The Actions that Make a Musical Instrument: Exploring Club-DJing as an Instrumental Practice

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Authors

In this study we introduce an action-based concept of instrumentality derived from DJ techniques used in hip-hop and apply it to DJ performances in the club context. We conducted a video content analysisof recordings of 8 professional Techno/House DJs and investigated the occurrence of instrumental and non-instrumental action strategies during their performances. The results show that instrumental techniquesare relatively rare in the club context – only 2 DJs show a clearly instru-mental use of their equipment during stretches of their performance. We therefore conclude that the concept of instrumentality does not suit the particular demands and goals of a Club DJ and suggest further research to find better concepts.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 11th International Symposium on Computer Music Multidisciplinary Research : 16 – 19 June, 2015; Plymouth, UK
EditorsRichard Kronland-Marinet, Mitsuko Aramaki, Sølvi Ystad, Joel Eaton
Number of pages8
Place of PublicationPlymouth
PublisherThe Laboratory of Mechanics and Acoustics
Publication date2015
Pages762–769
ISBN (print)978-2-909669-24-3
Publication statusPublished - 2015
Event11th International Symposium on Computer Music Multidisciplinary Research - CMMR 2015 - Plymouth, United Kingdom
Duration: 16.06.201519.06.2015
Conference number: 11
http://cmr.soc.plymouth.ac.uk/cmmr2015/