no and yes.
you should learn it as its a fudumental skill. it's almost like walking and using sync would be running. what happens if the sync doesn't work and you can't beatmatch?
no and yes.
you should learn it as its a fudumental skill. it's almost like walking and using sync would be running. what happens if the sync doesn't work and you can't beatmatch?
Yes beat matching is a must in any performance. Not all music needs to be blended but even then the next song should come in on the right count to keep the feel going. Massive tempo changes require more rhythm dead time to change the vibe smoothly but still should be on the 1 when it does come in. Its just my opinion, but a lot of good non mixing Dj's do it whether conscientiously or not.
Beatmatching is one of the only 'musical' skills a DJ has. Timing is the number one most important factor in music.
It absolutely staggers me that Djs would not want to learn timing and to manually run mixes using their own rhythm. There are so many DJs who not only cant hit a button in time with a kick drum without quantise, they think that learning to do so somehow reduces their 'creativity'.
it's not just the beats that need matching, it's the tone, and general thread of the mix.
I'm tired of hearing perfectly beat-matched music that sounds terrible because the tones are all wrong & the tracks have no relation to each other apart from the tempo
Although things can get boring pretty quick if the tracks are too similar. I suspect you're talking about really bad clashes, right? Not necessarily keys.
It can work the other way round - I'm tired of hearing mixes where each track is too similar, if you see what i mean, like they all have exactly the same sounds in them, exactly the same drums etc. - a lot of EDM I find like this. Each track has the same tired old sawtooth buzz waveform, same buildup and breakdown structure etc. etc.
If you don't know how to beatmatch, you are NOT a DJ. That's a basic, fundamental DJ skill. If you can't mix two songs together but charge people for DJ services, you're a fraud, fake and charlatan.
Wow, this is great feedback.
The majority of the ppl here believe that this is the epitome of what a DJ does, and I personally agree. I cannot stand in for any more than 3 transitions of a DJ who cannot beatmatch/blend. Anyone can play music - practically everyone has got an iPod or phone who can do this too...
Now, what is more important... being creative? or having a great selection of music?
These days, I find that artists/djs can get away with their blunders as long as the crowd enjoys the playlist, but as a DJ I think blending and progressing smoothly makes for a better night over-all. The crowd doesn't know, but they definitely can feel it in the long run.
Thoughts?
http://soundcloud.com/mondope
... or to extend Manu's point, as I've mentioned before in this thread, David Mancuso didn't beatmatch. Lee Scratch Perry didn't beatmatch, nor does Nick Manasseh. Little Steven doesn't beatmatch. John Peel didn't beatmatch. Nor do any of the popular music radio DJ's but they're DJ's right? Professional ones. They get paid for it and have their own show.
To say that beatmatching is essential is quite simply wrong. It all depends on the type of music.
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