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Originally posted by isoterra obviously trance is niche when compared to house/electro & various kinds of mainstream music here in the UK, but it's far from a dying scene; as anyone from the global gathering main tent this year or one of the 3000+ crammed into gatecrasher for pvd's last 6hr set will tell you. the sheer amount of people i've met through clubbing that still go wild for melodic/uplifting stuff is as good a sign for me that it still plays a role, nevermind mixmag listings or anything like that

How are these parties for thousands of people an indication of genre's good health, though? I always thought any genre needs to have a proper underground background to be 'alive'. There have to be smaller club nights where people go and know something about what they're gonna hear; these huge festivals are usually full of people who couldn't tell a difference between trance and techno.

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Originally posted by paulandrews How are these parties for thousands of people an indication of genre's good health, though? I always thought any genre needs to have a proper underground background to be 'alive'. There have to be smaller club nights where people go and know something about what they're gonna hear; these huge festivals are usually full of people who couldn't tell a difference between trance and techno.

true, but those were just examples where large numbers of trance fanatics would have been likely to gather. if i didn't believe trance to have an underground background then i wouldn't have made the point.. for the uk at least, there are easily enough smaller music-focused nights to keep the average trance clubber (who doesn't go out EVERY weekend & is prepared to travel a little) more than satisfied. although i'm likely to be biased with all this being based on my own personal experiences, so take the above with a pinch of salt

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Originally posted by nefardec Generally people seem to pick titles the way that they pick avatars online or something. that is, it just looks/sounds cool and somehow 'represents' in a postrational way what it is they made/who they are

Yeah, agreed. Example on the main forums right now: "Faxing Berlin".

In my opinion, a track's title should match the sound which should match the personality of the artist and the story that the track is trying to tell.

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Originally posted by MrJiveBoJingles Apples and oranges. The main area for innovation and achievement in classical music is melodic / harmonic ideas, so that's what I'd be concentrating on doing if I were writing classical. 99.9% of dance music doesn't do anything innovative as far as harmony and melody, it just takes the principles already well-established by generations of pop music. This is for good reason, since if it tried to do what classical music does with tonality people would perceive it as dissonant, complicated, or weird and wouldn't want to dance to it. I love classical music, by the way, but I don't expect the same things from it that I'd expect from electronic music, like new timbres / effects not possible with acoustic instruments. I don't consider one or the other type of music "better," they're just typically a lot different in what they're trying to achieve.

So you're saying that you will *not* judge classical music by its "danceability", but you'll size up trance by its overused structure?

Trance is designed to zone you out, its something to dance to and enjoy (and perhaps to listen to while high). If you don't like a song, skip it or don't buy it. Even better, get into producing yourself as you seem to be, and maybe one day we'll be hearing one of your tracks, and we'll comment on how original and emotional it is.

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Originally posted by MrJiveBoJingles Trance = Beatless break + lush saw pad + "aah" choir + saw lead with low pass filter that opens up before the beat comes back in. Maybe throw a nice plinky piano or guitar / guitar-like synth in there for good measure. That's what trance is, right?

Actually that's more like what pop is...

another thought

the main thing that makes trance poppy or sing-songy is when the bassline moves in harmony with the pads and lead. that's the worst

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Originally posted by nefardec another thought the main thing that makes trance poppy or sing-songy is when the bassline moves in harmony with the pads and lead. that's the worst

As opposed to what, exactly?

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Originally posted by Mr.Mystery As opposed to what, exactly?

syncopation for example. or maybe extra swing (with taste ofcourse).

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Originally posted by SPAWNmaster syncopation for example. or maybe extra swing (with taste ofcourse).

So you're referring to it's rhythm rather than it's melody?

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As opposed to what, exactly?

Well I was being a bit dramatic - this needs some clarification because certainly it is a backbone of progressive trance - LSG - Netherworld (Oliver Prime Remix) is my favorite example of it working. However, this works because of the extremely long and ambient phrasing, not an obvious melody and follow along bassline


This of course is opposed to for example a bassline which is like a separate melody or pattern, independent from the lead or harmony.

Opposed also to what Andrew mentioned, syncopation and a rhythmic bassline

Or opposed to a drone or driving, repetitive bassline which doesn't shift pitches to harmonize.


eg LSG - Netherworld

Last edited by nefardec on Aug-06-2007 at 15:27

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Originally posted by nefardec Well I was being a bit dramatic - it works sometimes, but in general it creates a sing-songy feeling. This of course is opposed to for example a bassline which is like a separate melody or pattern, independent from the lead or harmony. Opposed also to what Andrew mentioned, syncopation and a rhythmic bassline Or opposed to a drone or driving, repetitive bassline which doesn't shift pitches to harmonize.

i never really noticed this until i listened to Tiesto - Carpe Noctem

perfect example of this... omfg so wack..

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quote:

Originally posted by nefardec This of course is opposed to for example a bassline which is like a separate melody or pattern, independent from the lead or harmony.

By 'independent' you mean 'dissonant'? Bassline can move wherever the fuck it wants but it should always stay in harmony with the lead and the rest of the melodic elements in the track. For me, the reason why do some songs sound poppy, is usually harmonic progressions that are predictable.

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