virtues of dj vs. producing

[zhao]

1 - music can exist without DJs but DJs can't exist without music
2 - it takes more time and effort to learn production and musician skills than it does to learn DJing.

just a quickie reply:

1. in the real world, taking into account how the public actually interfaces with music, the curatorial process is as indespensible as production. what good are a million bedroom producers if no one hears their tracks? and more than playing them, djs artfully contextualize the tunes, presenting them in a way that they ought to be experienced, and the whole set becomes much more than the sum of the individual parts.

another useful, if not exactly accurate, somewhat awkward, and not really fully worked-out metaphor might be: there are concrete (no puns intended) reasons why interior designers get paid much more than architects. it may seem absurd on one level, but it makes sense if you think about the experience of the end user: their daily lives are intimately touched more by the former than the later.

2. i don't know about one-genre or just plain lazy djs, but the kind of project I'm working on, it takes much hard work researching music from all 5 continents, finding the golden thread which runs through them all, and connecting the dots in a way that simultaneously expose the listener to entire musical cultures which they would otherwise be entirely unaware of, and creating an ephemeral yet unforgettable experience which creates a profound sense of sweaty, blissful unity.

in such cases the dj has to consider geography, history, migration (of musical ideas - afro-arabic or arabic-latin for instance), politics (zulu-house as a style arisen from anti-apartheid activism), and the lives and experiences of many different generations of various ethnic groups. much more to think about than, say, a house producer sitting alone in his studio tweaking hi-hats.

 

[bassnation]

i don't think you have to be a technically great dj to be an exciting dj, in contrast, the kind of machined perfection of an albeton dj mix cd sounds terribly uninteresting even if the selection is good compared to the rough and ready selection and possible mixing of a good selector on full hilt. You don't have to beatmatch but if you can combine lots of techniques and some technically skillful things to keep things interesting then thats good. Lots of people don't beatmatch nowdays or particularly blend or mix but i think it's often good to.

fair enough, but if interesting connections can be made, i'm not too fussed if the technical aspect isn't perfect. if dj skills add something on top of that, then all well and good but lets not put the cart before the horse.

 

[Edward]

1. Yes, quite right, but equally, what good are a zillion bedroom DJs putting their mixes online when you can go and get a Stanley Clarke album and just listen to it and it will be more enjoyable?
I'm just playing with you but you see my point?

Comparing great DJs who bring good music to the masses with bedroom producers is as unfair as me comparing Stanley Clarke to someone making mixtapes for their mates' cars in their bedroom.


2. Let me know when you're playing out! sounds cool.

 

[noel emits]

Re DJing skill.

Obviously guys like Peel and yer reggae dudes are skilled in ways other than the ability to seamlessly beatmatch records, which is of course easier when all your records sound the same Probably skills more in the area of charisma and the relationship with the crowd. One thing that I think should be more acknowledged is how really good selection can be context specific - playing the right record at the right time for the situation and how the crowd is feeling. Like the story of Larry Levan telling someone that with the next record he's going to make two people on the other side of the room start dancing and they do.

 

[IdleRich]

"1. in the real world, taking into account how the public actually interfaces with music, the curatorial process is as indespensible as production. what good are a million bedroom producers if no one hears their tracks? and more than playing them, djs artfully contextualize the tunes, presenting them in a way that they ought to be experienced, and the whole set becomes much more than the sum of the individual parts. "

One thing that is maybe contained in that (certainly it's part of a curatorial process) but no-one has mentioned explicitly is when a dj/collector whatever finds some obscure track that the band or producer don't rate and realises that it has potential for a different audience. This is often the case with tracks made just to pad out an album or fulfill some contractual obligation and it can often be by a band who are generally not very good. In that case it often feels like a fluke that the band have done something good and there is surely a lot of credit due to the guy who digs far enough to find it, recognises it's worth more than the band does and plays it to a totally different crowd.