how long should a demo mix be?
and about how many songs? should i do fast transitions to show mixing capabilities or just normal mixing as one would do in a club setting?
thanks in advance guys
if its a demo i would just bang loads of tunes in to a small space
i do 15 mixes to put up online cuz people dont listen to a hour long mix very often
Depends on who the demo is for. For Managers, Promotors and the like i would say atleast one hour long mix with nice transitions and not too much tricks. this way they´ll see that you can keep a mood and build up on that.
For the interwebs i would say 20 min are more than enough, as most people have such a small attention span 
It’s all subjective based on what you are providing a demo for.
If you’re auditioning for a club gig then I would say an hour minimum, being your average set is going to be based on hour slots (or two hour slots) and express a club set. It could be all different things, but you’re objective is to cater to the structure you are auditioning for.
There are no hard and fast rules for demo’s. I would never force 15 quick transitions into a demo, but that’s me. Nothing wrong with it but it doesn’t work for what I do. Hour long mixes are the best way, in my mind, to both show the tools I am working with, work with newer songs and older songs, and have a story and progression in the mix I make.
So what are you making a demo for? What do you want to accomplish?
To add to others comments:
It is a demo, so it should be ‘your best’ ie put inside all skills, personal tastes, tracks, whatever makes you stand over the rest but keep in mind:
- do a ‘clean’ thing: don’t need to put some technicals ‘mixes’ or tricks if you’re not able to master them, it would always be best to have a smooth and clever mix than a technical fumble. And anyway, you can record yourself and have another go if you’re not satisfied.
- keep in mind the objective and who is the ‘customer’: for a club, you’ll probably apply for a ‘warm-up’ dj position so it would be quite ridiculous to play hard at high bpm. That does not mean you can’t or shouldn’t but be clever in your progression. Also think about the club (if it’s a club) and the music played there and the crowd so you won’t do bad choices in terms of music
- it is easy to play ‘big’ tunes but a set only consisting of those is ridiculous, it is much more interesting to show how you do bring people to a huge and well-known track, to ‘emphasize’ it.
my two cents
ps: sorry for the english and grammar there guys, I’m not a native speaker.
hey
yeah depends on what your audience is and what types of music.
As people have said if its for a manager of a club then yeah long CD that basically represents what you’d do on a normal night, as they’ll probably sit and listen to it in the office while doing their work during the day.
But if its for the internet then you’ll have a far less captive audience. You can put your long mixes up for the people that are similar and want to play music in the background, but also good to have some quick mixes to keep their attention. Also if its more commercial music where there are no actual proper mixes then being clever and doing lots of quick mixes and mash ups and stuff could also work well and make you stand out.
k
I agree with eveyone here.
1 hour long cd with emphasis on the music, not the tricks (except if you’re a hip hop scratch dj).
Do not try to shine too much, just try to not make mistakes. People will not pay 100% attention to your demo, most of the time they will listen in the car, or working, etc. But mistakes really get their attention to what’s sounding.
when i book people i only skip through a cd people will not listen to an hour LONG mix, sorry i don’t agree. i don’t have the time
Yeah… but what would you think if someone would handle you a 15 min demo… or a demo with only bits and pieces of songs and mixes…?
i would listen to a 15 min mix i can tell if i want to hear/book some one after that, but it’s your call do a hour and let who ever skip through it or a 15 min on and risk someone thinking your crap. Do an hour long one then and you dont have the risk.
I would say an hour long CD with ‘tracks’ that start at the beginning of each transition.
why not just have both long and short mixes on hand? 
duh.
yeah, i’d send a 20 min one to them by mail and an hour on cd a few days later. If for nothing they would at least have seen your name before, if not listened to the mix you sent first. 