colorful complex trimmed in natural wood and varying hues of blue, Estudio 13’s numerous windows offer natural sun, star and moonlight. Extensive glass between the CR’s, Iso’s and Live rooms provide welcome visual connectivity.  A three-story glass wall, slanted inward at the ground floor affords the building additional acoustic isolation from exterior sources and, a distinctive architectural touch.  Estudio 13 offers a collection of 100+ vintage and modern microphones, a deep pool of contemporary and classic analog peripherals and, a wide range of guitars and other instruments for clients use.

Estudio 13 CR A, Image Courtesy © Francisco Aguilera de Alba

“WSDG has a global reputation for extraordinary recording studio design,” said Estudio 13, principal, José Francisco Aguilera.  “We were pleased to have had the benefit of their design and acoustic expertise. Many of our clients have congratulated us on the look and the sound of our new recording facility.  Those comments regularly remind us that we made the correct decision.”

Estudio 13 CR B, Image Courtesy © Francisco Aguilera de Alba

About WSDG

WSDG, a media facility design and consulting firm has collaborated on over 3500 audio /video facilities worldwide. Credits include Jimi Hendrix’s Electric Lady Studios (1969); NYC’s Jazz At Lincoln Center and, Le Poisson Rouge; broadcast facilities for The Food Network, ESPN, and WNET; major education complexes for NYU, The Art Institutes and Berklee College of Music, Valencia and Boston (2015 TEC winner); and media rooms for such corporate clients as Hoffman La Roche, Cemex, and Sony. Studio projects include NYC’s Jungle City Studios for award winning engineer, Ann Mincieli, Green Day (CA), Jay-Z (NY), film composers Carter Burwell (NY), A.R. Rahman (India), Aerosmith (Boston), Bruce Springsteen (NJ), Alicia Keys (NY), and Paul Epworth’s The Church Studios (London).WSDG principals John Storyk, Beth Walters, Sergio Molho, Silvia Molho, Renato Cipriano, and Dirk Noy lecture frequently at universities and industry events, and contribute regularly to industry publications.  WSDG has collaborated with such noted architects as Frank Gehry, Norman Foster and Phillipe Stark.  WSDG is a ten-time winner of the NAMM TEC Award for outstanding achievement in Acoustics/Facility Design.  The firm maintains offices in New York, Miami, Buenos Aires (Argentina), Belo Horizonte (Brazil) and Basel (Switzerland) with representatives in Barcelona (Spain), Moscow, Guangzhou (China), Florence (Italy), Mexico City, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Estudio 13 CR B, Image Courtesy © Francisco Aguilera de Alba

Presentation Drawings, Image Courtesy © Walters Storyk Design Group (WSDG)

Tags: Mexico City

Category: Studio

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