Abbey Road Institute to Open Los Angeles Campus Within the Historic Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood

Abbey Road Institute to Open Los Angeles Campus Within the Historic Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood

30th June 2026

Abbey Road Institute® to Open Los Angeles Campus Within the Historic Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood


Led by Multi-GRAMMY® Award-Winning Engineer, Mixer, Producer, and Musician Rafa Sardina

Abbey Road Institute®, a leading international professional music production school, is proud to announce that its newest campus in Los Angeles will be located within the iconic Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood. Rafa Sardina, a 19-time GRAMMY® and LATIN GRAMMY® winner, will launch the new campus on 26 October 2026.

Located at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Gower Street in Hollywood, Sunset Gower Studios is one of the city’s most iconic working production lots. Established in 1912 and later home to Columbia Pictures during Hollywood’s Golden Age, the studio hosted landmark films such as It Happened One Night and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.

This historic studio complex provides a professional, industry-driven environment where students can experience firsthand, premier music production and engineering practices within an active studio setting, with access to the legendary United Recording for selected classes and activities.

From legendary artists like Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole and Ray Charles to modern icons such as Green Day, Radiohead, and The Red Hot Chili Peppers, United Recording has played host to generations of music legends. Each of the four studios within United Recording is equipped with renowned consoles that, for decades, have captured melodies responsible for over a billion records sold worldwide.
 
 
The Abbey Road Institute® Los Angeles Diploma in Music Production and Sound Recording provides students the opportunity to learn and practice hands-on in a real-world studio environment at Sunset Gower Studios, directly connecting their education to the standards and expectations required for successful careers in the industry. Through structured access to United Recording, students further benefit from exposure to world-class recording facilities and high-level studio workflows.

Rafa Sardina, whose extensive list of award-winning collaborations includes work with Stevie Wonder, Rosalia, Elvis Costello, Alejandro Sanz, Dr. Dre, Camila Cabello, Placido Domingo, D’Angelo, and Lady Gaga, has designed the new campus and studio complex to provide Abbey Road Institute® students with a professional experience unique to Los Angeles. The Los Angeles campus will feature Abbey Road Institute®'s renowned curriculum, along with a distinguished faculty comprising top LA-based producers, engineers, and musicians, including Alan Meyerson, Barry Rudolph, John Boylan, Vanessa Garde, and many more.

Abbey Road Institute® offers an intensive, immersive education for aspiring music producers and engineers in a small, focused learning environment. The programme emphasises hands-on, apprenticeship-style training to equip graduates with the skills necessary to thrive in the fast-paced music industry and forge their own career paths.

Graduating students will earn a Diploma in Music Production and Sound Engineering, as well as additional diplomas in Audio Post Production for Film and TV & Music Business set to be launched in the future.

When asked about the new campus and its programs, Sardina shared: “Abbey Road Institute® Los Angeles is the culmination of a long-held dream. I want to share the invaluable professional experiences of my closest musical colleagues and myself with outstanding new generations of mixers, producers, and other music and music business professionals. I can’t wait to welcome our first students and witness the beginning of their exciting career journeys.”

Abbey Road Institute® London-based CEO, Luca Barassi, echoed this enthusiasm about the opening of the Los Angeles campus, stating: “We are thrilled to be working with Rafa and his team as we continue expanding our educational footprint in the U.S. Rafa has a strong affinity for how we teach, and an ambition to pass on his expertise to the next generation.

Establishing our second U.S. campus in Los Angeles - a creative, dynamic, and globally influential city - will provide students with an immersive experience at the heart of a thriving international music scene.”

As a member of the Abbey Road Institute® board, Sally Davies, Managing Director of Abbey Road Studios, emphasises the impact of the Institute’s graduates: “We are incredibly proud of the success of Abbey Road Institute® graduates. Some of them have earned multiple GRAMMY® and Billboard awards, along with numerous GRAMMY® and LATIN GRAMMY® nominations. Bringing Abbey Road Institute®’s world-class education to Los Angeles will provide aspiring producers and engineers with the training they need to make a strong entrance into the music industry.”

For more information about Abbey Road Institute® Los Angeles, please contact the campus at losangeles@abbeyroadinstitute.com or visit www.abbeyroadinstitute.com/losangeles.
 

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