What You Need to Know
Apple opened Apple Music Hall on September 21, a live music venue inside London’s Battersea Power Station. The room holds 600 people, so you stay close to the performer from any seat. But the setup matches what artists use on an arena tour. The 38-foot stage works for front-facing sets or in-the-round shows and 48 speakers surround the audience for spatial sound. The design borrows from the building with heritage brickwork, fluted arches and bronze balconies, and a glass wall looks out on the River Thames.
The venue doubles as a production facility. Two recording and mix studios capture each show as a multitrack recording and mix it in Spatial Audio. The hall is wired for 16 or more cameras that feed a broadcast control room, and iPhones shoot video alongside traditional broadcast cameras. An artist plays one show and leaves with a finished Spatial Audio recording, a broadcast-ready mix and multicamera video. Apple livestreams the performances worldwide, so you can watch from outside London. Apple Music Radio’s London hosts now broadcast from new studios in the same building. You’ll find ticket details at applemusichall.com.
