Presentation of my DJ'ing

In short

I play traditional music. Only on request from the organizer I will play one or two tandas of nuevo or alternative tango.

My philosophy

The DJ works for the dancers and must at any time be prepared to adjust the music according to the mood of the dancers, while still respecting his own style and taste. The dancers are in the center of the event, not the DJ.

For me, a good DJ is always looking at the dancers, seeing what they like, communicating with them, smiling at them and asking himself: "is it working what I'm doing?" and if not - change the gameplan, also if it means that I have to forget most of the stuff I prepared at home. 

My music

A DJ can make or break a milonga and I strongly believe that if I only play my music as in the music I personally prefer to dance to, I will miss the point and lose the confidence of the dancers. I therefore adjust the music so it matches the level and the mood of the dancers but nevertheless still with a strong touch of my personal taste, which means with surprises and inspiration for the dancers.

You will therefore hear instrumental as well as vocal, rhythmical and lyrical, slow and fast, energetic and melancholic, simple and complex and of course old and modern tango.

Looking back at my playlists for the last couple of years I find d’Arienzo, Di Sarli, Troilo, Biagi, Tanturi, Fresedo, Rodriguez, Calo, Canaro, Lomuto, Puliese, Victor and ofcourse a bunch of others such as Laurenz, de Caro, Malerba, Vargas, Castillo and so on. Lately I have successfully played Quinteto Real and Tipica Fervor at some occasions.

But the point is not in which orchestra I play, the point is which songs from the orchestra – it makes the whole difference. This is a topic I soon will develop further on this blog. 

Alone with only one CD 
If I ended up alone on a remote island and had to choose only one CD I would choose Di Sarli and take one of his CDs with instrumental music. Di Sarli is always appropriate on a milonga and also sitting alone on an island.

Favorite song

Poema with Canaro is my absolute favourite. The melody played by the violin is poetic and at the same time the beat is very heavy and powerful. Of course, anything “favourite” is often related to a special experience, and I relate Poema to an unbeatable tango experience in Buenos Aires (read about my experience here). The power of Poema does, that it should be played late in the evening when the dancers are ready for it and not as the first song in a tanda.

Another favourite is Enrique Rodrigues Mirame De Frente con Armando Moreno. This is the song I share with my ex-wife.