David Quintard, producer, sound engineer and co-founder of Miraval Studios, along with the famous Brad Pitt, is putting Miraval Studios back on the production track. In 1977, the jazz pianist Jacques Loussier and the sound engineer Patrice Quef founded the studios. In the 2000’s the studio was in decline due to the record industry crisis (more than 50% of the recording studios in the world closed during this decade). This crisis was due to the fact that the price of recording equipment became affordable to everyone and that files were exchanged on the net rather than via physical media. Only the most resilient studios, such as the Guillaume Tell studio in France for example, have resisted digitalization and cheap technology.
Miraval Studios was reborn from these difficulties with great fanfare, thanks to the financial and personal investment of the Oscar-winning actor and David Quintard. Dolby’s head of artist relations, Adrien Franchy, comments, “No studio in the world has this level of technology. Everything is custom-made”.
In 2011, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie bought the 900 hectare estate for 35 million euros. The property also contains a 30-hectare vineyard that produces Miraval wine. The separation of the two actors lead to Brad Pitt’s purchase of Angelina’s shares in the house. In 2021, he decided to restore these mythical recording studios with the help of Damien.
Miraval: an iconic studio
Miraval Studios did not become famous on its own, far from it. After having received French artists like Maxime Le Forestier or Alain Baschung, they welcomed Pink Floyd for the recording of a part of The Wall in 1979. The list of musical stars gre with AC/DC, The Cranberries, The Cure, Sade and Sting just to name a few. The large room of 300 square meters quickly became legendary. This place has been occupied since the Roman era, some parts of the castle date back to that time and are still visible today. The different constructions added through the centuries have shaped this unique building where architecture, music, wine and history collide.
The main cabin is full of vintage equipment that will delight purists. Analog peripherals sit alongside newer digital devices to capture the warmth of vintage and the transparency of newer hardware. To be ready to accept all possible projects, the control room was equipped with a monitoring system compatible with Dolby Atmos mixing. In terms of immersive sound, customers will be both delighted and satisfied. In addition to being able to immerse oneself in sound in a cabin, the domain, which can accommodate artists for several days or weeks, is conducive to creativity. It is a magical place and it was worth reviving the studio for the history alone. While Joachim Garraud’s camper van studio takes you to places where your creativity blossoms, here, like in Hans Zimmer’s studio, the place envelops you with the warmth of its history. We hope to hear tracks from the studio soon on a high-definition streaming platform like Qobuz.
