Harmonic Mixing
OK so a small extra point to raise quickly which is something I’ve hinted on but not described fully. As I say, producers must remember that their tunes are essentially DJ tools, and so must be DJ friendly i.e. not too long unless carrying continuous build up and be able to sit a mix well. It’s hard to describe but let me tell you, as a DJ I only know too well of tunes that sound amazing as a tune but don’t sit well in the mix, and so therefore just aren’t played the same amount as a tune that does mix nicely. Harmonic mixing is a way of guiding a DJ a he mixes, and works but assigning each track a number between 1 and 12 (like a clock) depending on the root note and either an A (Minor note) or a B (major note). Now the idea is that you can move about this ‘clock’ by using compatible segments, for example if you had a tune in the key of 4A you could mix a 3A, 4A, 4B or 5A, creating smooth, compatible in key mixes every time. A simple yet effective technique. As I have a wealth of drum and bass tracks (I mix using Serato which is a vinyl emulation software that uses digital files from a computer) that are all tagged with key numbers, I happen to know which areas have the most number of tunes (that I listen to anyway), usually from around 3 to 8 and with minor keys (A). This is one reason I used F Minor (4A) for my final track, as I felt it was a good area for any DJ’s who used harmonic mixing just in case anyone was to use the tune in a set. To be honest, I also just liked the way the note sounded as I was going through a trial and error session playing with my midi keyboard, and just happened to start the riff there. Either way it sounds wicked, and I shall certainly use it in a set to see how it compares to properly produced drum and bass.
