Wrensilva Sound: Listening Sessions With Giles Martin
Giles Martin, Grammy Award-winning producer and mixer, sat with us to talk music and more during a final tuning session of the next generation Wrensilva Record Console Collection.
The new Wrensilva Record Consoles have a presence. For some, it’s the elegance of the hand-selected hardwoods in an elevated design that nods to the traditional consoles, but for professionals like renowned producer Giles Martin, it’s all about the music.
To create an unparalleled listening experience, collaboration with the world’s best music creators is crucial, these insights help shape everything about our collection. As part of that development collaboration, Giles joined us for a final listening session with an all-new, next generation Wrensilva Record Console, sharing his stories and passion for quality sound.
About Giles Martin
The son of legendary Beatles producer Sir George Martin (often referred to as the “fifth Beatle”), Giles carved out his own place in the music industry, initially as a producer for what would become the psychedelic rock band Kula Shaker. From his studio in the legendary Abbey Road Studios, he’s since worked with indie bands and major labels alike, produced the soundtrack for the Beatles/Cirque du Soleil show Love, worked with music icons like Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Elton John, and many others and has collaborated on various TV and film projects with directors Martin Scorsese, Ron Howard, and more.
Inside the Listening Session
Giles Martin and Wrensilva co-founder Scott Salyer spin records during our listening session at Abbey Road Studios.
In 2017, Giles and Abbey Road Senior Engineer Sam Okell remixed Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in honor of its 50th anniversary, making it the perfect album to kick off our session.
With this opportunity came its challenges. “Being a perfectionist and honored to work on some of the greatest recordings that have been done, having to make decisions over mixes… I was nervous,” says Giles. But he stayed determined to create the best version of the record he could.
“My father died that year,” Giles shares. “It was a big press rigmarole. I came to Abbey Road, and I put on the four track tape of Sgt. Pepper. And the first voice I heard was his.” It reminded him of working on the Love show in Las Vegas. “Yoko [Ono] said to me, ‘The funny thing about John [Lennon] is he’s just a voice now… They’re not dead. It’s their show. They’re in the room.’ And I thought, that’s something strange to say. But then I listened to my dad, and it was true.”
Giles spent months perfecting the album, staying true to his father’s roots while finding ways to improve and innovate the mix. Working with the vinyl wasn’t easy, but proved worth it. The record went on to sell over 70,000 copies in a single day—a major feat in the age of streaming.
“My dad had the same attitude. If you can push things with innovation, push things with sound, that’s why they made the records in the first place.”
Giles Martin
Giles Martin dropping the needle on ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ vinyl record in his studio.
To Giles, there’s something special about experiencing a vinyl album as a whole – the way it was curated. “Everyone just listens to greatest hits now. That’s the thing,” says Giles. “If you listen to an album, it’s like having a tasting menu provided by a chef. If you listen to a playlist, it’s like a selection of main courses that may make you feel sick by the end of it.”
Giles brings up an underrated track on the album as an example. “A lot of people would want to skip ‘Within You Without You’ because it’s such a different piece of music compared to everything else,” notes Giles. “However, you can’t, so you end up listening to it and enjoying it, appreciating the song.”
“Every year, I’m mixing records that come out on vinyl that people find, people enjoy,” he shares. “You want [people] to put them on and go, I’m going to leave this on. I’m really enjoying standing back and listening to this.”
“The key thing that I always try to do is provide some form of engagement. Whether that’s creating an increase or what, you have to find what makes the track,” explains Giles. “How do we get the listener to engage? How do we get you to feel something? Is it the voice that’s most important? Is it the guitars?”
“I want to listen to music at home like a first date.”
Giles Martin
He notes that remixing vinyl is rarely a flawless process. The imperfections can be what makes an older track all the more memorable and special—those unexpected, organic moments, like hearing John Lennon’s voice in the middle of Strawberry Fields now that a version of the track is remixed in stereo.
To fully appreciate the sound and the work that goes into it, a well-designed system can help. “The great thing about Wrensilva is that you know they sound really good. It creates a warmth,” says Giles. “You try to explain it to people. They go, maybe you’ve just lost your mind completely. Then you show them what it is, and they go, that’s beautiful. And they hear it, and they go, Oh my god. Now I know what I need to have.”
Giles Martin spins records on his Wrensilva M1 during the listening session at Abbey Road Studios.
It’s that intersection of outstanding, uninterrupted sound and design that completes the listening experience for Giles. “I spend so much time listening to music [while] staring at a screen, because of the nature of what I do. And people may be playing music from their phone, which is fine, but it’s still a screen.”
To Giles, there’s something indescribable about removing screens from the equation and allowing sound to take the stage. “You know sensory deprivation changes the way you listen? We played Sgt. Pepper in [Dolby] Atmos theaters with no lights on, around the world. I remember David Arnold, who’s a film composer, said to me it was the best audio experience he’s had,” shares Giles. “It’s the same way with Wrensilva. I’ll put on a record and find myself staring at the console. No TVs, just staring at it, like it never gets old.”
“You want to be hugged by your music.”
Giles Martin
Despite changes in listener habits, Giles sees the value of sharing music between generations and noticing the similarities that exist. “I have two daughters and all they want is turntables now. They want to own Rumors by Fleetwood Mac. They’re 14 and 16 and love their music. They’ll play me stuff and I’ll say well, that’s a bit like this or you should listen to this.”
“There’s a great celebration and engagement in music. A leaning into listening and understanding artists. And it’s this generation, you know. We think that people don’t enjoy music the same way we did, or it’s too compressed—it’s just rubbish.”
He shares a memory of taking one of his daughters to see Harry Styles. “It was a great concert… Just watching my kid and her friend sing every word,” says Giles. During the encore, as the rain started to pour, Giles describes how Styles sang ‘A Sign of the Times’ to a crowd in awe.
“I’m just going, this is the best. It’s the same thing going back to the vinyl experience. You want to get close to the artist, and that’s what records do. They make you feel closer to the artist. You hold what they gave you.”
Where Inspiration Meets Innovation
Even from a technical standpoint, Giles sees Wrensilva as a partner in the production process. “Now with the Wrensilva units in the actual studio, we do a lot more listening to cuts. I can flip the Wrensilva and go, What’s it like? If I just sit on a sofa and ask, Am I enjoying this? Then I can compare vinyl cuts from the turntable back through the studio speakers again,” explains Giles. “I found this weird EQ stuff and applied it to the Wrensilva for my Pro Tools rig. We have Pro Tools now running through the Wrensilva as well.”
To Giles, hearing each remastered song on a high-quality console makes all the difference. In listening to the track “Now and Then” by the Beatles, he shares, “There was a heavy emotion immediately when it started playing. I spent a long time making that record, and maybe even longer talking about it. There’s a weight behind that song.” In fact, Giles was personally asked to work on the track by Paul McCartney. “And when you work on something like that, you’re an impostor, you know? I realized my dad should be doing this, and he’s not here anymore,” he explains. “But it’s the same with Paul. He feels like it’s John’s song, but he’s not here. So you just pretend they’re in the room with you.”
We’re certainly grateful to have Giles in the room with us.
In his Abbey Road Studio Giles listens to a Wrensilva M1 Record Console in Natural Walnut
