Category: <span>DJing</span>

Basie & RhythmI’ve been talking a lot for a while now about the role of swing music in Lindy hop and the other swing dances. For that matter, for the last three years, I’ve been giving an ever-evolving talk about swing music, what it is, what it so irresistible for dancers – what makes it swing, in other words. What I haven’t really done is to distill that talk down and start putting my thoughts on it online – I’ve touched on it in a couple of posts, but no more than that.

So I want to talk about what makes the music what it is – and I want to do this with a dancers’ focus. Not all swing is great for Lindy, so my focus inevitably turns to the music that I like to play for dancers.

What better place to start than with the rhythm section? For most swing bands the rhythm section is the cornerstone of the band – a driving force, as it were, to provide basic timing and energy for the rest of the musicians, which the band can use to build on.

DJing General rambles Live Music

Epiphany e-DAC
Epiphany e-DAC

Welcome to another of the bees in my bonnet – the use of an external sound card while DJing from a laptop.

First question: what is an external sound card?

Very simply: it’s a gadget, usually USB-powered. You plug one end into your laptop. You plug the other into a mixing desk, some kind of speaker, headphones, you name it. Sound comes out.

Second question: I have a perfectly good headphone socket on my laptop – why on earth should I spend money on something like this?

Well – there’s a host of answers to this.

DJing

DJing General rambles Music Set Lists

It’s a little disconcerting when something starts raining on you mid-set, especially when you’re inside. My first response was able to turn off the air-conditioning double-quick. My second was to…

DJing General rambles

DJing General rambles

DJing Music Set Lists

DJing General rambles Music

Blues DJing Live Music