Dear #DJDIARY #NoraEnPure Wednesday, 25 June, 2014
Producing music is no easy task. Dah. And every producer has their own methods and techniques, some will start with a melody and others with a vocal. It all just depends on where the music takes you.
So let’s sit in on a class with deep and tech house producer, Nora En Pure, for a glimpse into music production.
This is #DJDIARYENTRY/FOUR
The South African DJ and producer has been exposed to music her entire life.
As a child she adored listening to her two brothers play piano, and often listened to the classical genre. As for her own musical skills, well she didn’t fall behind at all.
“I was playing the German flute, piano and I also showed great interest in percussion and singing. But at that early stage I had never thought of producing electronic music later in my life,” Nora says.
Fate is a funny thing, and at 19, Nora “met the right people” – and fell into a new world of electronic music, one certainly different from the classical genre she was accustomed to growing up.
What would start off as a hobby, dabbling in the world of electronic music would eventually turn into a successful career for Nora.
“Today the demand for electronic music and the chances to actually get a living out of electronic music have changed,” Nora says.
“Never would I have expected the success of the past few months, which have brought me many opportunities,” Nora beams.
Her remix of Daniel Portman’s KHAWERI in 2010 unquestionably kicked off her career as a producer.
And she’s been climbing charts ever since, with numerous remixes hitting Beatport’s Top 100 charts.
This month alone has seen her remix of Klingande’s “Jubel (Nora En Pure remix)” and Sir Felix’s “Hope (Nora En Pure remix)” climb Beatport’s Top 100 deep house charts.
But how does one produce such melodic funky tunes?
“It always depends,” Nora says. “Sometimes I will start with a vocal, sometimes with a sample or a loop and build the rest around it. It just has to feel right.”
“At times I don’t think much of it and will finish a track very quickly, but at other times, it can take a very long time until I am actually convinced of a track or I will even start all over again.”
She works aside such deep house producers as Croatia Squad, Calippo and EDX who are all a part of a fresh, nudisco movement that Enormous Tunes are motioning.
“I am very passionate about this style especially since the music world got flooded by this EDM big room sound,” Nora says.
“The [nudisco] tunes are refreshing, funky, and groovy, with chunky baselines that get you into a great mood, leaving you with a feel good mood and the urge to dance,” she beams.
“Croatia Squad, Calippo and EDX are great artists, I feel honoured having them on board.”
Working in such a male dominated industry, begs the question of whether Nora finds it challenging competing with men in the DJ and house music scene. And her answer was simple.
“In my opinion, no matter what you do, if you do your job with steady quality, some fresh creativity and passion you can convince and overcome any prejudices.”
Touché`. And on that note, that’s a wrap.
#DJDIARY/SECRETS
Nora expands on being a female DJ and Producer.
Q: Do you find it challenging being a female producer and DJ in such a male-dominated field of work?
A: Sometimes in a club where people don’t know me, I often get surprised reactions, so there is obviously still a strong feeling that female DJs are maybe not as good as male DJs. In general you might find yourself confronted with these typical prejudices of women being considered as not so fit with technical know-how. But that happened more in the beginning. On a professional level, colleagues respect me and I respect them.