Drummer for Sergio Dalma: Recording «Treinta y tanto»

The recently released album Treinta y tanto by Sergio Dalma features drum recordings that I had the pleasure of performing for several of its tracks. Sergio Dalma is celebrating thirty years on stage with this record, which includes thirteen of his most iconic hits. The production was led by two teams, the first headed by his musical director Miguel Ángel Collado and the second by the renowned producer Paco Salazar.

My involvement began in early July 2019 when I received a call from Collado to record five of the songs assigned to him. The initial challenge was coordinating our schedules, as both the bassist José Vera and I were touring Spain and Estudio Uno in Madrid had limited availability. Eventually, we settled on July 9 and 12.

I arrived at Estudio Uno feeling a bit nervous about meeting Miguel Ángel Collado and the sound engineer Oscar Clavel for the first time. The first interaction with a new team often carries the fear of not meeting expectations or failing to grasp the producer's vision. However, everyone made me feel at home from the start.

Our first task was defining the sound. Following Collado's request for a rock-oriented tone with a powerful kick and deep toms, I chose my DW Performance kit with 24", 12", 14", and 16" measurements. I brought an extensive selection of snares, and fortunately, both the producer and the engineer were satisfied with the choice.

The technical setup at Estudio Uno was impressive, utilising their large Sala R and a high-end signal chain including API, Neve, and Kahayan preamps. The microphone selection was of the highest quality, featuring a Telefunken U47 as the front mic, Neumann U87s as overheads, Coles 4038s for the room, Neumann TLM 170s on the toms, and a Schoeps MK4 at the back of the room.

This album serves as a tribute to Dalma's most famous songs, reimagined with a modern touch. Miguel Ángel Collado had prepared excellent pre-productions for tracks such as A buena hora, Bailar pegados, Náufragos, Solo para ti, and El mar de tus caricias.

During the first take, my session drumming experience led me to believe that less is more, so I recorded a version very faithful to the demo. However, Collado encouraged me to be more creative and expressive: "Don't hold back, express yourself, I need your creativity." There is nothing more rewarding for a musician than being given creative freedom. This allowed the ideas to flow, further enhanced by the taste and precision of José Vera on bass. Recording bass and drums simultaneously proved to be a significant advantage.

We finished the recording on the afternoon of July 12 with the feeling of a job well done, celebrating the successful collaboration with the hope of meeting again for future projects.