Tyro on the Console

The Month of the Debut

 “Don't touch my hair
When it's the feelings I wear
Don't touch my soul
When it's the rhythm I know
Don't touch my crown
They say the vision I've found
Don't touch what's there
When it's the feelings I wear
Don't touch my pride
They say the glory's all mine
Don't test my mouth
They say the truth is my sound”

After my sporadic journey with music till September, 2018, it was finally time to re-step into the domain with the hope of sticking around for a satisfactory while. Constant emotional prompts following phases of self-improvement and hilarious soliloquies about directing attachment and love towards activities rather than persons led to the initiation of my journey with Disc Jockeying (DJing).

Why DJing?

With the whole solo-fever going on at the time, I wanted something that could be done alone.    

DJing presented the enticing option of a one-member band, independent of pesky requirements concerning overlap between band-members’ schedules.
You can’t get good at playing an instrument if you don’t spend time with it and you can’t spend  productive time with it if you don’t like its feel or vibe. It was “love at first sight” with the console. The knobs looked good, as did the science behind them. There was an inexplicable high in being able to visualize tracks as consolidated layers and playing with them to create pleasant-sounding outputs. “Hit or Miss”
Clubs provide a plethora of opportunities for social experiments (Love them!) : Good performances = successful analysis of audience psyche. Given that humans are more honest about their gestures, intentions and behavior under the influence of alcohol, there’s immense satisfaction in being able to decipher and sway an inebriated audience.
 Art : Every set constructed is a different piece of art for the different patterns of feelings it induces in the audience. Exploring these patterns is an entertaining journey.

In the month of my first performance i.e. December, 2018, I was introduced to performer/producer psychology besides advanced techniques and a million other genres. Overwhelming. The essence of playing for a huge crowd and its expectations became clearer. Bittersweet. This was also the time my brain imbibed the elements/criteria of a good set. Room for analogies to life.

Balance.The volume-level relationship between musical elements
Frequency range.  In a mix, all audible frequencies must be properly represented.
Panorama. Placing a musical element in the soundfield.
Dimension. Adding ambience to a musical element.
Dynamics. Controlling the volume envelope of an individual track or the entire mix.
Interest. Making the mix special.

Just as balance is important in a good mix, a balance between the extent and intensities of different emotions is essential for a good life.
All prominent personal drives must be represented through respective appropriate activities, just like the audible frequencies in a mix.
It’s important to keep in mind the context/breadth/bird’s eye view while focusing on an activity of interest just like the panorama of a musical element. Misfit situations like mismatched patterns of  musical notes are unpleasant.
At the end of the day, one’s got to make his/her life special and unique just like a mix. Having seeds of one’s personality embellishes the mix and gifts it an irreplaceable aura.

As I pave my way to an anonymous goal, all I hope for is musical fulfilment, an enhanced ability to express and a better understanding of the human psyche. There’s few things more exciting than making people feel close to what you feel through music.

Au Revoir.