----- Original Message ----- From: "Cyborg K" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <313@hyperreal.org> Sent: Friday, March 15, 2002 4:55 PM Subject: Re: [313] Techno DJs VS Techno Live PAs
> 1> First of all, I'd like to say that live PAs can include improvisation, I > have been playing totally live keyboards with my live PAs for quite a while > now, and since my background is in jazz i really DO improvise and I'm NOT a > "band". Of course performing live (especially when your setup is as ghetto > as mine) is no easy task and I have grown a lot since I first started > performing. I am now sometimes adding a live saxophonist but I certainly > don't think that makes it a band either... Agreed, and with repetitive music, I'd argue improvisation needn't involve playing totally live, as you say, although that would definitely "liven" things up. I was at the show with Kent where we saw Stewart Walker and Shawn Rudiman. They had two absolutely distinct approaches, but I'd characterize each as improvizational, at least to the extent that a DJ can improvise (and I think most of us would accredit DJs with that ability). a) Shawn Rudiman *constructed* his set from the ground up. I don't know how much of it was rehearsed, versus improvised, and how much of the song order was planned in advance, but I suspect strongly that the entire flow of the set was as unplanned as a good DJ set - reacting to the crowd, involving himself with the transitions between "songs", guiding the direction of the entire set, etc. He played every single beat on the fly. Like I said, I dunno if the beats were rehearsed, but he was frantically tapping in each pattern as the set progressed. It was captivating. And he did this on 5 drum machines. Meanwhile, he tweaked and arranged the melodies on top of his ever-chaging sea of beats, and his friend Luke threw in subtle Ableton loops that I could never even spot. It moved as well as pretty much any DJ set I've heard (unless the DJ is a turntablist - that's a whole different dynamic), it had more variety than most techno sets I hear, and the quality was IMO superior. b) Stewart Walker had a much more stripped-down approach. He arranges everything on-the-fly from his MPC-2000, triggering samples on an EMU, and sometimes playing single one sample at a time. He runs the set through a DJ mixer, uses the DJ mixer effects, crossfader, his knob box, etc. He is bringing the DJ aesthetic to his live PA better than anyone I've heard, although AFAIK he's never DJed. He's also typically very attendant to the crowd and moves the set accordingly. Stewart's PA's may fall into the "one sound for an hour" category as much as most do, but that *is* his aesthetic. The set matches the the source material. Isn't minimal music "meant" to be heard this way? Is there a problem with having a minimal set if we're into minimal music already? It works for me! > 2> This brings me to a side bar, one downfall of playing live as opposed to > playing records is, I am dependant on the equipment I have, which is all > CHEAP because I still pretty much live on ramen noodles... My point is, > sometimes I get down on myself because I feel that no matter how well I > play, no matter how creative I am, there is no way I can duplicate the kind > of well produced sounds I hear on some of my favorite records... I wonder > what others on 313 think about this? Is it really just about the music or > is it about the equipment too? I I think it's a mixture of both. I was stuck in gear hell, never getting comfortable with my set-up and never getting outside the confines of my gear for the first 6 years I produced. If it didn't make me find "work-around", I don't know what would. So I learned a lot of "tricks" in that time, and it gave me time to learn how to write/arrange effectively. Finally, last Winter I got my tax refund, I sold all my gear and bought a Nord Modular so I could create an entire palette of sounds flexibly. This was a big investment, and now I just have Cubase + Nord, but it allows me to do what I want to do, and I only really want one more piece of software to add a broader pallete of drum sounds and more flexibility before I'll feel satisfied with my setup. So to answer your question, I think most people who "grew up with gear" will feed you the old addage, "it's not the gear, but what you do with it". I'd add that you need gear you're comfortable with to actualize your full potential. Computers have been a godsend when it comes to simplifying these choices for the budget-minded producer, and for ramping up the learning curve. > 3> what is this ableton live? I've heard of this but don't know anything > about it... It's software designed for live performance. It seems to have won over most PAists who've tried it. http://www.ableton.com/ > 4> <SNIP> As a working musician who has had > to play a lot of bad covers, I really like this way of playing old material, > it's much more personal than just doing a straight cover, almost like > sampling... I wondered what others thought. Am I just stealing or is this > a valid form of relooking at the musical past? I think it's really cool. I recall a mixed reaction to one of Rob Hood's Live PAs where he played a lot of covers, but you'll have that. If you're talented enough to be able to mix your original compositions with the elements of DJing some audiences might miss, then I'd say you're on to something. Tristan ------------------- Upcoming Gigs: 3/16/02 - Centripetal Force @ The Edge, DC 4/6/02 - The Basics @ The Abyss, DC 4/14/02 - Filler @ Blue Room, Adams Morgan, DC http://www.mp313.com <- Music http://www.metrotechno.net <- DC techno + more http://www.metatrackstudios.com <- DC DJ/Production studios http://phonopsia.tripod.com <- Hub [EMAIL PROTECTED] <- email --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
