What do djs do when performing

We were really curious about this, so we reached out to several DJs and experts on the art of deejaying to find out what exactly DJs do when they play live. To be an effective DJ the most crucial element is to know how to engage an audience by mixing one track into the next. This is done by matching BPMs beats per minute. There are additional things that you may see a DJ do while performing live.

They scratch records if they perform using vinyl. Some DJs also add visual effects that they control themselves from the DJ booth or audio effects that they add for fun to the songs they mix. Some also dance while performing spinning or have a mic to interact with the crowd. Additionally, some create live mashups of songs.

If you are good at your job, it is a constant search for the perfect song to keep pulling your crowd along with you on the music set ride. If you falter, the dance floor clears. Then there are those moments when just the perfect beat hits and the crowd goes wild It's the biggest freaking joke on earth!

Did you see this spoof? Musicians tend to think a DJ does nothing more than press some buttons while musicians spend hours and hours each and every day of their lives crafting their musical abilities. Music is medicine. Music is a universal language.

It's also art, and art is subjective. There are DJs and turntablists, and both groups have their respective talents. A turntablist would be much more akin to a musician.

As turntablism is very similar, in a way, to being a percussionist. True turntablism skills on the record players, sometimes more than 2, is an art form and something that does require many hours of practice, just like any musician.

But being a DJ these days also has its special talent and merit. I had a friend who was a musical snob. Who only listened to "opera" and "classical" music. He asked me one day, so you just play "other people's" music. Like that involved no talent whatsoever.

I told him, quite proudly,"Yes, that may be true. But my job actually is making people dance, smile and have a good time. To see a sea of faces smiling and happy is one of the most rewarding jobs on the planet.

Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Some people think that DJs just press play on a pre-recorded track and then fake the rest. There is little doubt that this does happen sometimes. However, most DJs are actively monitoring the crowd and selecting tracks they think will be best received next. They then match the speed of the two tracks and, using EQs, will switch elements of the tracks to make a seamless blend.

What are they doing when they slide faders? As well as covering some other things a DJ does on stage. The DJs main aim is to engage and entertain their audience.

They do that by selecting tracks they think will fit the mood of the crowd. They also account for the situation is it a festival, club or bar, are people dancing or sat down, etc. The aim is to keep the music flow going and the crowd dancing for their entire set usually hours. They do this by mixing tracks together to create a seemingly endless blend. If they were it would be very easy to switch from one track to the other. They have to adjust the tempo, slowing it down or speeding it up, to match that of the currently playing track.

As the name implies, beat-matching is to do with the number of beats per minute in a track often shortened to BPM. This is what DJs are doing when you see them listening in their headphones and nudging the platter. The platter is the circular disk in the center of the deck head here to see our recommended decks.

However, matching the speed of songs to one another is only step one in answering what do DJs do. Related: How long does it take to be good at DJing? As mentioned above, you can just turn the volume up and down on the tracks to switch them over.

However, to make a mix as seamless as possible, a DJ has a lot of finer control over different elements of their music. And this is why the mixers and the controllers i. These control everything from effects, to being able to control the volume on certain parts of the track. It is being able to manipulate parts of the track like this, that allows DJs to seamlessly mix from one track to the other so that, to the crowd, it sounds like a never-ending stream of music.

Often the buttons on the equipment control FX. This allows a DJ to add extra elements and layers to their mixing and their sets. They can apply things such as echo, which will repeat a certain sound, or in some cases, they will play sound samples. For example, one DJ, Tim Westwood, used to have sound effects of gunshots or glass breaking cued up on his mixer. He would then play them repeatedly in order to cover up the switch from one track to the other.

The best DJs use FX sparingly to enhance their sets, as opposed to using them to cover up for a lack of skills. The amount of techniques and methods a DJ can use when mixing their tracks together is almost endless. Some will work non-stop to loop sections or mix three or four tracks together to create entirely new tunes. While other DJs will do fairly simple mixing techniques and rely on playing exceptional music that their audience just loves.

The best DJs are able to do this and adjust the direction and flow of their sets to make sure the crowd has the best possible time. Often musicians i. However, all the same musical rules apply so, the better a DJ knows music and understands its theory then the better overall DJ they will be.

Zedd, for example, is a classically trained musician who started learning his first instrument at the age of four. Related: Are DJs musicians? The way a DJ puts a mix together, the tunes they select and even some of the tiny errors they make, all help to create unique moments in time. These unique moments create an added dimension to seeing a DJ in a club and dancing with others, a dimension beyond simply putting on a CD and everyone having a dance. Special event or wedding DJs, for example, will take requests or maybe even have to MC an event i.

Related: How to make a DJ mix — 20 points to help you smash it. Those dedicated to their craft will spend endless hours both practicing their technique and learning which tracks and types of tracks work well together. On top of that, they will spend hours and hours searching for, listening to and purchasing new music. The more they do this then the bigger their music library and the better their musical knowledge.