The remote island recording studio offering the perfect creative environment

Editor’s Note: This story is part of “Masters of Experience,” a series exploring the world’s most original experiences, as told by the visionaries who crafted them.

On the Northwest coast of Norway sits a small, completely flat island called Giske. It’s surrounded by fjords and mountains on one side, and the vast North Atlantic ocean on the other.

With around only 700 inhabitants, life here is often very quiet, despite the almost constant roar of the wind.

But Giske has been host to a number of highly-respected musicians. With the likes of Arcade Fire, Sampha and 1980s legends A-ha all making their way to this remote location.

They come for one reason: sitting on the shore of the island’s former harbor, within what looks like an old boathouse, is an internationally-renowned, purpose-built recording studio. With living quarters built in, artists can eat, sleep and make music under one roof.

Ocean Sound

The studio is called Ocean Sound Recordings and it was built by cousins and former musicians Ante Giskeødegård and Lars Giskeødegård, who have a particular affinity for the place.

“I was born and raised on Giske. Where the studio is, is where we used to play when we were kids. So (it has) a special meaning to me,” Ante explained.

While many traditional recording studios are constructed within existing buildings, Ocean Sound Recordings was designed from the ground up with one aspiration: to be the perfect environment for artists to make music.

On the outside, the main consideration was the way it would blend into the environment, mirroring the surrounding landscape and architecture.

Kristin Stoylen

The building was designed to look like a boathouse, reminiscent of the structures that used to stand on this part of the island when it was a harbor, blending into the surrounding environment

Despite cold temperatures, many of the musicians who stay at Ocean Sound Recordings are tempted to swim in the sea. Ante recalls, "There has been an artist recording here that was not able to hit a high note and they needed some adrenalin, so they rushed into the water and then back into the recording booth. They nailed it on the first try when they got back."

Located on the Northwestern coast of Norway, on the edge of the North Atlantic Ocean, Giske often experiences extreme weather. The studio is about 99.9% soundproof. To date only one session has been cancelled due to weather and that was because of safety, not because of noise levels.

Panoramic views of Giske and the surrounding islands can be seen from this lookout on Mount Aksla. Here we see a view of Giske's neighbouring island Ålesund.

Ante Giskeødegård founded the studio with his cousin Lars Giskeødegård. They were both members of a band from Giske called The Margarets.

As much as the studio puts a strong emphasis on its acoustic capabilities, one of the key reasons musicians come here is to experience the location. In the winter it's quite common to see the Northern lights.

Inside the focus was creating a warm, welcoming atmosphere with vintage carpets and rugs, wood fittings and beautifully crafted furniture. As well as the emotional impact these design elements have, acoustics are still the highest priority – with every element helping to achieve this goal.

Looking out

One of the biggest design challenges were the windows themselves. Most recording studios don’t have windows because glass reflects sound waves. But compromising on the view was not an option, as the location and the landscape are the secret ingredients in the creative experience according to Ante.

“When you’re in the recording studio it’s almost as if you’re on a boat. All you can see is sea, and the waves and the sky around you and it sparks something. It’s close… nature and music are really close to each other, and somewhere in between there is creativity. I don’t know what it is but it just works.”

Watch the video above to find out more about the studio.

CNN’s Temujin Doran and Angelica Pursley contributed to this report.