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#573 - 03/08/02 07:04 AM THE DJ DEBATE
alex_g Offline
Junior Member

Registered: 03/08/02
Posts: 3
Loc: U.K. Midlands
And so it continues.... the age old debate about DJs and dance music versus 'proper' musicians. Some of the points made in previous topics (my 2 pennies worth) are definitely relevant to the current 'dance' music scene (RE: DJs are in it for the money). I agree there is some truth in this, but also consider it to be a bit of a sweeping statement. There is a new revolution in the 'underground' scene which is not all about the money, but all about good people sharing good music for good vibes ('back to the old days', if you like). Where I live, there is a collective of forward thinking musicians, producers, DJs promoters etc who are trying their hardest to bring innovation, musicianship and genuine originality to the underground scene, but it is not easy. The problem lies in labelling. When some people hear 'DJ', they automatically summon up images of talentless wastes of space, just playing records made by high and mighty musicians for the benefit of their bank balances. In a similar way, the words 'dance music' mean cut-and-paste loop-the-loop sample CD ripoffs. But you see, its not all true!!!! There ARE genuine musically competent people, often living on the poverty line who'll go to their crappy jobs day in and day out wishing the hours away until they can get in front of their knackered old PC and start putting down all their emotions and aspiritaion in a collection of sounds we call music. At the risk of doing a 'Beatles' (bigger than Jesus) I'm going to draw parallels with classical masters such as Chopin, Haydn and Brahms. These composers were often shunned for their forward thinking and inovative stylings, but now they are highly respected and recognised for forming the basis of musical rule as it is today. You see, technology is changing the way many people express themselves musically, and in the true style of history repeating, these valuable assets to the future of musical development are being shunned and oppressed by those whom are closed-minded and resistant to change. It's time to break down the barriers, to bring all that is good together, and for gods sake just make some choons! After all, music is the language of the soul, and if I've ever been sure of anything I'm sure that I don't know a more powerful way of expressing human emotion than music.

If you've read this far then I thank you. If you are at all interested in anything I've said, or you want to find out that I'm not just talking BS then check out some of these sites, they are growing fast and represent a web presence for futurist musicians and producers.
www.technique-uk.com www.spirit-live.com www.alexg.net (under development)


Alex G

PS BTW I'm new to this BBS, I'm an electronic music producer with a project studio - Samplers(ESI2K, Akai S950), Synths, (Korg MS2K, DB50XG), Sequencer(RM1X), Outbord, PC (Cubase, Reason, Reaktor, Soundscape), Various instruments (percussion, trumpet, guitars, hammond organ) and a 4 track open reel recorder. I also maintain/run a Protools MIX24 + System for 5.1 / Stereo mixing plus various MIDI modules and mics. I've been writing for around 12 yrs now, no commercial releases, but have written for promos, ads, visuals and the web. I also DJ and have been following undergound dance music since the ealy days of 'Rave' (92-93 onwards) my speciality is drum n bass but I write all styles of music, what ever I feel. Hello Y'all!!

[This message has been edited by alex_g (edited 03-08-2002).]

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#574 - 03/08/02 08:13 AM Re: THE DJ DEBATE
Bluezplayer Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 11/10/00
Posts: 2195
Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY
I'm not sure whether I can or cannot totally embrace being a DJ ( without being a musician ) as form of music or other art, because I am a "proper" musician as you put it, but you do raise some very valid points Alex. I think part of it for us older folks anyway, is that it's often almost second nature sometimes for many in a certain generation to embrace what occurs in their heyday, and find it all too easy to dismiss what follows. I also think that maybe it has always been this way. I remember thinking of Keith Emerson, Chick Corea and Rick Wakeman as the keyboard gods of all time. They certainly were among the best in their heyday, and may still be among the best. For me, John Mclaughlin and Al DiMeola were the ultimate guitar players, Billy Cobham and Bill Bruford the drummers of drummers.

Then I started listening to stuff Keith Jarrett and Monty Alexander did just before them on piano, Les Paul on guitar, and Buddy Rich on drums. I kept working my way backwards, right back to the composing mastery of Chopin and Mozart. Suddenly the lines weren't so clear any more. It's true that I don't see those types of people any more doing what they did, but I think it's also true that what Chopin did was not being done during Keith Emerson's heyday.

Off the subject a bit but also relevant, I was conversing with a fellow amateur radio operator last week ( I'm not particularly active in the hobby any more ), and he noted that what today's operators are casting gloom and doom about concerning the ruination and death of the hobby sounds remarkably similar to what was written in a magazine forum some 70 years ago, despite many rule changes and advancement in technology. The point for me being, I think by our nature alone a lot of the members of each generation embraces what's good in their time and then as time passes tend to look with disdain about things having changed.

So often it's " not the way it used to be ", as if that is always a totally bad thing. I wonder what Mozart, Chopin, or Beethoven would have been able to accomplish in the " Golden Years " of my generation or in todays generation with all of the machinery and equipment that is available. Maybe they would not have been appreciated at all because they couldn't get a record company deal... Hmm come to think of it, if the folklore is true, they were underappreciated in their OWN time, so how much different is it really ?

Korg AJ



[This message has been edited by Bluezplayer (edited 03-08-2002).]
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AJ

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#575 - 03/08/02 09:30 AM Re: THE DJ DEBATE
tekminus Offline
Member

Registered: 04/20/00
Posts: 1287
Anyone heard of paragraphs? I'm not even going to pretend I read that.

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#576 - 03/08/02 10:38 AM Re: THE DJ DEBATE
Bluezplayer Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 11/10/00
Posts: 2195
Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY
It's fixed tek..so is my rather crude reply. we all have bad days.....

AJ



[This message has been edited by Bluezplayer (edited 03-13-2002).]
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