Rapunzel studios. . . .
is primarily a music recording studio which has been acoustically treated and has a great sounding pine room. It has plenty of natural light, views of the sea and of a field which usually has sheep or horses in. The studio is relaxed and fun without any snobbery or arrogance but is also professional and creative.
Rapunzel studios proudly boasts one of the finest microphone collections in the Southwest with rare and extremely desirable vintage mics from Neumann, AKG, RCA, Coles, Shure and Sony which really make all the difference when capturing the sonic palette.
We offer professional, experienced recording, production, mixing and mastering services using our top-class selection of vintage and modern analogue and digital gear including a Neve summing mixer to get that huge analogue large mixing desk sound, Neve tape emulation and compression, Urei compressors, 1176s from Stam and Warm audio, LA3A clones, Pultec style EQs and a huge selection of state of the art software. For a full list of our kit see here.
We also offer session playing, guitar and bass re-amping with our collection of amps and location and live sound recording for choral and classical music. See the full list of services offered.
We charge by the project and we are extremely affordable so do get in touch if we can help you in any way.
George Arnold bio
Rapunzel studios is run by George Arnold who is a 38 year old audio engineer, producer and multi-instrumentalist with more than two decade’s experience as a full-time Producer and musician.
George studied music technology in Bath and after finishing he went on to play double bass in many bands, firstly in the west country, Bath, Bristol, Somerset, Glastonbury, highlights of this era were playing on the Jazz stage at Glastonbury festival with afrobeat band Moya.
George then moved to London and continued to play with various bands there.
In 2007 George moved to Barcelona to join the band Gadjo. It was there he began working in studios and really honing the craft he had studied along side being in a busy touring band which travelled all over Europe every summer.
Rapunzel studios was started in 2014 and has gained a reputation among musicians in the west country and further afield for George’s passion, attention to detail and his genuine care and love for your music. George continues to freelance in other studios in the UK, Germany and Spain.
George is a proficient session musician and can play Double Bass, Sousaphone, Guitars, Drums, trumpet and a bit of Cello as well as programming electronic elements. Being a multi-instrumentalist George is well versed in many types of music from trad folk and trad jazz to many types of rock, indie, pop and hip hop he has also played in many world music styles from Balkan to Cumbia, Reggae, Forro and the latin styles.
George is fluent in Spanish and has a basic grounding in German, Italian and French.
Testimonials
“Great gear, with a really knowledgeable engineer who knows how to use it. I once did some post-production on a project recorded at Rapunzel and the standard of recording was very high. Recommended!”
“I recorded some songs with George recently and was very impressed with his knowledge and abilities. As a musician himself he really engages with the songs and the results are excellent.”
“Whether you're new to recording or an old hand, George never fails to create the right balance of seriousness and informality that will allow you to perform at your best. Combined with his expertise in recording and mixing, his own amazing instrumental and arranging skills, some of the best mics you could wish for....and a ready and timely supply of tea, you'll never want to record anywhere else! George has a superb instinct for understanding what musicians are trying to achieve, and the musical and technical skills to make their ideas a reality.”
“Working with George was a real pleasure - he made sure the environment was relaxed yet professional, and he really cared about what I wanted from my music, and helped me get the best performances. His diligent approach to mixing meant that I ended up with an album that only sounds great, but that has lots of happy memories attached to it as well.”
“The session with George was so great because he really created an atmosphere where we could be relaxed and creative whilst recording. He was supportive of my ideas and also brought along a bunch of his own after getting to know the songs and their influences. He's a very talented engineer, producer and musician all rolled into one.”
“I recorded my album with George at Rapunzel Studios, and his passion for sound recording and music is really second to none. I knew next to nothing about the technical aspects of recording but George was really patient with me and his expertise always helped me to get exactly the sound that I wanted, even when I wasn't able to describe it very well!”
Kit
Rapunzel is one of the best equipped commercial studios in the west country. We boast the best selection of microphones you could wish for; amongst others a 1955 Neumann u47 with original m7 capsule and VF14 tube, a Neumann U67, U87, a Neumann Sm23c, a pair of Neumann km84s, RCA 77d some Coles 4038. We run Logic pro x through a Neve summing box and other analog gear to get that classic analog large mixing desk sound on your mixes. For a full list of our equipment click here.
Rates
Obviously, the price will depend on your requirements which makes it impossible to give accurate pricing here. Please get in touch to discuss your needs and we'll give you a quote. We like to work on a per song or per 3 songs or per album basis which gives the artist more freedom to create in a relaxed atmosphere as opposed to the pressures of working to an hourly rate. This ensures that the artist comes away happy every time.
For a more detailed explanation of our rates click here.
Pool
At Rapunzel studios there is an indoor heated swimming pool on site. Please let us know if you’d like to use it, you’re very welcome to relax in there while your band mates are working on their parts or to take a break and find some inspiration.
Here you can see the rough location of the studio and how close we are to the beach and Lyme bay’s rolling cliffs.