How to DJ: A Mixing Tutorial for the Beginner
Bars, Majors and Cueing in Records for Beat Matching
Nov 25, 2008
Despite the popular misconception, learning to DJ is not unlike learning to play any other musical instrument. Turntables are highly sensitive pieces of equipment and mastering the art of mixing, beat juggling and scratching requires the same level of patience and practice as any other musical discipline.
For anyone interested in learning to DJ, it is important to understand the level of patience required when learning to mix before making an expensive investment on a pair of decks. It can be a very slow and frustrating process - especially in the beginning.
For those with a real passion for music and a desire to be part of a movement or scene in another way from being a listener, then djing can be a very rewarding. It is not suited, however, to those who are impulsive and get bored quickly. In this case it is better to avoid the hassle of acquiring the equipment only for it to collect dust, take up space and ultimately end up on eBay.
Bars and Majors
Before it is possible to begin practicing to mix it is important to note that different genres of music cannot be mixed together on the whole. Make sure the two records used are the same genre. The beats per minute (bpm) of hip hop is about 80 - 90, while drum and bass is about 160-180 so they are basically incompatible.
However, all records from hip hop to drum and bass do follow one basic principle - although there are some exceptions - regarding their beat structure. The following idea may sound complex but is actually extremely simple and one of the most basic concepts which it is essential to grasp before practicing to mix.
- All records are made up of bars and majors. It might be a good idea to listen to some of your records in order to pick out these structures before you start to mix.
- A bar is represented as a set of four beats, and as you listen to the rhythm your records, count the simple re occurring pattern of bars 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4.
- A major is defined as a set of four bars which in total makes 16 beats. Before you begin to mix you must make sure that you recognize these 16 beat patterns which make up the record.
Picking out the first beat of a major is the most essential thing to learn before it is possible to start mixing correctly. It is important to take the time to listen to the record.
- Count the 16 beat patterns of one of your records, noticing how after each major the tune will either evolve slightly or some new layer will be introduced.
It is this beat - the first beat of the major 1 of 16 - which must be used in order to cue one record into the other. A mix is created by aligning the majors of two separate records by cueing them in together.
Cueing In
After successfully recognizing the independent majors, it is possible to begin cueing them in.
- Get two records of the same genre - an interesting point to note is that the faster the genre of music the easier it is to mix. Hip hop it has a slower bmp than something like drum and bass, and is one the most difficult genres to mix because the beats are further apart.
- Make sure your two records are free of lyrics and have good constant beats.
- Let’s say you want to cue record A into record B. First of all find the first beat of a major on record A - usually the first beat of the tune - and hold the record at this point with your hand allowing the slip mat to continue rotating underneath.
- Move it back and forth with your hand so the first beat runs back and forth against the record needle making a 'dofff dofff' noise. Then allow record B to play.
- Continue to move the beat on record A across the needle. Do this in time with the beat of record B. As you move record A forward 'clockwise' across the needle synchronize the 'doff' noise made by the forward push of record A with each beat of record B.
- Now begin counting the beat of record B and use the forward back motion of record A like a metronome. Wait for B to start of a new major. This is the point at which you want to release the single beat of record A (1/16) you have hold of.
- You can anticipate this by counting, but eventually you will simply evolve an instinct for this in the same way you will for pitch control, which is the next thing to learn after successfully cueing records in.
- When you release record A, the firsts beat of the major will line up with that on record B and you will have successfully lined up the majors of two records.
Even if they go out of time - as they will for a beginner - matching up the majors and cueing them in correctly are two essential skills to learn before going onto the serious business of pitch control. Please see my other tutorials for further explanations on how to practice using the pitch.
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