4 Secrets of Top Disco House Producers

Disco is the much maligned genre that helped spawn modern dance music and carved out a niche for electronic beats in the mainstream. While the original disco wave may have died out long ago, its influence still reverberates strongly in the world of house music. In fact, an entire genre has sprung up called disco house, which celebrates this musical style in a thoroughly modern context. This article takes a look at 5 secret ingredients that disco house producers employ while banging out some of their hottest tracks.

1. When in doubt, remix. In the past 10 years house music has adopted a strong tendency to remix classic tracks. Since disco music was so danceable in its original form, the addition of modern technology, beats and basslines coupled with advances in sampling is capable of generating a monster track if properly remixed. This can mean either revamping an entire song like M & S did with 'Salsoul Nugget' in 2000, or merely grab the main melody like the filter house / disco house classic 'Music Sounds Better With You' by Stardust.

2. Harnessing the power of a live element. One of the big differences between disco and modern dance music was the fact that while drum machines and sequencing played a role in the original recordings, most of the time real drummers, guitarists and bassists had a heavy hand it what ended up being pressed onto wax. This human touch can sometimes be missing from house, and the most savvy disco house music producers have had big hits thanks to savvy sampling of some of the most organic elements of original disco tracks. A perfect example of this is the track 'Let's All Chant' by Disco Queen, which borrows heavily from the Michael Zager original. This can really get a good crowd response going at a club.


3. Vocals, vocals, vocals. A large part of the power of disco house music comes from its vocal flavor, which can be either male or female. In disco tracks, the vocals often carried the entire track, along with the baseline, so when putting together disco house producers try make sure that they can include a sweet vocal hook to snare in listeners. If a vocal isn't available, then accenting the most recognizable elements from a past disco classic can help create a killer theme.

4. Have fun with the stereotype. For better or worse, disco music has become inextricably associated with leisure suits, big hair and elaborate dance moves. Disco house music that has fun with these images is often very successful, whether it be in the form of sampled references to pop culture touchstones or simply through embracing the whimsical and non-serious aesthetic of the genre.

The 70's: Storytellers, Rockers, and Disco

The '70's rolled in and pretty much took up where the '60's had left off. The turbulent '60's had seen the assassination of president John Kennedy and soon after, the shooting of his brother, Robert, an unpopular and seemingly no win situation with the war in Vietnam, and another assassination of a man who was trying to bring about great change, Martin Luther King Jr. But there was light at the end of the tunnel for the U.S. In May of 1969, the first manned- moon landing took place.

Not only did America beat the Soviets to the lunar surface, but we did it within the time frame that President Kennedy had proposed some eight years earlier. With all this going on, the music was there throughout.

Music would take a hard shot as well, however, right at the opening of the new decade. After six years of creating and playing music that changed and made history, the Beatles went their separate ways. After about four years of artistic, financial, and personal differences, John, Paul, George, and Ringo called it quits. Their fans were devastated. Their last no. 1 hit was Paul McCartney's, moving 'Let It Be'. All four would have success on their own, but the chemistry and charisma that was the 'Beatles', was gone.

A huge gear was missing in the machine that was rock 'n' roll, but the machine wasn't broke. How could it be? There were still so many great artists that were and had been there. Not to mention new stars that were on the horizon. The hard rocking Led Zeppelin got mellow and poetic with '71's No. 1 smash, 'Stairway to Heaven'. Singer/songwriters like Elton John, James Taylor, Carly Simon, Neil Young, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel, and the late great Jim Croce were filling the airwaves with songs that told stories that spoke to us all, then and now.

Disco Dance Floor - The King Of The Nightclub

So now that you have planned to break into the night club scene, you have yourself the building and you have yourself the idea - what about adding in a disco dance floor? No, really, they are now starting to be some of the hottest nightcltb products in the world and once you think about it, why wouldn't they? Disco music was hot in the Seventies and the disco dance floor was something that was in each and every single night club from around the world, whether you are situated in Europe or in the United States!

Now that the disco dance floor is arriving back, you have to make sure that it fits into the topic of your club - all of those bright colors may be intimidating and even though this is an amazing technology, you need to make sure that you are not adding one into your club if it basically does not go with the decor or the whole concept. For example, if you are opening up an ultra modern or even just a modern night club that is mostly covered in white, black and chrome, adding in a disco dance floor may not be the best idea.

There is a time and place for this kind of equipment though and that time and place is in brightly coloured night clubs! Now, naturally, the technology has evolved very much, heck, there are even LED dance floors that may be regarded as interactive. Yep, you can step on one area and it will light up, step on another and it will light up. The interactive floors truthfully bring much fun for the visitors and if you want to impress them, these may be the best option!

Donna Summer, the Disco Queen is Still Dancing

Donna Summer earned the title "Disco Queen" early in her career. Today her voice continues to soar with boundless range and fire whether recorded or live. The personable winner of Grammy Awards, gold albums, an Oscar and dozens of other honors continues in top form. Her latest release, "To Paris With Love," is already a hit with its irresistible melody and her signature disco beat that begs listeners to leap from their chairs and dance.

The incentive to compose the song was her unabashed love for Paris. Because France was one of the first countries to embrace her music, she wanted the song to express her boundless affection for the nation and its people. She initially planned to release it only in the south of France during the country's popular vacation season, but her co-writer, Bruce Roberts, thought it was perfect for summertime everywhere, so they put it out for her fans as an escape to the romance and allure of the City of Lights.

Summer has been a favorite in Europe since arriving in Germany during the late 1960s to play Sheila in "Hair." She regards performing in Europe for many years before returning home as a true learning experience that taught her the outlook on fame she has to this day. While Americans want fame right away, Europeans have a more sober idea of fame. She wholly embraces their concept of fame as a distant thing to achieve even though she is one of the most famous entertainers worldwide.

Music Versus Body Energy Relationship

I wonder why we listen to music! What do we feel when listening to music! What happens to our body! Why a fantastic song for someone is terrible for the other! Why we sometimes feel different and want to listen to our best music but bored, we replace it, and replace it and replace it, still don't like any of them. We sometimes buy a CD to listen in one day, we like that CD but never want to listen and always choose something else instead. We don't like a kind of music but after years, we suddenly like it! I will try to share some points here.

Music is a kind of energy form that feeds our spirits. Music works in two directions. If we need energy, (being moody, feeling weak and demoralised) it provides the energy. If we are in anger, mad, furious, it takes the negative energy out of our body. I assume music stimulates some points in the brain, so some hormones are produced. In night clubs, disco music is played often but after sometime, the energy level in body is so much charged, then disco music is interrupted by slow music to release the excessive energy back.

Music mainly can be classified to two groups; Energy Removal and Energy Releaser. It is not always necessary to enjoy energy delivering music. You may not like it but you may still capture some energy out of it. I sometimes feel flying when listening, I became in deep trance and when the music is over, I feel much stronger, powerful and self-confident. So many people shared the same feelings with me.