Teaching people to DJ

[MURAMASA]

Lately I've found myself in a sort of mentor role for several friends that have been learning to DJ, but I worry that I may be too rough on them and was wondering if any of you have experience with doing this. I'm nice, and supportive, but I think I point out too many things at once and can be overwhelming/overbearing to the point where they get overly frustrated with themselves and lose their motivation.

Also, if you were taught by another DJ, what advice did you find most helpful/harmful?

:kapluto:

[DJ HEADBANGER]

haha, props dude. I lose my patience trying to teach someone to do anything. You shoulda seen me try to teach my ex how to drive stick in my GTI.... NOT PRETTY!!! haha

[slim pickinz]

i taught myself whatever little i know. i tried to learn from someone, but he was a dick, and would say dumb, demeaning shit that made me not want to hang out with him. that, and why the fuck would i learn from someone that never plays out? as a result, i could stand to take a feww lessons myself. anyway, i'm sure you're a good teacher, charly, and i bet people would tell you if your methods were harsh.

[MURAMASA]

haha, props dude. I lose my patience trying to teach someone to do anything. You shoulda seen me try to teach my ex how to drive stick in my GTI.... NOT PRETTY!!! haha

:bowasian:

I like to think that I'm a patient person. I usually just speak what's in my head when I'm the one mixing -- "You pushed the record ahead twice, make sure you adjust the pitch" "Keep listening for the audible clues if you lose your phrasing" "Just because it sounds beatmatched, doesn't mean you have to drop it right away", etc. It's easy to say what you know, but presenting it in a way that's easy to absorb is very difficult.

[DJ HEADBANGER]

:bowasian:

I like to think that I'm a patient person. I usually just speak what's in my head when I'm the one mixing -- "You pushed the record ahead twice, make sure you adjust the pitch" "Keep listening for the audible clues if you lose your phrasing" "Just because it sounds beatmatched, doesn't mean you have to drop it right away", etc. It's easy to say what you know, but presenting it in a way that's easy to absorb is very difficult.

yea, i feal you. My problem with teaching people, or just explaining things in general, is that i think in pictures, waves and colors, so it's really hard for me sometimes to put my thoughts to words. idk if that made sense

[RAMIRO]

i basicaly taught myself.. i mean.. also just picked up stuff from watching people.. never really had anyone sit down with me and be all.. k first do this.. then do that ..


i have been in the situation too of attempting to teach someone..
i like to think i have patience..

one thing i found out works well.. is get a splitter for the head phones.. so you can hear what they are hearing in their headphones as well.. so when something is off.. its easier to point it to them and what to listen too..

either that or have the first just try to beatmatch without headphones at all.. and just work on that aspect first..

i dunno..

havent taught to many peeps at all..

so god knows it im good at it..

:shrug:

but yea.. patience is key,, that and finding out who said said student learns the best .. everyone is different and learns differently

[RevisionC]

Charly tried to teach me way back when...but every time I tried he'd get excited then do it himself. Do not try to learn from Charly when he's been drinking a lot :crying2:

[DLWman0322]

i need someone to teach me to DJ

[DaJ]

i basicaly taught myself.. i mean.. also just picked up stuff from watching people.. never really had anyone sit down with me and be all.. k first do this.. then do that ..


i have been in the situation too of attempting to teach someone..
i like to think i have patience..

one thing i found out works well.. is get a splitter for the head phones.. so you can hear what they are hearing in their headphones as well.. so when something is off.. its easier to point it to them and what to listen too..

either that or have the first just try to beatmatch without headphones at all.. and just work on that aspect first..

i dunno..

havent taught to many peeps at all..

so god knows it im good at it..

:shrug:

but yea.. patience is key,, that and finding out who said said student learns the best .. everyone is different and learns differently

might work better to split the headphones and have them listen and watch while you mix

[RAMIRO]

well yea.. i kinda meant that both ways.. they listen first .. and watch.. then you listen to they do it

;)

[DaJ]

also, get a squirt gun and any time they fuck up, squirt them in the face

[Dainbramage]

give them two of the same track and put them at the same pitch. Make them listen to the 4 counts and drop the first beat in when the should. Ask them what they heard, why they did what they did, etc and then offer suggestions. You can also use different tracks, get them matched and then let them go to town. (Some people have a hard time learning to hear one track in one ear and the 2nd in the other if they are the same tune.) All about not being afraid to change what's happening and have it sound worse before it gets better, learning to seperate the tracks by ear and getting a feel for what you're doing.
But that's just my humble opinion...

[Rican]

My roommate gave me a hand when I was first learning... he would give me some pointers and then let me work it out... he would sit back and listen as i mixed and would just remark if the incoming record needed to be faster or slower. then the process would repeat... I work alot better figuring stuff on my own but his periodic suggestions and advice were really helpful...

[Broken Home]

lesson 1:
the first thing you have to do is teach them how everything technically works. don't worry about beatmatching or anything like that. show them how to use the faders and how to listen to one track in the headphones with the other one playing out the speakers. show them how to cue a record.

lesson 2:
have them play a record and then drop the other record on a beat, without beatmatching.

[zartan]

one thing i found out works well.. is get a splitter for the head phones.. so you can hear what they are hearing in their headphones as well.. so when something is off.. its easier to point it to them and what to listen too..


this is very good advice

[slim pickinz]

this is very good advice
bad advice would be slap their knuckles with vinyl when they fuck up. i'd have bloody knuckles.

[Matt Sanborn]

patience, patience, patience......

teaching someone to beatmatch is pretty easy.

teaching someone to "dj" is not so easy. Its not that hard to show them the technical aspects of it....its much more difficult to teach them how to work a dancefloor/moisten panties.

[badkitty3804]

I suggest getting this type of set up:

http://www.dreamagic.com/roger/ACO.gif

[Master Miguel Lush]

I suggest getting this type of set up:

http://www.dreamagic.com/roger/ACO.gif
you're so naughty

[jbee]

im stopped teaching people bc i don't have the patience.

[Catalyst]

Get booze and do twos

regardless of how bad the other person is

[Matt Sanborn]

Make the person count to the beat so they understand phrasing.

(1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,1,2,3,4,5,6.....)

[Cortex]

I used to teach people to DJ all the time back when I lived in a rave cave.

For beatmatching, it really is just persistance. You got to keep them on it, keep them practicing. You can't just let them practice for a while and wander off, you have to stay on them as well.

As far as putting a set together, or reading the crowd, etc, you can verbalize your philosophy on it, but everyone will probably take it their own way. Really, that's something that they need to develop for themselves.

[DJ Coalescence]

I was very lucky to start my DJ career working for a mobile DJ company in highschool. I learned the basics from the DJ's that were there such as volume control and how to read crowd reaction. As far as beat matching, I was self taught for the most part.

Over the years, I have also trained other DJ's in both the mobile and club styles of DJing. The biggest problem I ran into with training DJs who wanted to spin in the EDM scene was the idea that the flow of the music was more important to the technical, track selection verse beatmatching. Yes, they are both very important, but you have to learn how to beatmath 1st before you can grasp how to put a proper set together.

[The Logic Theorist]

Teaching someone how to DJ really involves breaking it down into the most basic parts.

Equipment first, how everything works.

Then cueing. Have them just practice finding the downbeat on a record and cue it back up.

Then starting the records at the same time. Take 2 copies of the same record, match them for them, and have them just work with dropping the cue point on the downbeat and fading in and out.

Then stay with 2 copies of the same record and have them practice working the fader to beatmatch.

And so on.

It takes a LOT of practice for people to get consistent with beatmatching, and that's something you can't really teach, they just have to work on it.

Likewise with building a set and reading a crowd. These are skills you can give someone tips on, but they really need to try things for themselves and figure out what works.

[Synz]

I am actually doing this tomorrow night. I signed up for a silent auction and the person who bid high enough won a dj/production session with me teaching them the in's & out's of using the equipment (turntables, cdj's, laptops), the basics of phrasing and beatmatching, then some minor production technique's using keys, synths and programming.

I plan on doing first what Sanborn said and teaching them to count, then showing them the equipment, then teaching cue's, breaks, drops, and essentially the basics of a track (heh, maybe I should just play Tengalia's hit). I have taught it a few times before with success and know that it takes a lot of patience. Once they know the basics, then do what Cliff said and run 2's for a while.

Personally, 2 copies of the same record has elicited nothing but confusion amongst the people who've asked me. If you don't know what to listen for, you won't ever get it with 2 copies of the same track (ie. where does it break, where does it change?).

[Thai]

I actually go through this a lot with my friends, as the only person who is really into this scene they tend to look to me for advice on events and explanations on how things work (DJing and otherwise).

For DJ'ing I used to find it very frustrating to teach people from scratch but I have found a method over the years that seems to work. A lot of this has already been said in this thread, but I'll reiterate.

The first thing I teach them is PRACTICE. You have to instill the idea in them that this is something that although might look easy takes a lot of practice to get it to sound just right. I tell them that when they start they are only going to get one in every few mixes even beat matched, let alone an actual "good" mix.

Next I explain the workings of all of the equipment, from the records right out to the amps and speakers. What gets plugged into where, what does what, how everything works, what you will need to be familiar with first, then what will become useful later. Little things help to, like looking at the lines on a record to see where the build ups and break downs are. Ohh and let them play with everything. Point it out, but then let them touch, interact with the equipment. All the explaining in the world can't replace the hands on aspect of learning.

Next I teach them the basics of DJ'ing: counting beats, measures, the best places to drop songs in and out, build ups, break downs, and the general idea of how songs are built (and how they are built to be mixed together). Play some different records and let them count the beats, let them que up a song and practice dropping it at the right time. Keep making them do that over and over until they have a good feel for the turntable. I then make it a little more difficult and have them get a song ready then tell them, drop this on the 8th beat, or drop this on the third beat, things like that.

After that I try to show them the basics of beat matching. Show them in more detail how to speed up and slow down songs using the pitch shift. Beat matching seems to be the hardest part of it all and most people tend to get caught up on that. Leaving this to the end usually lets them get familiar with everything else, making beat matching a little easier.

Finally I try to bring it all together with the actual mixing of the sound itself. Learn how to moderate the overall volume of your mix, adjusting the EQ levels so they are appropriate for the tracks being mixed, things like that.

Once you get to the actual mixing/beat matching parts of the teaching, it is really helpful to have a splitter on the headphones. If you don't, just have them practice mixing over the speakers so you can hear what they are doing.

[jasoncerna]

I learned how to mix, by watching friends spin and just figuring things out on my own. I never asked any questions. Same with scratching, I learned how to scratch on my own and figuring things out for myself.

As for teaching, I've taught a few guys how to dj - just mixing, no scratching. One of them, who just started djing a little over a year ago has turned out pretty good. He took to beatmatching fairly well and I kinda just threw him into a gig with me at my night at the local hookah lounge, which I hold twice a month. He did pretty good his first night out and he'd only been djing for maybe 3 or 4 months at that point. I ended up just keeping him on the rotation for my nights and we each do two, one hour sets for the night.

Technically, he's very sound and his feel for track selection has gotten real good as well. Which is a good thing cause you really can't teach someone how to drop the right tracks at the right time, that's all a personal feel.

There was another guy I knew, from a friend who wanted me to teach him how to scratch, but he never got back with me. I figured if he didn't want to make an effort to seek me out, I wouldn't bother trying to teach him.

[laurentkm3]

I like teaching people. I'm still new to the scene, but I teach people what I know (eventough it's not much).

People were cool enough to give me advice and I like to pass it on.

L
http://www.youtube.com/laurentkm3

[john c]

i taught Mike D aka MLD to DJ. And hes pretty good :)

[ramz]

frankly, I don't think it's something you can teach to someone else... either you get it or you don't. either you eventually figure out how to beatmatch or you don't... I can't imagine there's anything meaningful I could tell someone that would make them a [better] dj... :shrug:/:elad:

[LuckyShamrock]

frankly, I don't think it's something you can teach to someone else... either you get it or you don't. either you eventually figure out how to beatmatch or you don't... I can't imagine there's anything meaningful I could tell someone that would make them a [better] dj... :shrug:/:elad:

I guess your son was just born with the touch?

I suppose watching you all those years helped

[MOTAKI]

I always start with basics to whomever wants to learn. I'll have them do drills sorta i.e. backcueing; which is really nothing but to someone who never touched vinyl is difficult more or less. It gets boring since i'm not realy teaching them to dj initially. Beatmatching is the last thing i teach. beginner djs should really know about volumes/levels, counting bars before anything else.

[ramz]

I guess your son was just born with the touch?

I suppose watching you all those years helped
:shrug:/:elad: he just started doing it one day... I've never really done anything to "teach" him, but I have made suggestions about what works and what won't work in club settings, etc...

[MOTAKI]

frankly, I don't think it's something you can teach to someone else... either you get it or you don't. either you eventually figure out how to beatmatch or you don't... I can't imagine there's anything meaningful I could tell someone that would make them a [better] dj... :shrug:/:elad:

i disagree, i see a dj as an instrument. I was self taught but i think having a musical background helped out a lil. Everyone has their own style to mixing, but i don't think that should stop from teaching.

If you get it great, if you dont' get it, you can be taught or guided rather. it's just really dependent on your drive/motivation.

I met 2 people so far who just didn't get it.. but hey theres exceptions to everything.

maybe you think its sort of cheating if someone teaches you as oppose to learning everything on your own? i could understand that.

[MOTAKI]

oops i left out some stuff about djs being instruments.

newho, not trying to insult anyones intelligence in terms of what can be defined as an instrument, but I think a turntable is semantically the same as a guitar. the mechanics that are necessary are identical more or less. Which brings me back to my disagreement about the tao of djing towards newcomers.

[ramz]

oh, I don't think it's cheating... if someone can teach someone else or learn from someone else more power to them... but in the same way anyone can be instructed how to pick up a violin and play twinkle twinkle little star, not everyone can make first chair in the NY Philharmonic...irrespective of how much training they get...

[MOTAKI]

oh, I don't think it's cheating... if someone can teach someone else or learn from someone else more power to them... but in the same way anyone can be instructed how to pick up a violin and play twinkle twinkle little star, not everyone can make first chair in the NY Philharmonic...irrespective of how much training they get...


totally, so once the person learns to play twinkle twinkle he can progress further by doing a p diddy viola remix of twinkle twinkle with enough practice. hehe jk.

but yeah, i would never teach someone to mirror my style, show em the basics and let them evolve (if they're so inclined)

[Daniel Paul]

is a pain in the ass!

[decoy]

liftedpance tried to teach me and it was informative. I was very greatful that he too the time to show me some things.

I also have learned quite a lot from Joe Nice, but more so how tunes are constructed and some bits about music theory than technique. he tried to give me some pointers about technique but I was simply unable to understand.


still though, I'm not so good. I think I need more practice and a better attitude.

[Daniel Paul]

liftedpance tried to teach me and it was informative. I was very greatful that he too the time to show me some things.

I also have learned quite a lot from Joe Nice, but more so how tunes are constructed and some bits about music theory than technique. he tried to give me some pointers about technique but I was simply unable to understand.


still though, I'm not so good. I think I need more practice and a better attitude.
Thats the spirit!!! :ANden:

[bplank]

Here's how I've taught a few people:

Have them buy 2 of the same record.
Put the pitch of one deck lower or higher than the other.
Have them try to match the pitch.

When they get beat matching down, have them try to get the songs phrased together.


It's A LOT easier than having someone learn with different records and the people I taught caught on A LOT easier.

[Daniel Paul]

frankly, I don't think it's something you can teach to someone else... either you get it or you don't. either you eventually figure out how to beatmatch or you don't... I can't imagine there's anything meaningful I could tell someone that would make them a [better] dj... :shrug:/:elad:
with enough time and dedication any clown can learn how to beat match. its record selection and track flow that not everyone can get. aswell as how to play a time slot. :yes: i believe that almost any one can even get pretty good at error correction and follow formula and use music theory and all that but when you go for track flow and it comes to key there are just some tracks that dont go. not every one can figure that out.

[DaJ]

oops i left out some stuff about djs being instruments.

newho, not trying to insult anyones intelligence in terms of what can be defined as an instrument, but I think a turntable is semantically the same as a guitar. the mechanics that are necessary are identical more or less. Which brings me back to my disagreement about the tao of djing towards newcomers.

i disagree. i see the guitar and the piano as the same thing. basically, you have the same range, and you have the means to play any note within an entire mode, or switch modes. you can play anything you can think of within the range of the guitar or piano at any given time, any key, switch at any moment. The turntables to me are more like conducting an orchestra. The music is already written, but you have control over how it is played and can manipulate it into your own new incarnation of it.
and production IS the same thing composers did back in the day. Imagine what someone like Beethoven would do if he had all the ridiculous hardware and software widely available today. he'd probably be on a non stop tour pulling in a 100 speaker ho's every night

[ramz]

i disagree. i see the guitar and the piano as the same thing. basically, you have the same range, and you have the means to play any note within an entire mode, or switch modes. you can play anything you can think of within the range of the guitar or piano at any given time, any key, switch at any moment. The turntables to me are more like conducting an orchestra. The music is already written, but you have control over how it is played and can manipulate it into your own new incarnation of it.
and production IS the same thing composers did back in the day. Imagine what someone like Beethoven would do if he had all the ridiculous hardware and software widely available today. he'd probably be on a non stop tour pulling in a 100 speaker ho's every night
I've seen Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure... duh...

[MOTAKI]

i disagree. i see the guitar and the piano as the same thing. basically, you have the same range, and you have the means to play any note within an entire mode, or switch modes. you can play anything you can think of within the range of the guitar or piano at any given time, any key, switch at any moment. The turntables to me are more like conducting an orchestra. The music is already written, but you have control over how it is played and can manipulate it into your own new incarnation of it.
and production IS the same thing composers did back in the day. Imagine what someone like Beethoven would do if he had all the ridiculous hardware and software widely available today. he'd probably be on a non stop tour pulling in a 100 speaker ho's every night

i played guitar and viola for a decade, plus i was speaking semantically, obviously they're not literally the same thing. You missed my point. Yeah i agree djing is rather similiar to being a conductor also as a dj you're restricted to playing other peoples music just like a conductor, however when you're mixing, your options of how to bring in a track is limitless, thats why i think its jusitifed to say that a turntable is the same as a guitar.


you have the same range, and you have the means to play any note within an entire mode, or switch modes. you can play anything you can think of within the range of the guitar or piano at any given time, any key, switch at any moment.

you just described what a dj does. Anyone can beatmatch but you really don't see dj's manipulating tracks that blends well together. You do have the means to play anynote, in fact its infinite its just the matter of what song would you like to manipulate with.

Production, now thats a different topic :)

haha yeah beethoven would of rocked our generation if he existed now.

:bacon:

[MOTAKI]

Here's how I've taught a few people:

Have them buy 2 of the same record.
Put the pitch of one deck lower or higher than the other.
Have them try to match the pitch.

When they get beat matching down, have them try to get the songs phrased together.


that's a pretty solid formula :)

[THE BLACKEST]

one thing i found out works well.. is get a splitter for the head phones.. so you can hear what they are hearing in their headphones as well.. so when something is off.. its easier to point it to them and what to listen too..

either that or have the first just try to beatmatch without headphones at all.. and just work on that aspect first..



That works well actually. I remember when I worked at Metatrack years ago we used that method. Honestly I can teach anyone to spin within an hour. I can't teach anyone to be as good as Deinfamous though.

[shade]

you can't teach djing man, you gotta be born with that shit.


/orange

[MOTAKI]

you can't teach djing man, you gotta be born with that shit.


/orange

totally, you have to be born with superpowers. shii.

[Verbal Radiation]

Get paid to do it !!

[Killary]

http://a1055.g.akamai.net/f/1055/1401/5h/images.barnesandnoble.com/images/14760000/14767192.JPG