Very smooth based on my first listen. When will you post the second part? I'll have to listen to this one a few more times before I can comment much. Sounds like in-key mixing might be more difficult than beatmatching.....

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D.Squared - The Groove Supremum (December 2010)
D.Squared - New Originals (mix of famous sample sources)

it sjus tabout selecting the right tracks.
unfortunately, the set dosent sound like it progresses because of it, it would be better if the mixing was noticeable about twice to change into upbeat mode and back again

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Thanks for your comments

I will most likely post the second part on Wednesday or Thursday. The first half (what you heard now) is the type of music I normally play in clubs. I currently have two weekly residences, and we're fortunate enough to get crowds that appreciate this kind of music.

The second part is very different -- it's the kind of music I enjoy listening to, but rarely get to play out As I might have mentioned before, the BPMs of the second part range from 80bpm to 140bpm.

Awaiting more feedback, if anyone has any
-Yakov

just heard it. good job, although you could make it more interesting by trying to do more modal contrasts. it all sounds too predictable, but still, very good effort.

quote:

Originally posted by DJ Dingel Sounds like in-key mixing might be more difficult than beatmatching.....

you got that right, it's much much much more difficult.

Yakov!

Loved your mix, espcially the brilliant mix into Perpetual.
I would be happy if you post all the good possibilities while mixing in key, like what was said before:

A major mixed into E major.

p.s: can i try to realise what the key is using a computer generated piano sounds???

thanks!

Fishfish, thanks for your kind words

Hypothetically, yes, you can use a computer piano (it does the same thing), but I find it easier to use a cheap Radio Shack piano instead. They only cost about $60, I would strongly advise you to get one if you're planning to take this up. Here's the *easiest* way to figure out which keys go together:

http://www.harmonic-mixing.com/overview/easymix.mv

Camelot mixing This is the holy bible of mixing-in-key.

Good luck, and awaiting more feedback. By the way, this mix has been downloaded 141 times so far.. Much more than I expected

Loved the mix

Did you plan that mix first or was it done by ear on the fly? The reason I ask is that I'm trying to differentiate between good track selection and pre-determined sets.

Is it better to know what key your songs are in first (e.g. put a sticker on them) or just go with what you think would sound good?

How do you do it?

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Trance Records For Sale

Since it's a promo, it was planned, but the live set that inspired it was done without any special thought given to track selection.. I simply played a lot of different music in clubs until I found a combination that made people really get up and listen.. Then re-created the same mix at home, and that's how I got the above tracklisting

You *have* to key your music ahead of time though. Doing it by ear is very rough, and while it's better than not thinking about keys at all, writing down the exact key is better in the long run. I have keys that go back 8 months that I wouldn't remember otherwise, just because I wrote them down when I first found them. I'm sure it'll get even worse as years progress, I won't remember the keys of any music I no longer play.

Definitely write it down By the way, although I say I'm a 100% key DJ, there are often times when I mix out-of-key intentionally. When I want to play a specific song, and I just play it. But in general, when I know the mixes will be out of key, the mix time is shorter, and I try mixing during the intro/outro parts of the song.. Knowing the key still helps me there

In retrospect, I don't know how accurately this mix represents my musical style.. In clubs, I play a lot of UK house music, bouncy and happy stuff.. I play a lot of breaks too. This mix is deeper and more melodic than my normal tune selection for a prime-time gig. Still, I'm glad some of you guys liked it. From the feedback I got here, my next one will be even better

Cheers,
-Yakov

Two more things, forgot to say them before..

I actually see this mix as a Closing/Late Night mix.. something to play after all the anthems, and after all the people who wanted to go home went home, etc. I actually played a CDR of this mix at 2am in my club (they close at 3am), and got a great reaction from people who were still there.

Maybe in the future I will record a real "warm-up" mix, or more of a "prime time" mix. This promo, however, is definitely closing-time music, or "driving around in your car with nothing better to do" music.

Also, one more thing..

quote:

Loved your mix, espcially the brilliant mix into Perpetual.

Those two songs sound great together because they have a similar beat. I was listening to GU13 earlier today, and I think I understand why Sasha did such a great job with it -- All the songs on GU13 have different melodies, BUT similar basslines and beats. In my May Promo, there are huge musical changes between each song, *EXCEPT* "More Money, More Power" and "Perpetual." Perhaps, the reason why they sound good together is because I'm mixing similar types of music.

So the lesson I learned is: Mix similar music, in-key, and you'll have a near flawless mix done without Pro-Tools

This might sound like a silly question, but surely while mixing you have to adjust the pitch of the tracks so that they beatmatch? Isn't thius going to effect the key of Track? and therefore undo all of the hard work....

I suppose this wouldn't matter so much if all of the tracks you play are of a similar tempo, but i generaly play at around 135-136BPM, yet i like to play some chunky house records that may be just 130BPM and i'd have to pitch them up a fair bit.

any advice on this?

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nennon, that tracklisting looks great, I'm getting it now

quote:

Originally posted by JMF [TrAcId] This might sound like a silly question, but surely while mixing you have to adjust the pitch of the tracks so that they beatmatch? Isn't thius going to effect the key of Track? and therefore undo all of the hard work.... I suppose this wouldn't matter so much if all of the tracks you play are of a similar tempo, but i generaly play at around 135-136BPM, yet i like to play some chunky house records that may be just 130BPM and i'd have to pitch them up a fair bit. any advice on this?

Yeah... changing the pitch changes the key of the track. I think it's one semitone for every six percent change, although I'm not really sure. Better leave this one for nennon