About The Soundroom -Our History

We are one of the few remaining community music projects left from the 1980's !

The Soundroom has played an essential part in the history of the North East’s thriving community music scene, originally established in 1985 and the days of Gatehead’s Deckham Music Collective and Route 26 Community Music Projects.

It has been housed in a few different venues before settling at the Old Redheugh Library building, one of the first community libraries in Gateshead opened in 1939.

The Deckham Music Collective was inspired by The Gateshead Music Collective which folded in 1982, about which much has been written and documented.

The Soundroom has existed in one form or another since 1985 and the days of Deckham Music Collective. When the collective moved into a room at the Elgin Centre, a collective member moved the recording equipment into empty office storage cupboard , and as they say the rest is history, The Soundroom recording studio was founded.

By the late 1990s, The Soundroom had grown successful enough to break out on its own and, with the help of Gateshead Council, moved into its current home of the former Redheugh Library, opening in December 2000 and proudly naming its new home The Soundroom.

The much larger premises allowed room for the installation a full recording studio and live room and several rehearsal rooms. Continuing to operate as a voluntary organisation and supported by the council, The Soundroom continued providing education in music for youth and adults, rehearsals, affordable recording facilities and other music-related community projects, including the long-running twice weekly original Soundroom Music Café and Gateshead Youth Music Nights.

In 2014, the project became a Charity, independently running and financing our charitable music-making projects through private hires and music recording and later, from 2019 also maintaining the old Redheugh library community building on a 35-year lease from Gateshead Council.