Swing DJ

«Song of the Week» Series featured on Hey Mr. Jesse Podcast!

20.10.2010 by Chris

Host Jesse Miner & Co-host Manu «Spuds» Smith are featuring my series «DJ Chrisbe's Song of the Week» in the October edition of «Hey Mr. Jesse» podcast. I feel honoured, thank you guys!

Hey Mister Jesse is a podcast for Swing DJs since 2006:

«Hey Mister Jesse's barbecue of tasty talk about swingin‘ jazz and blues. DJ Jesse Miner will serve up a platter of swingin‘ music that matters to dancers.

Check out the show every month to hear music, interviews, listener feedback and news about the music swing dancers love.»

Check out this month's episode #058!

Great Music Sources For Swing DJs

22.07.2010 by Chris

Where to find new music? Where to get inspiration from? This is a frequent asked question.

Here is my compilation of great sources for Swing DJs and everybody else who is looking for Swing music.

Please let me know, if you miss something here. I'm more than happy to add more sources to the list!

Note: the list is organized alphabetically, not by preference.

Forum

Swing DJs The must forum for every Swing DJ!

Podcasts

Confessing The Blues A podcast dedicated to Blues, which started in August 2009 and ended one year later. The episodes are still available.
Hey Mr. Jesse Cult! Another must for Swing DJs. Jesse Miner & Manu «Spuds» Smith are focusing more on modern Swing (and Rhythm'n'Blues). It's a great source for new releases and inspiration.

Websites: Buy music (focus on downloads)

Amazon.com The bookstore sells now almost everything. Large MP3 catalogue. Also great for CDs, DVDs and books, especially because of the included extern sellers.
Amazon.de is the German version (for Switzerland, Germany and Austria).
Bandcamp Platform for artists to sell their digital music. Many different formats (like FLAC, Apple Lossless, AAC and Ogg Vorbis etc.) available. The artists define a minimum price but you also can pay more for the music! Great concept!
eMusic The digital music retailer was one of the first to sell DRM-free music in the MP3 format beginning in 1998. They operate with a subscription-based pricing. This is my favorite place to purchase music. You can find a lot of tunes from sold-out CDs. The MP3 catalogue is vast, but it varies in different countries.
~~iTunes~~ Apple Music Apple's music store, who doesn't know it

Websites: Discover Music

allmusic biographies, discographies, song samples
Facebook social network, almost every band now has a fan page on Facebook
last.fm build your own internet radio station, operates on a payed membership base
restorm music platform for artists, labels and music lovers (in German: for Switzerland, Germany & Austria)
ReverbNation online music marketing platform for artists, managers, record labels and venues
Shazam Service to discover, buy and share music. The Shazam iPhone App is a must have! (also available for iPad and many other mobile platforms)
SoundCloud Sound sharing service. Not a lot of Swing music available (unless you like Electro Swing)
Spotify from Sweden. The newest generation of music platforms. Playlists, sharing, mobile music, artist radio, library function, etc. Unfortunately, not available everywhere, but Spotify is expanding quickly!
YouTube discover old and new stuff on video. Many users forget, that YouTube is one of the most powerful search engines on the Internet.

Which is your favorite spot to find music and why? Please share it with us in the comment section!

14 Tips To Become A (Better) Swing DJ

23.04.2010 by Chris

Swing DJ'ing is quite different from Club DJ'ing.

Neither do we have to mix the songs nor do we have to scratch. Nevertheless it's much more than just running a playlist!

I often get asked for tips about Swing DJ‚ing. So I have put together this list of 14 tips to become a (better) Swing DJ in a more or less random order.

1. Listen to Swing music

Do it as much as possible: CDs, radio, internet radio, live concerts. Get a feeling for the music. Which songs make you dance? Why?

2. Know your music library

Build up your library steadily and in small steps. Avoid getting large amount of songs in one go. You rather have only 300-500 different songs in your library and you deeply know them. That means being aware of tempo, rhythm and style (lindy hop, balboa, charleston), mood (light, driving, bluesy) and so on.

3. Learn about Jazz/Swing History

Have at least basic knowledge about the history, there are great sources out there to learn from. It helps you distinguishing between different styles, knowing the main musicians of the era, and eventually building up your library.

4. Play SWING

Maybe that sounds weird, of course a Swing DJ should play Swing. Well, I attend a lot of Swing events and sometimes I'm really wondering if some DJs even know what Swing is.

It doesn't matter if the song is an old or a new one, but please play Swing music! If you are a beginner: check out my series Song of the Week to get an idea.

5. Feel the crowd!

Where is the comfort zone of the dancers? In which mood are they tonight: high energetic or more laid back?

Watch who is dancing. Can you attract the advanced dancers as well?

6. Challenge the dancers

This is very important to me. As a DJ I'm responsible for the dancers.

In beginner classes you usually don't learn to dance to faster music. So, where else beginner dancers learn it? You got it, on the social dance floor. So give them a chance, challenge them (not overwhelm!) and play faster songs even if it's at the upper end of the comfort zone.

It was too fast? Don't worry. Play a safe winner to bring them back on the dance floor.

7. Don't DJ and dance

Take it seriously and don't dance and DJ at the same time. One song inbetween, why not, but be focused.

Nothing sucks more than a DJ who is the only one dancing because he's lost his crowd. No kidding, it happens!

8. Do not have a prepared set list

Never ever prepare a whole set list and just play it! You won't be able to react to the dancers.

Feel the crowd and build your set on-the-go!

9. Only play music you like

That was the main reason why I started DJing. I rarely heard my favourite music on the dance floor. It's as easy as that, only play Swing music you like and your set becomes much more personal.

BUT keep in mind, it's about the dancers, not about you.

10. Find your style

This is related to the point above. Why having different DJs when everybody is playing the same stuff. It's boring! Dig for the gems and surprise the crowd!

11. Have safe winners prepared

Some tunes are just awesome and fill the dance floor immediately. Keep some of these songs prepared and play them when you start your set, the energy falls or when the song before was too fast.

12. Know the technical equipment

Have an idea how a PA or mixer works. Why not asking a professional sound engineer or tour technician for help? I once had a private workshop with a sound technician in the afternoon. It was great!

13. Bring your own cable kit

Especially when you don't know the venue, make sure to bring your own cables and adapters, and don't forget your headphones.

I usually have a kit with me that includes: high quality cables in two lenghts with golden plated jacks, 3 different adapters, an external sound card and my DJ headphones.

14. Interact with other Swing DJs

Join communities on social media platforms and discuss about music, skills and technical equipment. Learn from the more experienced DJs in your local scene.

Don't hesitate to ask for advice. Most of them are more than happy to give you some tips.

Do you like this list?

Did I forget something to mention? Please leave a comment!

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