This section brings together the collaborative work of Das Spezial and Sound Sanctuary. From recording in historic buildings and interdisciplinary arts projects to community collaborations and experimental music, each project explores the relationship between sound, place, creativity and human connection through film, photography and editorial storytelling.
Architecture as an Instrument — Turning Arts University Bournemouth into a Reverb Chamber
The spaces in which music is recorded have always influenced the way it sounds. Long before digital reverberation and acoustic modelling, musicians relied on the natural qualities of a room to shape a performance. Every space has its own acoustic signature, created by its proportions, materials and the way sound moves through it.
This session at Arts University Bournemouth's Drawing Studio grew from a simple idea: rather than recreating a sense of space later in the studio, what would happen if we captured the building's own natural reverberation as part of the recording?
When Sound Becomes Art: Das Spezial | Live Creative Experiment Part 2
In March 2026, Das SPEZIAL, The Sound Sanctuary and Arts University Bournemouth came together to explore a simple idea: what happens when sound becomes the starting point for creating art?
The project brought together musicians, dancers and Fine Art students for an afternoon of collaborative practice inside AUB's Drawing Studio. Rather than working towards a performance or exhibition, the session was designed as an open exploration, allowing each discipline to influence the others in real time.
Using a Church Built in 1551 as Natural Reverb for Our Song “Roots”
Some recordings are shaped as much by their surroundings as they are by the musicians performing them.As work on Roots developed, we began looking for a space whose acoustic character would complement the music. Rather than adding reverberation digitally during the mixing process, we wanted to capture a natural sense of depth and resonance that belonged to a real place.That search led us to a church first built in 1551.
How the Chapel Singers Helped Shape ‘Light Roast’
Some recordings continue to evolve long after the first session has finished.For Light Roast, we took elements of the original recording into All Saints Church in Southbourne, where the Chapel Singers recorded new vocal arrangements within the building's beautiful natural acoustic.With Abi D'Arcy's vocal accompanying the session, the choir responded to both the music and the space itself, creating something that couldn't have been captured anywhere else.