Studio 620. A.B.C. 191 Adelaide Terrace Perth.
The ABC studio complex in Adelaide Terrace, Perth, began opening in phases starting in 1959 for radio, with the television facilities and official complex fully opening on May 7, 1960.
Construction on the site at 191 Adelaide Terrace started in 1958. Radio operations moved into the new buildings in 1959, and ABW Channel 2 officially launched from the location on May 7, 1960. The site served as the home of Western Australia’s public broadcaster until the ABC relocated to Fielder Street in East Perth in 2005.
Much of the credit for the former ABC building in Adelaide Terrace, Perth, goes to Basil Kirke, who returned to Western Australia as manager in 1953 and lobbied tirelessly for new offices and studios. He fell seriously ill in 1957 and died in 1958, before the move to the new premises took place.
In 1961, the large orchestral studio 620 was named in his honour.
This 30 foot-high studio was the first major in-house ABC sound recording studio in Australia, and is said to be based on the Abbey Road studio in London.
With its superior acoustics – created by the physical space rather than added at the mixing desk – it was considered one of the finest studios in Australia and was for many years home to the West Australian Symphony Orchestra.
The award-winning soundtrack for the film Out of Africa was also recorded there.
Referring back to the Basil Kirke Studio being based on Abbey Road Studios.
Abbey Road Studios is the most famous recording studio in the world and a global music icon.
While initially a venue for classical recordings, the studios’ repertoire soon embraced jazz and big bands, too, as well as the first British rock & roll records of the 1950s. Abbey Road is of course synonymous with the legendary work of The Beatles, who worked with EMI producer Sir George Martin and recorded 190 of their 210 songs at the studios.