liquid
Sep 28 2003, 07:47 AM
Hey everyone, not sure who has read my last post yet but I have one more question
I'm thinking about taking some dj classes, but im tight on money, so heres my questions,
How much should a good beginning class cost? ($)
What should I expect to learn from taking lessons?
What questions do I want to ask the director of the program?
How long should it take about...?
and just anything else I should know if I were to begin lessons somewhere. Please keep in mind that I live in USA, if that makes a difference.
Thanks
Dj SBD
Sep 28 2003, 10:42 AM
Hi Nathan, I've read your other post and glad your keen to start work on your DJing career.
Firstly, I've done a bit of research on these questions at a local college, so some answers below.
| QUOTE |
| How much should a good beginning class cost? |
Over here in the UK, prices can range from free to £200. This is for a 6 week course at one day a week in the evening's.
| QUOTE |
| What should I expect to learn from taking lessons? |
basically in these 6 weeks, you'll learn
WEEK 1- How to setup your dj equipment, where all the plugs go etc..
WEEK 2- Getting to know the basics of the mixer and the effects that can be used.
WEEK 3- beat mixing with the same tune on both decks, plus learning the pitch control
WEEK 4- beat mixing with other types of music
WEEK 5- cross fader techniques and scratching
WEEK 6- finaly demonstarting what you've learned with in the 5 weeks
the above is only a very basic layout of the course, obviosly other courses are longer more in depth etc..
| QUOTE |
| What questions do I want to ask the director of the program? |
ask anything you dont understand, ask what is involved within the course
| QUOTE |
| How long should it take about...? |
their are many courses out there and some are longer than others.
I found this infomation at a local school where my mate is doing a course run by an teacher/dj. Although at my college they do dj courses, so just look around and ask questions.
Chrispy
Sep 28 2003, 11:10 AM
| QUOTE |
| What questions do I want to ask the director of the program? |
A good question to ask, is what "proof" do you get to take away with you to say that you have completed the course
. Whilst there is no formal qualifications to become a D.J, or any certificates as such, if you are paying $$'s to attend you should get at least a certificate to say that you have (successfully) completed their course
. Like any education, the more "qualifications" that you can gain, the better your chances of finding employment after school - even if it's only part time as a D.J during further studies.
Most free courses in the U.K don't offer any certificates, but if you are going to pay to attend a course then you may as well get out of it all you can!.
| QUOTE |
| How long should it take about...? |
Being a D.J isn't a race. I've trained a lot of D.J's over the years, and the answer to this question depends on the individual
. Some young people can be naturals when it comes to D.J'ing and pick it up within a month or so, others can take 6 months or even a year to learn there is no set rule to how fast you learn. Also when you start any course you shouldn't be made to feel that you are under any pressure to learn quickly. D.J'ing is a skill and does take time to learn, some people may also find that it is not for them
| QUOTE |
| What should I expect to learn from taking lessons? |
Again, this depends on what area of D.J'ing you wish to persue. As Shaun as mentioned if you are going on a course that teaches beat mixing, scratching etc, then you should expect to learn the basics and be able to successfully beat mix two tracks. Again, I suppose a lot depends on how comprehensive the actual course is, and how much they are charging you.
I must admit that I am a little wary of "paid for" tuition courses, and although few and far between in the UK, most D.J workshops are run as part of Youth or Community groups and are basically free - other than perhaps a very low admission charge into the youth centre. These are the sort of establishments which are run as part of a local community and offer all sorts of activities such as sport, Music, Drama / DJ workshops etc and are usually ongoing.
If any of the courses have a website perhaps you could post a link, so that we can see exactly what you are getting for your $$$'s. If you are going to pay for tuition then you should at least get some idea of what the course contains?, if you want to post up the details then please do so, then we can advise you on whether you will be getting your monies worth.
