This weekend I explored a new form of creativity for myself that was completely out of my comfort zone. This, of course, was attempting to DJ. In doing this I enhanced my collaboration skills as I allowed a fellow classmate to teach me the basics of DJing. This was particularly insightful for me as I usually find myself taking control of my own creative endeavours, however this time I had guidance from someone who was experienced as well as specific in their teaching methods. Giving someone else control was interesting to adapt to as I personally am a perfectionist myself (LO5)

Usually DJing is something I would not gravitate towards as I do not find myself to be a very technical person, however as I began learning I discovered that it was actually quite fun and enjoyable – even if it wasn’t the most appealing sound at first! I think having a peer teach me how to DJ was also helpful as it provided a more welcoming and social atmosphere, whilst simultaneously working my brain to adapt to the different settings/controls of the DJ set.

We began with basic control settings that affect the overall sounds/pitch of the music being played. This part was relatively straight-forward to get a grasp upon. I enjoyed adjusting the bass controls as it made the music feel more or less lively and intense. I particularly found it interesting how existing songs can take on a whole new form when such controls are adjusted, making music more personalised and enhancing the creativity of this activity.

The area of learning how to DJ that I found most challenging and that I struggled with was the transitions between two songs, in making it seamless as well as pleasing to listen to. We practiced doing transitions with many songs and initially I wanted to try something a bit easier as it felt like I would never get it right. However, with encouragement and guidance from my peers, I was able to slowly get a grasp of the technique. I learnt that the speed at which you adjust the controls is essential in making the transition into a new song seamless. When one toggle is moved up (to enhance the sound of the new song), the other toggle must simultaneously move down (to lower the previous song) – within a relatively equal time/space movement. (LO2 – LO4).

I definitely feel like I could get better at DJing with significant practice as doing so opens me up to a new genre of music. I personally really enjoy playing instruments (like my ukulele and piano) but DJing really developed and enhanced my preferences of newer types of music. I think in order to improve my skills I should practice my coordination in moving the toggles simultaneously as well as my control in terms of making sure the bass and pitch are not too intense. It would also be interesting to start experimenting with the pace/speed of a song, as I think this can really affect the response to music i.e. slower beats building up anticipation for the faster more intense bit of the track.