Is Dj:ing an never ending learning process like guitaring?
Hi guys.
Its funny when talking to musicians from different gendres like punk or heavy metal, you some times end up hearing some super strange comments about Djing. One of the main slogans I have encountered is “Well its just playing with buttons and raping some classic songs” OR “Well they are Djis because they cant play any instruments”
I was suprised to hear these comments escpecially because I my self have been playing guitar for 10 years now and though Dj:ing happens to be my main focus, I still respect other gendres like punk even though it might be some easy power chords back and foward
Anyways when going deep to their thoughts I think most of the classic musicians really think that you can master djing in few years while guitaring takes you whole life time. I have to agree with the guitar part… The more you learn about it, the more you know that you have to learn about it! Its madness!
What do you guys think about Djing? I have been doing this for 2 years now but I still find something new and exciting . I would rally like to hear comments for those who have been doing this for many years now. Thanx!
I started with guitar when i was 12 and DJing at 15.
I only got really into DJing when i left a band and could not face being in another (bands can have that affect on you) so yeah i agree with all you say.
Musicians can be close minded pricks a lot of the time, so can DJs to be honest.
You will never stop learning.
I think being a guitarist was a great help when i started to get serious with DJing as the musical background was a great help (not reading music but song structure, reading rhythms) . To be honest i picked up beatmatching really quickly.
After years of DJing and very little guitar playing im just getting back into guitar.
I may even play in a band again?
Its all a MASSIVE learning curve.
The day you think theres nothing left to learn is the day that you have lost the connection with what you do…
Hi Carlos. Its funny you mentioned about the fact that after a band that didnt work out so well, It sure is hard to get back to a group of people and start creating music by mostly compromising and searching the right sound(some members were into pop, some to death). It was a nightmare in my case! Thats the reason I left and started Djing, now producing electronig tunes.
“They” say that is takes 10,000 hours of practice to master something…sometimes they say it takes 10 years. Either way, there is an enormous amount of information to e learned, skills to be mastered, and point of view to be developed…that go into DJing, or guitar playing, or brick laying, or painting, or running a professional kitchen, or flying an airplane, or doing surgery, etc, ad nasium.
For another point of view, look at the Dreyfus model of skill acquisition.
Most of us have a lot of skills that are at various levels of maturity on that model…cooking, riding a bike, auto repair, roller blading, dog training, gardening, and so on. The vast majority of these kinds of skills will never advance beyond the “novice” or “advanced beginner” stage.
Also, “DJing” is not a single skill, or even a universally accepted set of skills. For instance, I an “proficient” at producing mashups and beatmixing. I do not scratch at all. I am learning about controllerism, but have not (yet) reached the “competent” stage in that skill.
but i would compare djing more to a craft like cooking, or fashion/interior design.
the art is in how we combine elements that more often than not are created by others, which typically isn’t the case if you look at who is historically recognized as great guitarists.
turntablism is a bit of a different beast though, i think you could definitely compare that to any other instrument playing.
I played in a band for about 5 years on the bass guitar. I started partying and whatever else and my mind started to open up and the more I was opened, the more restrictions I see in playing in a band. 2 or 3 months later I decided to start mixing.
I was pretty big into tool and one of the things that I really liked was the repetitive nature of there phrases. Sort of like a trance or mediation.
My biggest problem with playing in a band was I hated the stops in between the songs and some songs didn’t have a solid enough beat to dance on. Other people messing up always sucked too cause if you practised your ass off and someone else makes a mistake, its till you who suffers from it.
I was introduced to “DJing”. Loops, dancing for 12 hours straight and all the fault upon myself. Everyone loving live. Its fucking beautiful.
I think if you want to compare “djing” to guitar playing, you need to first isolate the specfic skills in “djing” that you can compare to guitar playing.
Some things are similar such as phrasing, counting, harmonic mixing, effects, moods.
Some things are different. Tuning, learning scales and chords vs Beatmatching and learning songs.
Just like an artist, we as a DJ are combining different sounds to create something new with a feel that is specific to you as a DJ.
Weather you only have th keys on your saxophone to work with, or you have every track every produced, how you put them together is your distinctive artistic en devour.
And to put it simply.
Absolutely, DJing is a never ending learning process, with ought a doubt.
I think that DJing is certainly a craft. I tend to think in terms of the old school “trade” with apprenticeships, journeyman, and master craftsmen. In that context a “master” is someone who is good enough to teach the trade to a novice. Any “art” is still based in techniques and skills that need to be mastered. You can not break the rules until you know what the rules are.
There are a few big schools when it comes to DJing…and thousands upon thousands of little variations. One persons essential DJ skill, is another’s waste of time. And that is OK. Not everyone who works with wood is a cabinet maker…and most cabinet makers do not frame houses.
As for the great guitarists…the vast majority of great musicians are not also great composers. So, in that sense, they are playing someone else’s notes. And, for that matter, the best musicians I have heard would blow arena rock guitar players out of the water…during their warm up… (Hint:
)
I still totally love to listen to BB King, Clapton, Chet Atkins, Mark Knopfler, SRV, Hendrix, Duane Allman, etc. I am just under no illusions that “arena rock” exemplifies the end all and be all of great musicians.
I’ve been playing guitar for a few years, and I’ve been singing for 15. I’ve played drums, saxophone, viola, flute, piano, and a couple other random things. I like music.
I think that’s wrong. The day you think there’s nothing left to learn is the day that you start sucking.
The day you think there’s nothing left to learn is the day you accept the fact that you will continue to suck for the rest of your life, and have given up doing anything about it.**
You dont depend on other people. Drummer is drunk, guitarist car broke, singer is sick, etc. You will get as good as you allow yourself to be. Your equipment will always be there waiting for you, staring at you. Give it the same amount of dedication as any instrument youll be the master.
I Identify myself with the culture, the lifestyle and overall experience. If I wanted to be some dapper looking sharp chap I would have choosen the violin or something like that.
DJing is an art. To take something that exist (a song) and morph it into something entirely different and enjoyable to the point people are willing to spend money to experience it then it is art. And just like art not all people will agree to it. And again like any other art, you will never learn everything that goes with it.
Some might say 2 turntables and a mixer aint a musical instrument, but again you see blugrass music beign played with washingboards, jugs, spoons etc… and I triple dare any1 telling them that aint music.
I dont think Qbert would suck just cus he didnt learn anything new.
He may have lost connection with whats new and changing in his field though.
Like is say, Qbert aint gonna suck just cus he may think he has nothing to learn. Lets get real here.
btw-im just using Q as an example of someone who has reached the top of his field. He probably still thinks he has lots to learn. Thats what makes him the legend that he is.
He hasnt stopped learning & creating.
Umm exactly. Q doesn’t suck because he fully understands there will always be something new to learn, and that his crab-scratch will never be “perfect”.
And if he were to gloat somewhere that “I am the best scratch artist there ever will be, I have reached absolute perfection”
I would loose all respect for him, as an artist and as a person, and to me, he would suck, period.
even when you’ve mastered the technical side of things
there’s still the other 90% of it which is knowing music.
so you know dance music pretty well? okay, then start checking out jazz and classic rock. you learn a little about those? okay, time to start learning blues and baroque.
there’s not enough time in a day or years in a life time to know everything there is to know about music - and isn’t having deep crates half of what makes a proper dj?
