Answers
to a Select Number of Letters II
by
Rob
Wegner
June
2002
Portions
of the following Tip of the Month will appear in the premier
issue of Liquid
Volume Magazine.
Question: I have just got my turntables
three days ago. There's a rubber pad thing on the top and I'm
not sure if I am just really bad at scratching, or if they just
simply can't scratch. How would I be able to [scratch] without
burning my already burnt out cash?
Answer: Remove the rubber mat and
store it in a safe place. You will need DJ slipmats - which are
inexpensive and usually available at DJ speciality stores. Also,
consider placing a plastic sleeve - cut in the shape of a record
- under the slipmat (between the slipmat and platter). You should
calibrate your tone-arm to "full weight" on the needle
and consider purchasing made-for-scratch needles.
Question: My problem is that I'm not
sure how to promote myself in the clubs or to people to let them
know that I'm a DJ. Is there a way to promote myself at least
to people to get myself known in my area. I feel that I am as
good as some of the club DJ's and a little more versatile in
my music selection. I don't want to try and steal someone else's
job because I wouldn't want that to happen to me. If you could
give me some advice, I would greatly appreciate it.
Answer: Make a CD of your style and
give out as many free copies as you can afford. Give it to club
managers, promoters, DJ's, and to patrons at clubs that play
music close to your style. Be sure to put your name and contact
info on every CD. Eventually, your name will get known and someone
will book you to play.
Question: What is a monitor? I have
a vague idea what it does, but what is the actual monitor itself?
Is it just another component such as an amp or a mixer?
Answer: To hear the mix, a DJ has
a speaker (or two) in the DJ booth called a monitor. When you're
working in a large club (filled with people), it's hard to hear
the music (for mixing purposes) from the speakers on the dance
floor - that's why you need a monitor (speaker) in the booth.
A monitor also keeps you from getting distracted by patron noise,
as well as echoes bouncing back from the rear walls of the club.
Question: What does "rotating
a dance floor" mean? When working at a nightclub, would
you play just one style of music all night (my favorite being
trance music), or follow the style laid out in a playlist and
change the music from trance to house to hip-hop etc....?
Answer: Rotating the floor is mostly
about changing energy levels so that dancers (on the floor) can
take a break - and will be replaced by a new set of dancers (because
you're now playing something that they like). If you play one
style (like all trance), you rotate the floor by changing the
energy or "feel" of the trance every three or four
songs. In contrast, you will most likely play different styles
and genres at a mainstream club. In that case, you may play 20
minutes of hip hop, and then 20 minutes of house, etc. Club owners
love floor rotation because it generally increases drink sales.
While it's rare, some DJ's get raises and better shifts based
on their ability to increase average spending per customer.
Question: How exactly does a crossfader
work? Does it gradually cut the sound in-or-out, or does the
sound just appear at a set "on" point?
Answer: Yes, the crossfader (the
horizontal slider on a mixer) gradually increases the volume
of one side while it simultaneously reduces the volume of the
other side. If it's in the middle, both sides have equal volume.
Question: To become a DJ, is it important
to know some piano lessons or instruments?
Answer: Yes, it does help to know
piano and/or musical instruments, particularly if you want to
start remixing and producing music. An understanding of music
composition will enable you to better understand mixing and formatting.
I wouldn't say that it's required, but I believe that those DJ's
with a musical background have a better chance at success.
Question: What's a good bpm (beats
per minute) to make people dance? I mostly have hardhouse that
is 138 to 145 bpm. Is 140 bpm a good spot?
Answer: You have to read your crowd.
If the crowd likes hip hop, then you're going to be in the 90
to 110 bpm range. If your crowd is into house, then 120 to 135
bpm. If they like hard house and trance, then it's 135 bpm and
up.
Also, try slowing
it down a notch to see if they dance and then increase the energy
accordingly. Some DJ's deliberately play a slow-dance song (at
lower volume and dim lights), so that they can come out of it
with a fast-high energy song - to get people to dance.
If you're having trouble
getting them to dance, it may be the result of formatting (and
not bpm per se). Try a cheesy hit to: (1) see if they dance,
or (2) to start a set "to break-in" the dance floor.
You can gradually get more progressive after they're on the floor
for some time - but again, this all depends on reading your crowd.
Sometimes the crowd isn't ready to dance (like early in the evening),
or may be burned out from too many hits back-to-back (you have
to pace them, even with hard house).
Question: If I were to break into this
business with no previous experience or equipment, would you
recommend someone getting into vinyl, CD's, or both? Or does
it just totally depend on the person?
Answer: I would recommend both because
I believe that a DJ needs to be flexible and resourceful. On
the one hand, for example, you may be asked to spin a rave or
club that only employs turntables. On the other hand, CD's enable
you to customize your sound. For example, I make my own [CD]
remixes of songs on a computer. These mixes are unique to me
-- and are not available on the Internet or at record stores.
While I prefer vinyl and CD's equally, I suggest that you try
both and adopt whatever feels right.
Question: I want to ask a question
about mixing. If you're mixing, are you just mixing an intro
with an outro so that there are pauses when you are playing for
people? If so, is this how nightclub DJ's do it?
Answer: There really isn't a difference
between nightclub, rave, radio mix-show, or even mobile-wedding
DJ in terms of beat matching. It's done as follows:
a) Let's say that
you're currently playing a dance song. As that song ends, it
will break down into simple beats called an "outro."
b) When you start
the next song, it has simple beats at the beginning called an
"intro."
c) To beat match,
you overlap that intro with the outro of the song that's
ending. In other words, the drum beat in the outro is playing
along - in time - with the drum beat in the intro. If the intro's
drums are too fast (i.e., the beats don't overlap), slow down
the intro with the turntable's "pitch adjust." You
should try to overlap both songs for a minimum of 32 beats. Once
you get good, you can try 64 beats, 128 beats, etc. If you're
new at this, I suggest practicing with two copies of the same
record (since they have the same bpm).
It must be
overlapped - there are no pauses. You would only pause to end
a set of house songs at 135 bpm, for example, to transition to
a set of songs, like hip hop, at 100 bpm -- since the beats are
too far apart to beat match.
Question: I am new to the industry
(recently converted rock guitarist). I have been building a good
collection of vinyl. I have breaks, trance, and jungle. I have
many remixes of the same song, but some remixes are trance, others
breaks, and a couple are jungle. Would it be considered 'unprofessional,'
or even just look bad, for me to play a break remix of say, 'Damaged,'
and then play the trance remix later in the night, or the jungle
remix during a jungle set? My first 'gig' is coming up, and I
don't know what to do.
Answer: If this is your first gig,
then you may want to avoid repeating songs (even if it's a different
mix/version). As you will find out, the crowd is very
cognizant of what you're playing.
When you're a club
resident, and you're playing the same stuff night-after-night,
then playing a different version later in the evening may be
fine (as long as it's done in the context of a set - like all
trance, breakbeat, etc.). However, when spinning a rave, you
would want to present as much new material as possible (to demonstrate
your depth/knowledge of music).
FYI
Ibiza's
Summer 2002 season has arrived with most "opening parties"
taking place in June. The season calendar and DJ line-up can
be viewed
here.
By examining
the Disc Jockey 101 "Tip of the Month Subscriber list,"
a few interesting statistics can be discerned:
* Two out
of every three Disc Jockey 101 readers have previous DJ experience.
* A vast
majority of you play electronic music (i.e., house, techno, trance,
etc.). About 25% of you spin hip hop.
* One out
of every three visitors to Disc Jockey 101 are from outside the
United States
* 34% of
you spin vinyl only
* 25% of
you play on CD's only
* The remaining
41% of you play on some combination of CD's and vinyl
