well first i must commend you on a good thread topic

second, i think its both a skill and talent. you can be skilled at scratching and beatmatching but you need the talent for crowd reading and creating a flow and so forth. Only talented people are good at reading crowds and so forth. Also talented dj's are the ones that, even if they can't do fancy scratches and stuff, can get people to have fun and cheer for their favorite song. I guess then djing can be considered more of a talent however you need basic skill in order to be a better dj.

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quote:

Originally posted by spdandpwr well first i must commend you on a good thread topic second, i think its both a skill and talent. you can be skilled at scratching and beatmatching but you need the talent for crowd reading and creating a flow and so forth. Only talented people are good at reading crowds and so forth. Also talented dj's are the ones that, even if they can't do fancy scratches and stuff, can get people to have fun and cheer for their favorite song. I guess then djing can be considered more of a talent however you need basic skill in order to be a better dj.

lol +1 i cant even say its too much of a mix to distinguish

but i will say coming from 8 years of classical orchestra bass with lessons and whatnot and a electric funk/rock bass stint definitely helped a lot.

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I agree it's a combo of both. I've picked up the basics of beatmatching and mixing in less than a month, but it's gonna take a lot more time to hone my skills to be considered "above average".

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just like sales, not something you can teach.

i also thing its a skill AND talent. some people just dont have what it takes. no matter how hard and how long they practice they just cant beatmatch or what not. talent = reading the crowd, creating your own style, track selection, etc etc. not everyone can or has what it takes to be a dj.

Any artistic form of expression be it painting to sculpture to ... I don't know .. djing is:
90% muscle
10% talent

quote:

Originally posted by jdat Any artistic form of expression be it painting to sculpture to ... I don't know .. djing is: 90% muscle 10% talent

muscle? i guess same as skill....yea, a lot of dj'ing is just technical stuff that with practice you will be able to train yourself to do. may take some people longer, but just a matter of discipline and patience.

i suppose it's the same with a lot of other art as the good man jdat mentioned above....give a kid a pencil and make him sketch a bowl everyday for 10 years and he'll soon be able to sketch it down to to the last detail...but to CREATE art is a whole 'nother matter.

could be wrong though i guess...i don't personally know anyone that just could not beatmatch even after years of trying....you may forget and need practice, but i think it's something anybody could learn given time.

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djing - a gift from above

60% Talent
40% Skill

I know a guy whose been mixing for 7 years and still can't do it properly.

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quote:

Originally posted by jahnlay 60% Talent 40% Skill I know a guy whose been mixing for 7 years and still can't do it properly.

"Originally posted by Mr. T"

I PITY THE FOO

Hmmm, interesting question but it’s not a complete question.

The way I see it is this… Your skill level is totally dependant on your level of natural talent. You can teach most people to beat match to a certain level, but then what decides the level they achieve is totally dependant on how naturally talented they are in terms of understanding the techniques and also musical ability, something that falls into it’s own.

Reading the crowd is something that you will pick up over time but again the level you take it to relies on your natural understanding of people.

How successful you are as a DJ depends completely on two things. Your charisma, you either have it or you don’t. Simple.
Second thing is your ability to produce tracks. In this day and age you are most likely not going to succeed unless you have quality releases to your name. Something that is a completely different level of talent, but it’s also fair to say that a lot of famous producers seriously lack in personality and charisma so the job kind of only gets half done.

Confidence is needed and this really only comes with the realisation of your own skills and the belief in yourself that you get from your success either as a bedroom DJ or club DJ.

To put it another way, I had worked how to beat match long before I ever touched a set of decks and this is back when DJing as we know it was in its infancy. Sure I didn’t get it 100% when I first tried it but the principles were there before I started so I had already started thinking about how the music was working. Now I admit that I am not the most talented DJ out there by a long shot but this solid base (you might call it talent) helped me realise my capabilities, get recognised and get work and put me in a position where I was able to live off this for a good many years.

In this day and age there are so many factors that decide success, and skill/talent are just a minor part of that.

Cheers
Nem

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