TranceAddict Forums (www.tranceaddict.com/forums)
- DJ Booth
-- Mixing theory 101
Mixing theory 101
Hey all!
I'm just starting to learn about the wonderful world of DJing, and I'd really appreciate some help here.
Basically, I'm looking for all the basics, everything that might seem obvious to most of you 
(No, I couldn't find a tutorial :P)
I've got a few questions, but feel free to give some advice on other areas too. Also, I specify in Trance, but anything EDM-oriented is welcome.
EDM terms:
Not quite sure here, would people be so kind as to explain terms such as bassline, kick, breakdown, etc. I'm fairly sure I've got an idea of what they mean, but I sure as hell can't tell the definitions for them, and this is something I don't wanna get wrong. so, fill me in please :P
Structure, general mixing:
Song structure, bars, beats, bpm? What is there to learn about tracks in theory? This far, songs have either been "choons" or "not choons" for me ;P
How do I know when a new song is supposed to come in, where in the next track do I start it, and what parts do I "mute" or w/e it's called?
How do transitions between different styles go, such as prog to techy trance?
What to do when two tracks have different bpm?
The set:
What kind of tracks can be used in the same set? Is it ok to mix tech trance with progressive house and minimalistic electronic music?
How should a set structure look like? In which order do you play the tracks? I figured starting with a lower bpm and escalating as the night progresses would be a good idea. 
But how do I know at what point, and by how much this sould be done?
Let's say I've got 5 tech-trance, 5 progressive and 5 uplifting trance tunes. In what ways can I play these? I figured mixing them around a bit would be more exciting, but a tech-prog-uplifting cycle every 3 songs would be somewhat tiresome, right?
That's all I could think of for now. I'm sure more questions will pop up as these are answered. I appreciate any and all help I can get, and I'll make sure to check back regularly.
Thanks in advance
Chris
please dont hurt him 
great questions buddy 
to tired and green to give advise though
LOL I know, I'm expecting a ban for being too much of a noob
This book was written by a TA. Might be just what you need:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/DJing-Dummi...n/dp/0470032758
Jarv
Some very good information for you, in video format (note that there are multiple pages...)
http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=ellaskins
He uses vinyl, but the concepts can pretty much be applied universally.
I'm a noob also, but for the tracklist question.. I don't think order matters.
I think more importantly would be, if your live, what the crowd is feeling.
That's just what I've gathered from this site.
Grab a free demo program and start playing around on your computer. See how well you can match the beats and see what happens when you jam that cross fader across.
Do you have any decks yet?
Well if you dont have any decks "turntable/cdj's + mixer" then download Traktor so you have somewhere to start, and goto local events or clubs and watch other djs mix.
It will take about 12months from when you get your gear to make a decent beatmatched set, and you dont have to stick with one genre Eg in your set it could go from House-prog-Techtrance everyone has there own style.
| quote: |
| Originally posted by Jarvmeister This book was written by a TA. Might be just what you need: http://www.amazon.co.uk/DJing-Dummi...n/dp/0470032758 Jarv |
Thanks guys, your help is much appreciated =)
I've been looking into getting a pair of CDJ decks, but first I'm gonna fool around in traktor or ableton or something like that, just to get a feel for whether I like it or not =)
| quote: |
| Originally posted by DJRecess Well, ain't that nice of you... I don't know when the release is for Sweden though unfortunately. Here's a couple of pages from my website though, which'll start to fill in the blanks: www.recess.co.uk/html/thepoint.html - the whole point behind DJing www.recess.co.uk/html/mixbasics.html - the basics of mixing, from starting the beats in time to mixing two tunes with different pitches together. www.recess.co.uk/archive/structure.html - it's an old version of the page I wrote about beat-structures. (sorry for the formatting errors, but I took it off-line as I was never happy about it - the book really simplifies the explanations (using Baa Baa Black Sheep of all things). All three of the pages are legacy pages that I need to re-work for the site due to the release of the book (and bring them a bit more up-to-date - especially the CD mixing part) but they should answer some of your questions. |
Really? 
Man I hope you're were nice about it... I might cry otherwise...
I'm in the middle of encoding some video files which take you through what drums beats are etc, and also goes through an entire song's structure, with guidance on what to listen out for etc.
Once they're up, I'll post the links in here.
I've been DJing for a good long while and I still pick up guides, just to check if theres anything i missed out on. It's a constant education really, so i'm always looking for new ways to improve!
Your guide was pants!
Nah, it's a great read dude. 
I love everything about the djing business. Reading about it, researching new tracks, buying vinyl, looking into new equipment etc etc.
Good show.
Phew - good to hear you didn't hate it. If you found any errors, or anything you disagree with, PLEASE let me know. It goes for its major re-print (for the US market too) at the beginning of January, and I need to tell them what's wrong.
(there's already a few dodgy figures which they didn't print right (two in scratching, and one (so far) in Mixing Like a Pro).
Anywya, more tothe point, I've done the video clips for Beat Structure:
http://www.recess.co.uk/html/beats_bars.html
I don't know if I've managed to get it across clearly enough - again, I'd love some feedback on this. (Apart from 'For an Angel sucks...')
Cheers folks.
Powered by: vBulletin
Copyright © 2000-2021, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.