Published
24-10-2025
Type of Work
Conference Presentation
Abstract
The presentation set out to educate novice and intermediate DJs the importance of track selection in a DJ set. This is a skill that elevates a good DJ to a great DJ. It addresses issues that some DJs have when trying to read a crowd or curate a pre planned set. The presentation was given at SAE Dubai's annual DJ symposium to a live audience using slides and audio examples. The presentation was well received and many of the audience had questions and seemed to take away a better understanding of an often underrated element of being a successful DJ.
In conclusion, I would have liked to have dived a little deeper into some of the more psychological aspects of listening to a series of different songs in terms of genre and tempo and how this can effect mood end energy in a crowd. However, due to my time being short and the fact that I was planning on a more introductory presentation, I covered a few more important bases as to suit the audience.
Notes
How to DJ right: The art and science of playing records, Frank Broughton and Bill Brewster, London, Bantam, 2002
Last night a DJ saved my life: The history of the Disc Jockey, Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton, Headline book publishing, 2006
Can you feel it? The information behaviour of creative DJs, Keith Munro, https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-05-2022-0106, Publisher: Emerald Publishing, Journal of Documentation (2023) 79 (4): 830–846.
DJing & Reading the crowd in an EDM context from a second person perspective, Maria Marchiano & Matias German Tanco, https://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/136939, 2021
The Relation Between DJs Behavior and Their Audience's Positive Affect and Perception of the Show. A Field Study in Electronic Dance Music Clubs, Konrad Rudnicki, Timon Murrath, and Karolien Poels, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/02762374251340660?__cf_chl_f_tk=dRenwWuvrs7cH2LmxZehlesof01F146M9XKAsfy.v9U-1783414321-1.0.1.1-7zpC1fpI4oLgz1lKHYuJRtl_FJooy_ghi6fSgC1dBmQ 2025
Citation
Foley, A J (2025). The art of selection [Staff Scholarship, SAE University College]. Creo
Included in
Audio Arts and Acoustics Commons, Musicology Commons, Music Performance Commons, Other Music Commons