destructive. Anyone who has passed the San Vicente roundabout in Madrid in recent decades, once the starting point for the road to Extremadura, will have engraved on their retina the image of a building collapsing next to Principe Bio . Station.
Originally, the northern stationas the station for trains arriving from the capital from that region in Spain, was opened in 1882. Trains from Galicia continued to arrive when they were closed in the 1990s to divert to Transportation exchange and entertainment center.
leave the fix Without a plan to reconvert part of its facilities. Specifically, the building was built in the 1920s for the departure of travelers which stood out from the rest as it was flanked by two towers.
In all this time, many proposals have been put on the table to take advantage of this deserted space 10000 square meters. The same thing that visitors and natives have witnessed is collapsing from the roundabout of San Vicente.
Four years ago, it opened its doors to operators and machines to form a project that saw the light of day last May: A A center dedicated to creativity and musical innovation “unique in the world”In the words of Guillermo González, president of Warner Music Iberia, the company promoting the idea.
He himself acts as a guide for this journalist on a tour of every corner of this “axis” – as Gonzalez calls it – renamed music station. Six recording studios, a rehearsal room, a photography and video set, a Theater (opened February 2020) and different workspaces for employees and artists.
What remains pending: a nightclub (the last details of which are being finalized); Taking advantage of one of the towers, the project houses a restaurant, a museum and a music store “like before”.
Unique studio
In the restoration of the building, the aesthetics of the old train station were preserved and some of its original elements, such as posters or banners, were recreated. In the music part, they teamed up with Dolby, a company whose technology contributed to the Design of recording studios and auditorium.
“For years there has been international cooperation between the two companies, so this association has arisen almost naturally,” says Global Vice President of Trade Agreements and Dolby Sales, Javier Foncillas, also during the visit.
Javier Foncillas, of Dolby, and Guillermo González, of Warner Music Iberia, after their interview with D+I at The Music Station recording studio. Photo: Noelia Hernandez.
Foncillas also admits R&I That the fact that this project is located in Spain was another incentive: “Although my position is global, I work in Madrid and one of my goals is Reassessing the Spanish-speaking world of the music industry“.
“In the ’80s and ’90s, Spain set the trend, but now artists from countries like Puerto Rico, Colombia or Argentina are doing it,” Gonzalez asserts. “With The Music Station, we want to take back this place and for Madrid to become a meeting point for Latinos, Americans, ‘Anglos’, Europeans, Africans, Asians… coming to record here, rather than going to LA or London.”
[El primer estudio móvil de música está listo para captar las emociones del directo]
The recording studio that Gonzalez is referring to is Warner Music Iberia’s commitment to innovation. 40 m2 area with meticulous attention to detail where Dolby Atmos 9.1.4 . is installed. That is: nine speakers at the ear level, one low-frequency tweeter and four in the ceiling.
With this technology it is possible Treat each sound separately With what Dolby calls “sound objects”. They can be placed throughout the space thus increasing the sense of reality. The two main features of this system are immersive and 3D sound.
Music Station’s recording studio with the listening room in the foreground.
This means that after recording, the sound engineer can make a choice of post-production where they want “Put” each audio element into later listeningAnd it’s not limited to stereo sound.
In the same studio, a space for this listening was also prepared. “A new concept. The normal thing is that recording and listening are separate,” explains Gonzalez. Now the next step is to equip it with an audio system that recreates the mixing and faithfully reproduce the musical experience.
Dolby already has the tools for that. “When we brought the Dolby Atmos experience, which was originally developed for cinema, into the world of music, we realized that the sound processing is different. There are elements, such as sound, that are not as critical in cinema as in the music industry And we had to deal with designing new tools,” explains Fonselas.
Two years ago they launched Dolby Music Atmos and it has already been implemented on digital platforms such as Amazon Music, Apple Music, and Tidal. It is also part of the equipment of some Mercedes-Benz cars.
The Warner Music Iberia collaboration allowed them to go one step further. “This agreement will allow fans to immerse themselves further in the music with the quality and care with which it has been created. Our artists record their songs with attention to every detail, vocals and mix of instruments and sounds. Now we can appreciate and listen to them as the artists envision them,” defends his boss.
Music Station wants to become a reference. “A meeting space for artists, composers, producers, directors…where Conversions that never happened before will be generatedGonzalez says.
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