Tag: Club Culture

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Semiological Analysis for DJ play

How to treat music and means of music in night club are very different to its in disco and popular music.

At dance floor on clubs, music of records is played non-stop in constant tempo all the way by long mix of DJ, and crowd dance all night. One part of a DJ is 1 to 3 hours, DJs play with alternates 3 to 5 on a party or event. Rarely held ‘long play set’ party, it is the format of one DJ plays throughout one party 6 hours to over 12 hours.

One DJ plays throughout a night is the original style of Disco party and DJ play, experiencing the one night musical story weaved by one DJ was the real thrill of the primary DJ play of House and clubbing. But by now, by the fad of Techno, party style of DJs playing with alternates is the standard on any genres of Club Music parties.

Parties are constructed to peak the tension at middle of parties when a guest DJ or a live act appears. Parties as a whole have constructions such as the four-part organisation of Chinese poetry (introduction, development, turn and conclusion) or the organisation of dialectic development (thesis, synthesis, aintithesis). I’m going to explain the constructions and its examples below.

To start with a first DJ plays low tempo tracks (around BPM 110 to 120) such as Tech House, Deep Minimal, Click, to set a mood of a party. In this time, righting used only some part yet, and the effect is suppressed. Above is the ‘introduction’. From that time forth, DJs play before a main guest DJ or a live act, take over a mood and emotion set by above DJs, gradually excite mood of a floor by music, turn up the volume, seed up the tempo, bring up a peak just before the feeling of a floor and crowd. This is the ‘development’. (Or these two phases above are ‘thesis’.) Then, A guest DJ or a live act is fully prepared and appear. The guest DJ play high-tempo enthusiastic tracks or anthem songs, make the party climax, it realized a space of supremacy. At this time, effects of lighting and smoke are maximized and image on screen played by VJ is dynamic. This is the ‘turn’. It will make they feel awkward to reverse crowd is not gathered on the floor even after being a large-scale production at this time.

Manuals for DJing teach the DJ play should have the structure such as it of the introduction, development, turn, conclusion. But, each of DJ plays of Techno does not possess a distinct structure. But, rarely a main DJ play the set possess the structure described below. DJs appear after a main DJ, maintain a good feeling and excited mood, make the party go to the end. A ending of party, DJs play ‘anthem songs’ or other genres tracks (such as Techno Pops or Synth Pop in Techno parties), or reappearing of a main DJ, which climax the party again and concluded it. Often encore is performed, a DJ plays 3 to 5 tracks including anthem tracks.

DJs construct their sets, plays various tracks interactive and real time match the floor and process thats sound, create the value and mean more than merely these tracks play separately. The value and mean are realized in ‘a form’ of DJ play or party connected each tracks and each spaces and times.

I’m going to describe the realization of value of DJ play with the theory of sign and text by Semiology.

On Semiology, sign and text consist on the basis of those components and each differences. On a structure made by relationships as a system of sign and text, only differences are important. To connect segmented components, text and symbols are created. In the case of language, the segmentation system of phonemes can create quite a lot of words by combinations of the very small formal elements.

In addition, the important characteristics of the system of sign, is that ‘repetition’. The system of segments due to the difference make a networks that repeat in places of realization of the texts and signs. One of the aspects of the value of signs is determined by a replaceable relationships those elements of sing tie up with other signs in the system.

Signs and texts are evoked thorough this repetitional system of replaceable relationships. The system is defined by the axises of paradigm and syntagme. Paradigm is the associative relationship between signs characterised by equivalence, and syntagme is the combining relationship characterised by linear accessibility between signs. Signs don’t gather disorderly, a sign exists with creating relationships of other signs. Then the sings become a expression by the transition from a state that signs exist as a potential system has no place and space, to a state forms a syntagmatic combining relationship that exists in the space and time.

Each of records and these tracks, from the beginning, doesn’t have paradigmatic connections and which are individual signs have no associative classes. First, DJs organize and classify meanings, roles or functions of tracks by these mood, loudness and sub genres or these functions of differences such as DJ tools for connecting tracks or Anthem tracks for heat up the floor, then DJs memorize these meanings and functions. DJ classify locate each tracks to virtual paradigmatic classes and make differences among each tracks beforehand like that.

From the beginning, liner time progression of DJ play doesn’t have a syntagmatic structure too. on parties. Oh the other hand, time of a one DJ play or hours of party are predetermined. And DJs think over roles and position of own sets, demands from organizers, judge when and how to use their tracks, create the syntagmatic combining liner relation and envision stories of their DJ plays as arrangement of signs. The number of records a DJ bought into the club is limited, but the DJ combines these each of signs by mix, reveal a DJ as a syntagmatic combining relation in stream of time.

Each tracks are played usually only one time in a party, but tracks are replaceable as sign in any DJ plays. Tracks can repetition, and there is a possibility to be used in number of times and permanently by any DJs. However, the value of the tracks can not afford to be fading. Because various values and means are created in syntagmatic combining relations.

DJs mix tracks not to feel discomfort and large differences by their mixing techniques and senses of choice. And tracks will be equalized and integrated as a ‘set’ or a ‘play’ by mixing of DJ. By differences of tracks and equalisation and integration done by the technique long mix in time progression of DJ play, a DJ play get to be a idiom, then become a meta-sign or a text (mentioned by Roland Barthes).

DJ play is constructed by records primarily have no aura and tracks made of electronic sounds. Primarily tracks and records as these reproductions are things without aura. But by DJing that practices of parole, DJ become an ‘author’ or a performer of the text of DJ set, and reveal ‘digital aura’ on the langage of Techno or House.

Almost tracks are only post-modernist superficial fragments, but they are constructed dialectically like beyond the time as a party or a set by DJs. Parties are advanced as unified magnificent story like ’sensory convictions’ to the ‘absolute knowledge’. Therefore it realize the Hegelian ‘grand narrative’ in the post-modernist spaces of night club lost subjective values and means.

Reference

Daniel Chandler, Semiotics The Basic (Routledge, 2002)

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit (Oxford University Press, 1976)

Roland Barthes, Le plaisir de texte (Seuil, 1973)

Walter Benjamin, L’œuvre d’art à l’époque de sa reproductibilité technique (Folio, 2008)

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Consideration on Techno Tracks as “Work”

Techno is was born in Detroit 1987, deeply affected by House Music one of its features is 4 beats by a drum machine and developed from Disco oriented Soul Music.

Techno is Club Music played in Night Club, and it specialized in dance for crowd. The features are almost all sounds built by synthesizers, drum machines and samplers, no vocal, loop of a same phrase and beat. [(1) ’The Start It Up’ Joey Beltran, (2) ’Life Cycle’ Jeff Mills] And the almost all process of production of theses tracks is taken place by one artist, using a computer and synthesizers at low cost. (Almost artist also held DJ, they must not to have been evaluated both.)

Techno tracks sold by the format of record and CD, recorded in a disc as a ‘work’, and possess certain degree of integration. But, the state of track is very excited at the beginning, and the tack end with a fade-out suddenly. Techno tracks seem to be not produced as a solo ‘work’. They seem to be produced as they are listened by the audio at home. The tracks are specialized in the aim to bring forth ‘the good vibration of groove’ as ‘the state people participating musical communication share the internal duration of time’. [Ogawa, 1988]

If so, at night clubs, how the tracks to be used? At dance floors of clubs, the tracks are played continuously by DJ from opening to closing, and crowd dance all night while taking breaks. Dance floors are dim and heaped up by lighting technique. Turns of one DJ is 2 to 3 hours and they play with change. DJs play tracks continuously by more than two turntables and a DJ mixer. [‘Live at the Liquid Room Tokyo’ Jeff Mills, 1996] (On track 1, Mills started to play (1) at 5:00 and (2) at 9:15.)

A DJ processes music, constitutes a his play by any tracks and raises the tension, the music played there is added the value more than it by solely play music. Music played by DJ and crowd react each other, then the dance floor is more excited. Noi Sawaragi describe this phenomena like below, Club music ‘realized in unique space as night club which changes information content moment by moment, and completed for the first time with a sense of unity of performances and restless ecstasy by crowd come around every night.’[Sawaragi, 2001]

Almost cases, we don’t know and can’t understand the names of tracks played at club. Records played by DJ are distribution amount is small, and we can’t listen these tracks direct in mass media, we can’t turn out the artist and title of the tracks except we own CDs or records our own and tracks are accustomed to hear. In Techno or House Music, famous or anonymous of records or artists doesn’t matter. Anonymity of artist is high, and it doesn’t come visible presence of the ‘author’.

On the other hand, there are ‘anthem songs’ be known to authors and titles. ‘Anthem song’ in club music means the especial hit song in the club scene and frequently used by many DJs in a long period of time. Many of them are impressive songs change the mood of dance floor. [‘Strings of the Life’ Rhythim is Rhythim, 1987] They are played many times by DJ, and spread by word of mouth, Mix CDs or magazines, then take loot in crowd, further more become ‘common knowledge’ of the club scene. Anthems are played at peak time or last of party, activate mood of the dance floor.
Including effective use of anthems, tracks are played by DJ in the space of night club, a ‘play’ (set) of DJ and a party come to possess autonomy or self-completeness as a work (opus).
Techno is the underground music and it take the specific method of distribution and sales. By that, independent activities fit for the club scene and independence of artists are possible. Records are distributed by label, small production and sales company run by an artist himself and few stuffs, to record stores specialized in club music around the world. On the other hand, famous artists contract major record companies and release CDs.

Reviews of records can be read in club music magazines, but DJs and crowd can’t listen the tracks directly by radio or TV, and information of the tracks are limited. DJs and club music amateurs dig unknown records in record stores, while relying on the pop-ups, classification of genres, know labels. To seek records in record stores is called ‘digging’. The word ‘dig’ is a metaphor of treasure hunting or moles digging the ground. At record stores DJs look for records hurriedly and find their treasures. Then they preview discs by turntables set upped in the store. The way DJs preview records are very characteristic. DJs preview records on record shop to put the record needle here and there not play records from beginning to the end. Thus DJs quickly judge which a track contains good groove, good vibes or not.
On Techno, ‘good groove’ we can be experienced in clubs is the primary thing. Tracks are produced to assume the autonomy or self-completeness are granted when DJ plays these tracks, more than tracks are autonomous in records or CDs. One of the important factor produced the autonomy and self-completeness is the relationship of artists, DJs, crowd, night clubs as space and the system of distribution for records.

References

Hiroshi Ogawa, Doing-Music Society, (Keiso Books, 1988)

Jeff Mills, Life Cycle (Tresor, 1994)

Jeff Mills, Live at the Liquid Room Tokyo (S3, 1996)

Joey Beltran, The Start It Up (Trax Records, 1994)

Noi Sawaragi, Simulationism Revised Edition (Chikuma Books, 2001)

Rhythim is Rhythim (Derrick May), Strings of the Life (Transmat, 1987)

Related Posts and Pages

Semiological Analysis for DJ play

Brief History of Detroit Techno

Subgenres of House Music

Genres of Club Music

Genres and Styles of Black Music

Music Page