I'm just wondering how well some of you really good dj's know your music that you have in your collection. Can you hear the song in your head as you go through the names of tracks or do you need to quickly toss them in to get a rough idea. Any tricks to remembering them? With sooo many tracks in my collection I find it extremely difficult to remember them all when it comes time to spin a set. I'll have a good idea of 3-4 of the songs I defintiely want to play but beyond that I find that i'm listening to different tracks while the one currently on is playing instead of enjoying the track at hand.

I have been downloading close to a cd per day (six tracks on each), so its tough to keep up. So i decided on cateloguing, with a brief description at the end of the title....

example...

Stan Kolev - Vibrations - [Outta Limits] || TECHY.PROG.HOUSE. ||

Do this with your collection, sure it's time consuming - but you wont have a tough time putting a sound to a title.

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I'm not a really good DJ lol but I will say that what helps me is listening to the tracks over and over and analyzing them on MixMeister to see where everything is. I also have a Wave readout on my CDJs that helps, though it's not as precise as MixMeister is. I look at "peaks" & "valleys" essentially, and visualize the track as it plays like a wave, by looking at high and low points.

Playing them constantly is all I can say. When you play in your room just constantly play them. I know some people download a lot of music daily so it might be tough but play the ones your think you will include in your set more. Besides, when picking and choosing tracks you should be careful about it anyway instead of just going on a spree, unless you dont plan on playing out of course and just do it soley for fun at home.

Well the best and most obvious way is to listen to them every single day. Maybe when your on the bus with your headphones on, think about when it's time to drop in the next track and see what would happen if you dropped it in at a certain point. I do that sometimes. Or, you could try night listening. Quietly replay a song overnight while you sleep. Maybe it'll work??

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I listen to my new tracks on my iPod while I workout in the gym, it helps tremendously to get to know them.

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I'm just starting out, so I'm purposefully throwing in tracks that I've never / barely listened to before. This way it forces me to learn how to act under pressure.

Edit - also been practicing with a friend (who is also just starting out) and a lot of the stuff he plays I've not heard before.

So I'll mix 3 tracks then he'll mix 3, and we go back and forth. Forces us to mix into each other's tracks. He left me with a break beat the last time, that jerk...

quote:

Originally posted by david.michael I'm just starting out, so I'm purposefully throwing in tracks that I've never / barely listened to before. This way it forces me to learn how to act under pressure. Edit - also been practicing with a friend (who is also just starting out) and a lot of the stuff he plays I've not heard before. So I'll mix 3 tracks then he'll mix 3, and we go back and forth. Forces us to mix into each other's tracks. He left me with a break beat the last time, that jerk...

That is a great way to practice indeed. I do this with a friend once a week or so and he spins tribal so it definitely forces us to take risks we normally wouldn't. A great way to get better as a dj in my opinion.

Not to mention, this is a great way to open your mind musically since you have no choice but to listen to tracks you normally wouldn't.

I just know the vibe they produce. The knowledge of whether they will mix well with the previous track is from practice.

Because I play out about 3 to 4 times a week I tend to know my tracks very well and the what's on the play list is an evolving process rather than a fresh start each gig.

If I do a double one night as long the music policy is similar I tend to play similar sets taking into account the time of the set and how the crowd are responding.

I also spin a couple of times a week at home so will know the tracks well.
CDs have helped me play a more varied set each time I play as I can take more tunes with me.

The more you spin the more you will get to know the structure of dance music and wont have to listen to a track as much to know when and how to mix it.

Cheers
Nem

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It was my first time playing back to back with another DJ this past weekend and I'm glad I know my records aswell as I do otherwise it would have been a complete mess.

Jay

for me, the best place to listen to tracks is in the car. i find that i listen a lot more intently when i have nothing else to focus on besides music and driving. it also helps to pass the time when i'm driving far distances, which i do quite a bit.

i try to listen to tracks at work too, but i usually end up treating them as background noise because i'm either posting on TA or really into my work.

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