![This modern recording studio, with its wood exterior, has black accents and stairs that lead to various entry points, including sliding wood slat doors, similar to barn doors.](https://www.contemporist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/california-recording-studio-220821-807-01.jpg)
Schwartz and Architecture have designed a private recording studio and performance space in Occidental, California, that’s been built with lumber rescued from a rural barn in upstate New York.
![This modern recording studio, with its wood exterior, has black accents and stairs that lead to various entry points, including sliding wood slat doors, similar to barn doors.](https://www.contemporist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/california-recording-studio-220821-807-02.jpg)
Located within a Redwood grove, the building process of the studio was difficult as disturbing the roots of a redwood can kill the entire tree. The architects worked with both an arborist and a structural engineer, leading to the implementation of a strategic pier structure to float the studio above the ground and between the roots.
![This modern recording studio, with its wood exterior, has black accents and stairs that lead to various entry points, including sliding wood slat doors, similar to barn doors.](https://www.contemporist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/california-recording-studio-220821-807-03.jpg)
The studio, with its wood exterior, has black accents and stairs that lead to various entry points, including sliding wood slat doors, similar to barn doors.
![This modern recording studio, with its wood exterior, has black accents and stairs that lead to various entry points, including sliding wood slat doors, similar to barn doors.](https://www.contemporist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/california-recording-studio-220821-807-04.jpg)
![The interior of this modern recording studio includes a large open space with room for multiple instruments, as well as private recording rooms and a sound booth.](https://www.contemporist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/california-recording-studio-220821-807-05.jpg)
Every material choice and architectural detail was evaluated as part of a balancing act of reclamation, acoustical isolation, reverberant control, and ecological impact. An example of this is the wood ceiling designed for acoustics, and the wood beams that show their age.
![The interior of this modern recording studio includes a large open space with room for multiple instruments, as well as private recording rooms and a sound booth.](https://www.contemporist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/california-recording-studio-220821-807-06.jpg)
The interior of the recording studio includes a large open space with room for multiple instruments, as well as private recording rooms and a sound booth.
![The interior of this modern recording studio includes a large open space with room for multiple instruments, as well as private recording rooms and a sound booth.](https://www.contemporist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/california-recording-studio-220821-807-07.jpg)
![A modern recording studio and sound booth.](https://www.contemporist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/california-recording-studio-220821-807-08.jpg)