Music Historicity | Drop the beat: Electronic dance music covers a wide spectrum – The Southern

Since the very dawn of man and his beating of a primitive percussion instrumentarguably the first semblance of music he also likely nodded his head or tapped his ape-like foot in the artistic expression of dancing.

But music and dance don't always go together. Consider that classical music aficionados usually appreciate the symphony while seated in a chair.

On the whole, it's safe to say music as an art form has a connection and correlation with dance. Music can motivate humans to abandon themselves to their movements, as in "dance like no one is watching."

This week, Music Historicity's ongoing examination of various musical genres presents a discussion of EDM, or Electronic Dance Music.

Dance may not be a necessary element of music, but music surely is a needed element for the art form of dancing.

The 1984 historical comedy-drama "Amadeus" contains a memorable scene where the Emperor attends an opera rehearsal and sees actors dancing to no musical accompaniment. The odd sight causes the ruler to then nullify his own previous decree against ballet being permitted in operas.

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Music and dance are inextricably linked in numerous song examples such as The Twist, The Loco-Motion, The Humpty Dance, The Monster Mash, Le Freak, The Hustle and The Safety Dance.

The advent of the Moog synthesizer in the late 1960s boosted momentum for electronic popular music.

It was Wendy Carlos then known as Walter Carlos who, in 1968, released "Switched On Bach," a collection of 12 public domain tracks by the classical composer, as performed on a synthesizer keyboard.

The album rose to No. 10 on Billboard, won three Grammy awards and reached Platinum sales in 1986.

The use of synthesizers buoyed the development of a musical style that seemed well-suited for dancing --Disco. An early example can be heard in Donna Summers' "I Feel Love" and other similar dance hits.

The electronic side of synthesizer music is well known in the German band "Kraftwerk," whose self-titled 1970 debut album set an early standard for EDM. In 1975, a 3:28 abbreviated version of the original 22-minute-long title track from their fourth album, "Autobahn," reach No. 25 on the US Billboard charts.

Check out Kraftwerk's 1981 "Computer World" album, one of my favorites.

Originally from South Florida, Mark Potzler is a talented music professional who has years of experience as a club DJ.

"I have a problem with the tag 'EDM,'" Potzler recently told me. "Even though it's a catch-all phrase for electronic dance music, all electronic music isn't all about dancing. Kraftwerk, for example, is not necessarily dance music, but the band definitely is electronic."

His point is that electronic music and dancing are mutually exclusive concepts.

The start of the 1980s saw the emergence of different sub-genres of electronic music such as Synth-pop, House, Techno and Freestyle.

"When I was growing up, the popular style was called 'Techno,' which is what everything electronic was referred to as," Potzler said. "But now, Techno is its own genre and EDM is more specific. The point is, people have to realize that the term 'EDM' has evolved and now means so much more than it used to."

By the 1990s, more EDM sub-genres had become prominent, including Progressive House, Breakbeat and Trance --which in turn has its own sub-genres such as Progressive Trance, Tech Trance and Uplifting Trance.

Various sub-genres can be specified by the beats per minute, or bpm, of the drum or percussion track. For example, Trance music is generally 120-150 bpm. It's also characterized by the building of tension and electronic elements throughout the song, culminating with a release or "drop."

Some well-known Trance artists include Paul van Dyk, KLF, Art of Trance and Age of Love.

Moving into the 2000s, emerging EDM styles included Trap music, Dubstep and Electro House. Example artists are Lil' John, Oris Jay and Daft Punk, respectively.

"To me, Daft Punk is the modern day perfect production," Potzler said. "For the older generation who appreciate Steely Dan and their production quality, Daft Punk is the same way with quiet and gentle songs as well as some that are big and loud. The dynamics in their songs are just amazing --they're clean, rich and full."

Today, EDM festivals are held around the world, the largest in North America being the Electric Daisy Carnival. The three-day event is held in Las Vegas, in May, features dozens of DJs and is attended by well over 100,000 people per day.

If you want to buy a pass to all three days of EDC this year, it will cost you only $430.

As a DJ, Potzler realizes that playing recorded music at a club can be a performance not unlike that of a live band.

"It depends on my mood," he said. "As a DJ, you can influence everyone's mood by playing certain songs at a certain moment. As long (as) I sense that everybody on the dance floor likes a tune and can relate to it, they'll dance to it."

Potzler said his mood for playing music at a club can range from Hip Hop to Reggae to Rock music.

"I like the light-hearted, fun, party music, no matter what genre," he said. "I don't get deep into poetry. It's okay, but I don't want to have to think too deeply about lyrics because you'll lose me."

When he's driving in his car, on his way to work, Potzler plays "what some would consider workout music. Something fast-paced and exciting. 'Sun Came Up,' by Sofi Tukker, is not so much a story song as just an expression of a love of life.

"For the drive home at the end of the night, it I might be really tired and I need music to keep me awake. Or it could be that I'm so cranked up that I need some Chill music to bring me back down," he said.

An example of Chill music would be "You Wish," by Nightmares on Wax. Sirius XM has an entire music channel devoted to Chill.

"My favorite part about EDM is that producers and creators have been able to turn an otherwise boring song into something fun and danceable," Potzler summarized.

For your humble narrator, my EDM favorites include the aforementioned "Computer World" album by Kraftwerk, Major Lazer, Thievery Corporation and the first five Devo releases arguably not EDM, but heavy on the synthesizer.

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Music Historicity | Drop the beat: Electronic dance music covers a wide spectrum - The Southern