I’m in the process of trying to expand myself musically as a DJ to include live performance with other software such as Maschine/Ableton. However, I’m having a difficult time trying to find DJs/performers who incorporate a live set up using either ableton or maschine/other controllers that differentiate themselves from the regular track-to-track mixing that is most common.
Does anyone here dabble in this sort of setup, or can anyone refer me to DJs/Performers who do?
I’m looking for examples so I can get a good idea of what a live performance is about.
I know Speedy J and Chris Liebing have their Collabs performance which is pretty inspiring, and of course Richie Hawtin but I’m looking for a wider range of performers whether amateur or professional.
Are there any articles about incorporating a live set up into your DJ performance? I’ve searched but haven’t come up with much.
Perhaps we can even open up a discussion about the different forms of live performance and their difference from standard mixing.
In my ableton set I have a whole bunch of loops I’ve made for the tracks. And the tracks aren’t playing in full, I have them cut up in too loops as well so I can mix and match parts of the song and do live edits of them. With that I want to add maschine for percussion and possibly a synth (Real or VST) to run extra melodies with the tracks.
i consider my sets half way between live performance and djing (i basically make mash up after mash up on the fly). i gotta mix and video in my siggy, you can judge your self i guess haha i’m starting to play with using the maschine software alongside traktor and doing some live drumming along with my mixes (but its gona be awhile till im actually good at it haha)
So does anyone use traktor + maschine software to combine in a live performance type of set? If so, how, what do you use the maschine for? Do you pre-create beats, load them into scenes and then treat maschine as a 3rd or 5th deck? Do you make beats on the fly or sample parts of songs? Do you load vst’s/plugins and create crazy effects?
“I know Speedy J and Chris Liebing have their Collabs performance which is pretty inspiring, and of course Richie Hawtin but I’m looking for a wider range of performers whether amateur or professional.”
Paul van Dyk
Sasha (when he was on Ableton)
James Zabiela
Woo York (find them on mixcloud)
Underworld (much more focused on live performance)
Tarekith (he runs abletonlivedj.com; see also tarekith.com)
And, I’m working on incorporating Maschine…figuring out the technical side at the same time as actually making beats…which is slow because I suck at writing melodies. I have ideas, but I’m not seriously working on it until I get several tracks made that I think suck less than what I’m currently producing.
use your dj software for loops and prewritten stuff/maschine for jamming. try writing like 8 bar loops simply for the purpose of working them over with traktor. write around the features of the software you use.
right now with ableton im just writing and making edits to have a collection i can use where i write a loop, and in session view i arrange it so that i have 8 bars of one element soloed then 8 bars of another element soloed until every element has 8 bars recorded solo. at the end ill have the whole loop. throw it into your dj softwares library, set down cue points at the beginning of the 8 bar intervals. i use serato, only 5 cues, so i can only put cues at the beginning but with traktor put down a cue at the beginning of the beat and the down beat giving you more room for jamming
I think “live performance” comes into play more when people are working harder on the production side of things. For people playing other people’s tracks, it can work, but it comes down to how it’s done. That’s why you don’t see a ton of crazy turntablism stuff around for parties, looking at it from that perspective.
I’m constantly working on silly stuff production wise, but until I really get my act together about it, I don’t plan on using something that I’d consider “live performance”. It’s just too much of a pain for me to chop up other people’s stuff like a madman, esp. live.
It’s a tough call though, I think if done proper it can be amazing. Seeing Orbital (so pissed I missed Chemical Brothers last year, didn’t go to Ultra) was a perfect example of this.
One major caveat. Don’t have both Traktor’s virtual output and Maschine’s virtual input going…the clocks will be slightly offset and your BPM wil be like 2-3 times what it should be.
I decided “screw cheating, i’m in my bedroom.” So, I loaded up some stuff that I’ve done that I think is crap along with some of the example projects that NI bundled with Maschine or the expansions.
Yeah. Works very well.
Congratulations, NI. Things just work, and it took way less time to set up than when I started playing with Ableton. I know more what I’m doing now, so that probably makes the comparison less valid, but yeah.
When I manage to make some beats that I don’t think are complete garbage, I’ll post a recording.
Also…I’m sure I’m just scratching the surface, but between scenes and mutes, I don’t think I hardly used the knobs on maschine at all. Mikro might work just as well for this unless you’re into using its effects…which I’d have mixed feelings about losing.
Has anyone actually seen a “live performance” that isn’t just DJing with stems and loops in ableton? I wanna see someone with a keyboard, drum pads, VSTs and some form of looper thingy.
Actually the best people I’ve seen for live performances have all been beatboxers. MC Xander is excellent, as is beardyman.
ive seen deadelus and fly lo both do that. denkitribe has done quite a few performances like that. some other Japanese cats also. there must be others. depending on the genres considered, there are probably quite a few. eigenharp players for instance.
and i never really noticed that how few people live loop with synths or pads. reggie watts, beardy and the other beatboxers seem to have that style down pretty solid. its a wonder there isnt more coverage of people trying it with different instrumentation.
rabbit in the moon, uberzone, chemical brothers, and hybrid…to name a few off the top of my head. But this is back in the “good old days” where everyone was mostly hardware. IMO much more interesting to watch and way more talent required.
i’m starting to play with using the maschine software alongside traktor and doing some live drumming along with my mixes (but its gona be awhile till im actually good at it haha)
