MovieChat Forums > Scratch (2001) Discussion > 'But are they musicians' my take

'But are they musicians' my take

posted 18 years ago by vincent-27
8 replies | jump to latest

Okay, so I am a musician, and I really admire these guys for their amazing skill and dammn it it gets your ass moving, which is one the primary goals of music anyway. But the age old questions is "are they musicians"? Well, there are some clues in the movie, there is a point where Mix Master Mike is talking about how he and some friends are immitating are playing horns and drums and he says "we sound like an actual band". Meaning he never thought of himself as a musician up until that point and not only that but can he make music using a snippet of trumpet better than somebody actually trained in the trumpet? I have heard djs scratch trumpet stabs (a la Kid Koala) into solos and it's kind of funny as a novelty, but honestly it sounds a lot better with the actual instrument.

Also, I have had experience playing with a DJ and he had all these little noise making devices, but that's all he could do, is make noise, he had no real idea of how to play along with a certain scale or chord progression or whatever.

So really these guys are more or less musicians, but I would classify them as extremely sophisticated percussionists at best, mixing is a whole other thing. But then again I suppose nobody has a problem calling a drummer a musician, but ask 99% of them about theory and they will look at you with a dumb look. They know bars, if you're lucky.

--
"Surrender Dorothy!"

[–] g-crizzle 18 years ago

bear in mind that this movie is now 5 years old and turntablism is constantly progressing. some DJ's i know have a lot more knowledge of bars, chord structures etc than guitarist friends, but most people would still call the guitar player a musician just because he can play a few songs and knows where chords are. look at dj's that are around now like c2c and birdy namnam and try saying they're not musicians.

[–] rolleditoverbro 17 years ago

i wouldn't call a club DJ a musician, because they are just mixing songs together using BPM and EQ's, but i have respect for them as it doesn't take a lot of skill to beat match well. but a turntablist/dj what ever you like to call them, i would call a musician, they're percussionists, they make rhythms and beats out of other rhythms and beats, so if a turntablist isn't a musician, then a drummer doesn't deserve the title either.

[–] pyrofanatic 17 years ago

I believe that in this day and age, a musician is somebody who plays or creates music. Whether it is by plucking some strings, blowing into a metal object, or manipulating a sample on a record in rhythm.

It is hard for people who come from a more traditional musical background to appreciate this, but I think the outcome is essentially the same - creating a sound for people's enjoyment.

I am a turntablist, and a club DJ playing intelligent drum & bass/jungle music, and I also play guitar and synthesiser so I understand chords, pitch, tone, rhythm, etc etc. When I blend my beats on the decks I always match tracks that have notes chords and tones that go together. I manipulate the kills, EQ and filters to achieve a seamless blend, building the mix in a musically correct way. There is more to beatmixing than just aligning the two records at the same tempo. I would consider myself a musician in my mind and my ability to create correct music for peoples enjoyment from my knowledge of how music works.
I don't believe that a person is only a musician if they play in an orchestra or traditional band.

Somebody who hits a bongo in rhythm is considered a musician, despite not playing notes as such. So I think that ultimately, a musician is a person who creates a form of music, whatever the method.

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] morbius82000 16 years ago

Ha, what a weird argument, it's the hip hop musicians themselves that should be playing the instruments and if anything it is because THEY lack soul, not the music that is around them. Now some of them do, like Da Roots for example, but for the most part they just resample old stuff. Also, somehow hip hop artists can get away with singing completely out of tune and nobody minds. It's more "real" and "raw". Whatever, singing is singing you either sing on key or it's *beep* imho.

As for songs about sex, women drugs etc, it is not the difference between rap and hip-hop, whatever that means, it is the difference between stuff that sells a billion records, the music with integrity that sells less, like any musical art form. A lot of rock is about sex, women, drugs and money no different than hip hop, but hip hop found a way to music dangerous again, which the kids LOVE, rock has become very safe and for kids its music their moms and dads listen to. Once that happens, somebody will come along to fill that void. Children need to seperate themselves from their parents, hip hop has done that. But now it's become a parody of itself and is becoming pretty mainstream. The other day I saw a children's how called "Hip Hop Harry", once that happens, the end is near.

[–] synthfreek 14 years ago

Why are you bringing race into this discussion? How do you know the OP is even white?

[–] 60-second-assassin 16 years ago

"Well, there are some clues in the movie, there is a point where Mix Master Mike is talking about how he and some friends are immitating are playing horns and drums and he says "we sound like an actual band". Meaning he never thought of himself as a musician up until that point"
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Huh? How does that statement mean that he never thought of himself as a musician? Does being a musician require you to be in a band? Because that entire passage means that he never thought a group of DJ's/turntablists could sound like an actual band (up until that point), not that he didn't think of himself as a musician. You seem to be using the word 'band' and 'musician' as if they were the same thing.

[–] worldofbong 15 years ago

some of these dudes do mix by ear though and can make pitches, as well as keeping the tempo.. but yeah it depends on the individual, how musical they get with it

but then again, i'm not so sure, lol - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msmDSxv5eO0