Hansa Tonstudio
The Hansa Tonstudio is a recording studio, since 1974 located in a former builders' guild hall on Köthener Straße No. 38 in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin, Germany. Famous for its Meistersaal recording hall, amongst English music artists it used to be known as "Hansa Studio by the Wall" or "Hansa by the Wall".
History
The Hansa Records label was originally founded in 1962 (one year after the building of the Berlin Wall) by brothers Peter and Thomas Meisel in the Wilmersdorf quarter of West Berlin. From 1965 they temporarily rented the Ariola production facilities in the Meistersaal location, but also built up their own Studio I on Nestorstraße in the Halensee neighbourhood, which opened in 1973. Nevertheless, it had to abandon its production facilities the next year, and from 1974 again rented the Meistersaal location on Köthener Straße (now called Studio II).
Meanwhile, the outstanding Meistersaal acoustics were used not only for light music productions but also for classical music recordings. In the early and mid-1980s, all productions were overseen by English record producer Michael Blakey. The studios played host to many well-known acts, including Tangerine Dream, David Bowie,[1][2] Brian Eno,[3] Iggy Pop,[4] U2,[2] Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds,[3] Claw Boys Claw,[5] Depeche Mode,[6] Marillion,[6] Siouxsie and the Banshees, Killing Joke, Boney M. and most recently Manic Street Preachers, R.E.M., Snow Patrol, Kent, Living Things and Go Go Berlin. The roll of notable recordings and the darkly sonorous sound quality, at once rugged and spacious of many of them, have given the studio near legendary status, especially within the post-punk and synthpop genres.
Selected recordings
- 1977 – Low by David Bowie
- 1977 – "Heroes" by David Bowie
- 1977 – The Idiot by Iggy Pop
- 1977 – Lust for Life by Iggy Pop
- 1979 – Force Majeure by Tangerine Dream
- 1982 – Baal by David Bowie
- 1983 – Construction Time Again by Depeche Mode
- 1984 – Night Time by Killing Joke
- 1984 – Brilliant Trees by David Sylvian
- 1984 – The Firstborn Is Dead by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds
- 1984 – Some Great Reward by Depeche Mode
- 1985 – Misplaced Childhood by Marillion
- 1986 – Black Celebration by Depeche Mode
- 1986 – Tinderbox by Siouxsie and the Banshees
- 1986 – Brighter Than a Thousand Suns by Killing Joke
- 1986 – Your Funeral... My Trial by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds
- 1987 – The Ideal Copy by Wire
- 1987 – Midnight to Midnight by The Psychedelic Furs
- 1988 – A Fierce Pancake by Stump
- 1990 – Bossanova by Pixies
- 1991 – Achtung Baby by U2
- 2008 – A Hundred Million Suns by Snow Patrol
- 2008 – Diamond Hoo Ha by Supergrass
- 2008 – Ett Brus by Ossler
- 2009 – Röd by Kent
- 2010 – Tiger Suit by KT Tunstall
- 2011 – Collapse into Now by R.E.M.
- 2013 – Rewind the Film by Manic Street Preachers
- 2014 – Futurology by Manic Street Preachers
- 2014 – Siren Charms by In Flames
- 2015 – Es or S by Ling Tosite Sigure
- 2016 – Secret Sensation by TK from Ling Tosite Sigure
References
- ↑ "Frei gefühlt: David Bowie in Berlin". Die Tageszeitung (in German). 2006-07-10. Retrieved 2009-07-14.
- 1 2 Susan Fast, "Music, Contexts, and Meaning in U2," in Everett, Walter (ed.) (2000). Expression in Pop-rock Music: A Collection of Critical and Analytical Essays. Taylor & Francis. pp. 33–76. ISBN 978-0-8153-3160-5. p. 45
- 1 2 Connell, John; Chris Gibson (2003). Sound tracks: popular music, identity, and place. Routledge. p. 105. ISBN 978-0-415-17028-4.
- ↑ Trynka, Paul (2008). Iggy Pop: Open Up and Bleed. Random House. p. 326. ISBN 978-0-7679-2320-0.
- ↑ "Claw Boys Claw: Biografie". Popinstituut Encyclopedie. Muziek Centrum Nederland. Retrieved 2009-04-23.
- 1 2 Miller, Jonathan (2004). Stripped: Depeche Mode. Omnibus Press. p. 161. ISBN 978-1-84449-415-6.
External links
- Official website (German)
- Hansa Tonstudio discography at Discogs
Coordinates: 52°30′20″N 13°22′35″E / 52.50556°N 13.37639°E