Are humans hard-wired for faith?
This story about how the brain works when people pray and meditate was featured on CNN.com today and got me thinking about how this relates to the DJ craft and music in general.
Religion and meditation sometimes uses the power of music to heighten the experience. From the article, "The frontal lobe, the area right behind our foreheads, helps us focus our attention in prayer and meditation." This same focus is needed when you spin.
A traditional DJ will play a track and at the same time listen to the next one in his/her headphones adjusting and smoothly making the transition. It takes a sharp focus to discern a difference in tempo and adjust it on-the-fly unless the DJ uses the equipment to fix it automatically (for those out there who still pitch manually, bless your soul, respect). Similar to professional athletes, the DJ gets "in the Zone" or "Flow" as they mysteriously know what song to play, when, and how to mix it in like a basketball player hits net after net.
"When we think of religious
and spiritual beliefs and practices,
we see a tremendous similarity
across practices and across traditions."
I liken the DJ to a shaman bringing a tribe into a trance through music. The use of repetitive beats and progression mixed with communal dancing and other interaction allows the individual to loosen their hold on consciousness and delve into altered states of mind. There is the perception that only drugs get you there, but such assumptions (that all shamans or tribes take drugs, or that the drugs are the only catalyst to a spiritual experience) are superficial and knee-jerked.
Ask anyone that has been into the
electronic music scene for a while
what feelings they have as the DJ makes
the flawless mix, right time, place,
people, and music and watch them
think about it, lost in a hint
of euphoria
as they try to describe the ineffable.
Religious? Maybe.
Spiritual? Definitely.
The accounts of intense religious and spiritual experiences are topics of fascination for people around the world. It's a mere glimpse into someone's faith and belief system. It's a hint at a person's intense connection with God, an omniscient being or higher plane. Most people would agree the experience of faith is immeasurable."
Religion and meditation sometimes uses the power of music to heighten the experience. From the article, "The frontal lobe, the area right behind our foreheads, helps us focus our attention in prayer and meditation." This same focus is needed when you spin.
A traditional DJ will play a track and at the same time listen to the next one in his/her headphones adjusting and smoothly making the transition. It takes a sharp focus to discern a difference in tempo and adjust it on-the-fly unless the DJ uses the equipment to fix it automatically (for those out there who still pitch manually, bless your soul, respect). Similar to professional athletes, the DJ gets "in the Zone" or "Flow" as they mysteriously know what song to play, when, and how to mix it in like a basketball player hits net after net.
and spiritual beliefs and practices,
we see a tremendous similarity
across practices and across traditions."
I liken the DJ to a shaman bringing a tribe into a trance through music. The use of repetitive beats and progression mixed with communal dancing and other interaction allows the individual to loosen their hold on consciousness and delve into altered states of mind. There is the perception that only drugs get you there, but such assumptions (that all shamans or tribes take drugs, or that the drugs are the only catalyst to a spiritual experience) are superficial and knee-jerked.
electronic music scene for a while
what feelings they have as the DJ makes
the flawless mix, right time, place,
people, and music and watch them
think about it, lost in a hint
of euphoria
as they try to describe the ineffable.
Religious? Maybe.
Spiritual? Definitely.
The accounts of intense religious and spiritual experiences are topics of fascination for people around the world. It's a mere glimpse into someone's faith and belief system. It's a hint at a person's intense connection with God, an omniscient being or higher plane. Most people would agree the experience of faith is immeasurable."
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