MUSIC INSTITUTE OPENS IN ABBEY ROAD STUDIOS

Students around the world can learn music production and sound engineering in the footsteps of the Fab Four 

Beatles fans are being offered the chance to follow in the footsteps of the Fab Four after Abbey Road Studios announced that it is launching its own educational institute.

Students aged 18 and over from around the world will be able to study for a 12-month advanced diploma in music production and sound engineering at the institute, which will be housed in the legendary north London studio complex where the Beatles recorded nearly all their albums and singles.

They are also promised the opportunity to use the studio’s recording spaces, control rooms and equipment.

The studio has also been used by the likes of Paul Robeson and Pink Floyd, but it is most famously associated with the Beatles, who named their 1969 album after the road in St John’s Wood where the studio is based. The cover is one of the most famous in rock history and attracts droves of fans to recreate the image of the band walking across the pedestrian crossing outside the studio, which was set up in 1931. The studio changed its name to Abbey Road the year after the album was released.

The course will be taught by recognised music industry experts, including producers and label executives, with guest lectures from Abbey Road Studios engineers. Additional Abbey Road Institutes will launch in Berlin, Munich, Melbourne and Sydney for the September 2015 intake, with more locations to be announced. But all students will have the opportunity to visit and learn at the London base, where there will be a new, purpose-built classroom and studio facilities.

Luca Barassi, an audio engineer who will head the Abbey Road Institute, London, said: “Synonymous with excellence in recorded music for more than 80 years, Abbey Road’s continued success is largely due to its staff and their knowledge. Now we will be able to share some of this expertise in a course which will provide first-class vocational training for people interested in forging a career in the music industry.”

The institute is accepting applications for a limited number of places in the September 2015 intake at all locations.