An island recording studio's creative 'village' is conceived for flowing inspiration
Pur, a new recording studio on the Turkish island of Cunda, unites state-of-the-art technical space and the vernacular architecture language of its seaside context
A new recording studio on a small island off the coast of mainland Türkiye offers a captivating blend of contemporary architecture, local vernacular and state-of-the-art technology; welcome to Pur, the residential facility aiming to craft an inspiring environment for artists after a perfectly pitched space to settle in and allow their creativity to thrive.
Tour a new residential recording studio in Turkey - Pur
The project, a complex of relatively low, two-storey structures placed in a cluster and facing the sea, was designed by New York and Istanbul-based architecture studio Sour, led by architect Inanc Eray. Looking at music production as 'cultural infrastructure,' the team worked at creating a design that answers to a fundamental question, the architects explain: 'How can a building honour the elemental character of its place – sea, olive trees, wind and birds – while delivering the acoustic precision required for world-class music production?'
The answer came in the shape of Pur's boutique collection of structures, which display the materiality and architectural outlines of its part of the world (the small island of Cunda) – stone, timber and small-scale volumes with an abstracted, pitched-roof top.
In its design, Pur aims to align different worlds – modern technology, a distinct sense of place and the flexible needs of artistic production. The result is a spatial journey and a number of buildings that appear crisp and yet tactile on the outside, but expand into a more fluid, soft space once you step inside.
The architects add: 'A GFRC [Glass Fibre Reinforced Concrete] shell expresses this transformation [of stepping inside from the outdoors] in a single gesture: a threshold that carries users from the vernacular calm of Cunda into a highly tuned recording environment, as if passing through a “wormhole” of soundscapes, mirroring how music itself moves across time, cultures, and people.'
The team likens parts of the structure – in particular its ground-floor Musician’s Lounge – as a 'cave' for its cocooning, organic atmosphere and form. The aim is to achieve a 'sense of intimacy and comfort – a true home-away-from-home experience.'
The complex of Pur includes live rooms (the biggest of which accommodates a 75-piece orchestra), a control room, vocal and percussion rooms, reverb chambers, editing and montage suites, a mastering suite and a Dolby Atmos theatre. A restaurant and a series of outdoor spaces where guests can relax and experience life on the island underline the connection of the recording studio to its Mediterranean surroundings.
