SCRATCH
BABY SCRATCH
The baby scratch is probably the easiest scratch there is. With no use of the
fader and an easy pattern to remember it provides an ideal starting place for
the beginner. The scratch itself comprises of a forwards movement followed
immediately by a backwards movement. The key to this scratch is that both
movements should be done in the space of a single beat. This type of movement is
identical to that of beat matching when lining up a beat. Note that even though
this scratch is basic variations can still be found. You might try reversing the
direction so that you start of with a backwards movement and ending in a
forwards one. You could also try varying the speed of the strokes.
SCRIBBLE SCRATCH
The scribble scratch is very similar to the baby scratch but the movement is
smaller and faster. To do this scratch you need to tense your forearm muscle
whilst your hand is on the vinyl. This should result in a hand movement that can
only be described as a bad case of the shakes. The key to this scratch is to
make sure that the vinyl only moves a small amount under the needle and at a
reasonable pace.
TEAR SCRATCH
The tear involves a bit more skill than the scratches covered so far.
Essentially the movement is the same as a baby scratch but the backwards stroke
is split into two different sections. The first half of the back movement should
be fast followed by a slower second half. It might help to practice just the
backstroke so that you get used to the change in speed.
THE CHOP
A good scratch to start you off using the fader is the chop also known as the
stab. The hand movement used for this scratch is the same as the baby scratch
mentioned earlier. The difference though between this and the baby is made by
cutting of the backstroke using the crossfader. The fader should start with the
sound on (termed open) and the forward stroke completed as normal. The cut comes
just before you start the backstroke where you should close the fader. The key
to this scratch is the timing of the fader action. The overall sound created
should be a short sudden scratch.
THE FORWARD
The forward scratch is similar to the chop but instead of scratching the vinyl
on the forward stroke, it is left to play at normal speed. The backstroke is cut
off as in the chop using the fader. The sample is brought back to the beginning
(with the fader closed) then allowed to play again with the fader open. The
result is a constant repeat of the same sample ideal for vocals. The tricky part
about this scratch is lining the sample up in the correct place at speed. A
technique used by some DJ's is to put a marker on the label or vinyl so that the
beginning of the sample is easily spotted.
THE CHIRP
To complete this scratch requires a little more hand co-ordination skill. Start
with the fader open and make a forward stroke as normal but fade out as you get
to the end. The reverse is carried out on the backstroke i.e. start fading the
backstroke in. As the name suggests this should create short snappy chirp sounds.
This scratch is an old one but definitely a must and can be done at various
speeds to add variation.
THE TRANSFORMER
The scratch known as the transformer requires the fader to be used at speed and
with accuracy. At the beginning of this scratch, the fader should be in the
closed position. When you are ready to begin, you should slowly drag the record
forwards and backwards under the needle. The fader should then be used to cut
the sound in and then back out straight away. This "in out" action
should be repeated several times at speed to create the stutter effect desired.
To end the scratch the fader should finish in the closed position.
THE FLARE
The flare is similar to the transformer with respect to the fader speed but the
difference lies in the starting position of the fader. To start the flare the
fader needs to be in the open position. Whilst doing the forward stroke with the
vinyl the fader should be closed then opened again at speed. On the backwards
stroke the same should be done again, fader closed then finishing in the open
position once more.
THE ORBIT
The orbit takes the flare one stage further by increasing the amount of times
you fade the sample in and out. During a single stroke of the flare you would
fade the sample out then back in again. However, during a single stroke of the
orbit this needs to be doubled. In terms of the fader movement, it should go
something a bit like this... (start with the fader open) closed, open, closed,
open. This movement should then be done again during the backwards stroke. The
key to this scratch is to try to create a rhythm with the fader so that you are
opening and closing the fader at the same positions each time creating a tidy
scratch.
THE CRAB
This is a tricky scratch to master as it requires the dj to have good skills but
also the equipment that you use needs to perform well. When the fader is
positioned so that you can just hear the other turntable it is known as the
"cut in" point. To perform the crab the fader should start in the
closed position. Your thumb needs to be placed at the cut in point with your
other four fingers held vertically on the other side of the fader. During the
forward stroke, each finger should hit the fader to the thumb, which acts as a
spring returning the fader to the closed position. Starting with your little
finger first, followed by your ring, middle, then index finger you should
achieve a rhythmical flicking motion resembling the movement of a crabs legs
hence the name of this scratch. I mentioned earlier that the equipment also
needs to perform during this scratch. Completing this scratch is almost
impossible if you have a stiff fader (normally found on the cheaper models).
Beats
Per Minute
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