Greg Wells at the drums in his LA studio checking the positions of his matched pair of TELEFUNKEN TF51 microphones. Photo by David Goggin
Grammy-winning record producer, songwriter, musician, and mix engineer Greg Wells is producing and recording the music for "Wicked, Part One," the first of two highly anticipated feature films reimagining of the classic "The Wizard of Oz," coming to theaters November 22.
Wells was looking for drum microphones that would provide the overall spatial soundtrack experience of the film. "I knew that the drum overhead mics for Wicked needed to be vintage Telefunkens and then I heard the company's Alchemy series TF51s. This mic sounds like a beautiful vintage 251. I got two of them and realized I'd found the right overhead mics. For this film, the mics needed to capture the most subtle detail to the loudest pounding, and the TF51's never fail to make me smile."
The TF51 is a fresh take on the "Austrian" microphone sound associated with the Telefunken ELA M 251E and C12. The TF51 continues this sonic legacy, exhibiting a smooth midrange and airy top end, capturing subtle nuances in exacting detail, a reliable first choice for stand out vocals, acoustic instruments, strings and percussion.
"Working on 'Wicked' is a brand new job experience for me," says Wells. "It's been a 3-year commitment, because I was hired as music producer before most of the cast in the film was hired. I built it from the ground up six months before the director turned on a camera."
Greg Wells' diverse credits include John Legend (2021 Grammy Best R&B Album), Adele, P!nk, Carrie Underwood, OneRepublic, Timbaland, Celine Dion, Aerosmith, Katy Perry, Keith Urban, Dua Lipa, Pharrell Williams, Ariana Grande, and Taylor Swift.
Wells explains, "The initial 'Wicked' job description was music producer and mix engineer for all songs, then last February it was requested by 'Wicked' composer Stephen Schwartz that I also play all the keys, drums, guitars, and bass. The band on the film is the London Symphony Orchestra and me, which is an insane dream come true for this small town Canadian."
A longtime TELEFUNKEN customer, Wells also owns the company's new production ELA M 251E and U47 microphones that he has used on many hits throughout his career, including those by Katy Perry and Adele.
"I love my Telefunken Elektroakustik microphones," Wells continues. "These TF51s sound like vintage 251's to me, but costing a fraction of the holy grail version. They help create the perfect sonics for this project I'm drumming on that requires the quietest to loudest details to all sit naturally in the mix."
