Finding Flow

Tips and techniques of the trade

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opie
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Finding Flow

#1 Post by opie » Mon Jul 16, 2007 7:04 pm

There's been some serious work from psychologists around defining and understanding the concept of flow. Somewhat less so from swing DJs. I'm a relatively beginner DJ, still learning what sort of transitions and flow works in my scene. To try and test my own understanding, I would love to hear from y'all about how well or poorly you think the following set excerpts flow. If you wanted to get from the initial song to the final song, how might you do it?

Excerpt A: I want to gradually bring the energy in the room up, without any sudden transitions and without anyone noticing. Starting from:
1. At Long Last Love - Carmen McRae - The Great American Songbook - 2:27 - 132 bpm
2. Moon Song - Louis Armstrong and Oscar Peterson - Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson - 4:37 - 128 bpm
(2 and 3 share strong horn and piano sounds.)
3. Keepin' Out of Mischief Now - Carling Family - 20th Jubilee - 3:32 - 122 bpm
(3 and 4 both have a bit of a Dixie feel.)
4. Shine On, Harvest Moon - Pete Foutain - Pete Foutain and the Kings of Dixieland - 2:52 - 160 bpm
(4 and 5 share strong guitar rhythms.)
5. Between the Devil & the Deep Blue Sea - Dickie Wells Orchestra and Django Reinhardt - The Swing Sessions, Vol. 1 - 2:58 - 185 bpm

Excerpt B: I want to move from a groove feel to a classic feel. The transition is a more extreme example of the same logic as above - use songs that share a common, characteristic instrument/voice.
1. Love Me or Leave Me - Peggy Lee - Black Coffee - 2:10 - 135 bpm
2. At Long Last Love - Bill Henderson - Bill Henderson with the Oscar Peterson Trio - 2:30 - 132 bpm
3. One O'Clock Jump - Count Basie - The Complete Decca Recordings - 3:02 - 171 bpm

And just to be clear, for now let's leave aside discussions of how everything is relative and depends on the the dancers in the room on the particular night, etc. Point taken. Would love to get people's insights above and beyond that.

James

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JesseMiner
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#2 Post by JesseMiner » Tue Jul 17, 2007 1:14 pm

You might want to read the On Demand topic, which has a lot of discussion about flow including a great article written by Kevin P. from Chicago.

I love that you are thinking about this concept so much. You are off to a great start. Keep it up!

Jesse

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Lawrence
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#3 Post by Lawrence » Wed Jul 18, 2007 12:07 am

JesseMiner wrote:You might want to read the On Demand topic, which has a lot of discussion about flow including a great article written by Kevin P. from Chicago.

I love that you are thinking about this concept so much. You are off to a great start. Keep it up!

Jesse
That was a surprisingly good thread. :)
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Austin Lindy Hop
http://www.AustinLindy.com

Haydn
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#4 Post by Haydn » Wed Jul 18, 2007 10:57 am

JesseMiner wrote:You might want to read the On Demand topic, which has a lot of discussion about flow including a great article written by Kevin P. from Chicago.
Thanks for linking to that 8)

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