When it comes to setting up your ideal music making environment, be it a professional recording studio or a humble practice room, how do you go about designing the space? What equipment or gear do you need? What size room do you have to work with? What about sound? Light? Vibe?

While the fields of acoustic research and music technology have grown and flourished in the past century, little has been researched about the individual needs and unique nature of each artist’s creative process as it relates to creating ideal environments to foster creativity.

To encourage a creative flow, each artist has to go beyond gear lust and lava lamps and seek ways to create the perfect set-up while minimizing the number of steps between walking into the room and accessing his or her inspiration.

For example, in my studio, I am a foot switch away from broadcast quality recording of piano or spoken word on a moment’s notice. I have integrated the composing, songwriting, and recording processes so that I can write, record, mix, and edit from one seat without the need of an engineer, the setting up of a new session, or rummaging around for staff paper. I can also take a break and watch a movie if I need some fresh inspiration–without leaving the piano bench. (”The Big Lebowski” is always right beside the DVD player.)

Ideally, a studio space should fit the artist like a glove. It should be ergonomically designed to draw out your freshest energy and inspire your most fertile expression. This involves considering everything–the placement of instruments, the size and function of each piece of technology, the monitoring set up, the number and complexity of the links in the recording chain, the acoustics, and especially the feeling you get when you walk in.

What is one of the most inspiring musical environments you have ever played in? How did it effect the music that came out of you? (Click here to answer.)

You can begin the process of designing (or improving upon your current design) by envisioning yourself in the ideal creative space and asking your self a few good questions:

• “What (and who) is in there with me?”
• “When I walk in, what do I do first? Next, next…?”
• “How many things do I have to attend to before I can get down to creating the music in my heart?”
• “How can I minimize the amount of set up and preparation while maximizing the productivity?”

An environment is more than a place. It is a living, breathing, changing organism that you relate to every time you enter and work. Allow it to change as you change..to evolve, expand, simplify, or be restructured, taking cues from your musical needs, rather than having your music conform to the confines of whatever space you already work in.

As your conscious, ergonomic studio design evolves, so will your music, and your connection to your own creative process. When you take responsibility for the environmental details, the environment will inevitably respond back to you.

The difference can shake or wake up your Muse.