Producing and recording piano with Greg Wells

Full video available now on mwtm.org/gw-ha...
In this sneak peek, discover Greg Wells’ process to record piano and learn more about his production approach.
We're thrilled to bring you a series unlike any other we have released to date! For the first time ever, we're sharing footage from one of our exclusive seminars at Studios La Fabrique. You can observe the transformation of a demo song to a fully-fledged production by Greg Wells and Keala Settle. The supremely talented duo listen to the demo of 'Hands Tied', then embark on a collaborative journey of writing, arrangement, performance, recording, and production. You will see how the process unfolded from scratch - overcoming obstacles, moments of brilliance, trying different microphones and spaces, improvising, and reaching the pre-mix finish line. Complementary to the seminar footage, the series is narrated by Greg Wells. He describes the process, reveals his songwriting and tracking techniques, details his drum editing and vocal tuning approach, and shares so much more of his extensive knowledge!

[@mixwiththemasters]

Full video available now on mwtm.org/gw-hands-tied

[@mymama12314]

Not sure why there’s so much hate about greg’s piano sound. Didn’t he notice it and correct it at the end. Sounded less smashed and more natural. Most pianos on records are incredibly compressed anyway. Makes it sound exciting and cuts through in dense mixes. If I wanted natural piano sounds, i would look into other genres of music.

[@lincolncollegemusic1335]

This guy was a legend on Underneath. Big fan of him!

[@crisrose521]

Still sounded a bit too wide to me and a bit over compressed. The mic placements would have helped also

[@dreadrockadrian]

That's a great sounding instrument.

[@sampizzi4545]

Hi Greg. Thanks for the informative video. This mic is truly killer sounding. Cheers from Toronto.

[@TylerSwift-v7d]

Greg... do you think my song Angel in the Night would be good for Adele?

[@Earaem]

Any tips for home recording that is not expensive? Do you think iphones pick up good enought sound? : )

[@joelchristie5179]

Your iPhone won’t pick up very good quality like a proper microphone but you can still use this to your advantage and give your song a raw demo feel.

[@dreadrockadrian]

no

[@jaggass]

How do you avoid bleed when a piano is mic'd on stage with a full band?

[@rasmus.paulson]

Try a blanket over the Grand Piano, and pointing mics slightly away from the loudest source near by. (Like drums och the singer). Should do the work!

[@ZaneGrayMusicMaster1]

My question is, what piano is that?

[@Pteradactylist]

I can’t stand music with too many major thirds either! Simply intolerable!

[@thezestychunk5575]

This a joke right😂😂

[@rumar4u]

@@thezestychunk5575 Maybe he’s a grindcore metal fan... who knows !!

[@aquabotstudios4444]

this gotta be satire 😂💀

[@Noel-jk3jy]

too hyped

[@heavytronstudio]

Nice, Sir!

[@TimChernikoffMusic]

I appreciate sharing the advice on capture. Though the statement that “using too many chords makes the piano sound dated” is extremely particular to a ‘pop sound’. And it’s extremely biased towards the producer. Te producer is supposed to be in service of the musician’s vision and needs to come up with the solutions that the artist needs and not vice versa. Just because someone knows how to record something does NOT mean they have good musical intuitions! I’d like to see more producers come from that point of view instead of trying to be vanilla fascists.

[@hastyscorpion]

Dude he literally said "on this type of song it's better to keep things kind of spare" you are projecting so much. You have no idea how he conducts himself with an artist.

[@Navonodo]

The problem here is in the playing, not the recording. The notes are great, the rhythm and feel is great, but the dynamics and touch are brickwall. That's why the "fader dip" effect happened. It could have been solved by better playing. Grand pianos are not just machines to be hammered on. I respect this guy as a producer and creator...but if he respected that piano a little more he might have got the results he wanted a little more easily.

[@pisceswater...6998]

It's not a lack of respect. It's the way producers record pianos. They kind of bang it to make sure sure it cuts through the mix. It's a pop recording technique not a live performance. Any mixer would understand that. If it's not played loud enough you have a big problem down the line. The compressors will eat up your piano sound. It's part of what's called the Loudness war

[@dreadrockadrian]

Thats an ignorant reply. He just played the chorus. You don't know what the rest of the song requires wrt dynamics. Critique for critique sake.

[@FrancisBourre]

Sorry, but the sound of this piano is not really nice. There's no dynamics, and it's overdriven.

[@drewmantia]

He’s not trying to make a beautiful standalone piano sound, he’s making a piano to fit inside a pop mix. Mixing isn’t about each individual element sounding great on its own, it’s about cohesion

[@FrancisBourre]

@@drewmantia If the goal is to have a lofi piano sound drained of life, he would have better time to use a samples library. The recording process is overkill when you listen to the quality result.

[@drewmantia]

@@FrancisBourre still more fun capturing your own sound even if you're going to lofi it

[@really9238]

@@FrancisBourre Maybe his love for these details is why he's more successful than you..?

[@FrancisBourre]

​@@really9238 Sorry, but success never prevented me from using my tastes and my critical sense... #fanboyism

[@DavidKfilmmaker]

Knew that was greatest showman girl

[@boglot]

Greg Wells: Master of mixing, master of posture

[@grabasandwich]

Anytime I see Greg, I think of a comment from this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/kH7Mp3-JmpaiY5o "yourpianoteacher" As one of Greg's past piano teachers, I remember helping his dad carry him onstage to perform, while he was in a two-legged cast. I'm proud of his achievements, but I still find his music as cold as it gets. I doubt it's true, but if so... Oof

[@Toebex]

this is some of the harshest piano playing ive ever heard

[@markgibson3318]

Less tall more action...

[@ptonzzound1854]

So cool

[@RiotHomeRecording]

I like it

[@Achase4u]

I love Greg Wells.

[@freez092also]

Greg is a Canadian Legend!

[@noreaction1]

Is that lady the next Adele?

[@trishajondle7313]

It’s Keala Settle from The Greatest Showman.