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Trance music

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Trance is a style of electronic dance music that developed in the 1990s. Trance music is generally characterized by a tempo of between 130 and 160 bpm, featuring repeating melodic synthesizer phrases, and a musical form that builds up and down throughout a track, often crescendoing or featuring a breakdown. Sometimes vocals are also utilised. The style is arguably derived from a combination of largely techno and house. 'Trance' received its name from the repetitious morphing beats, and the throbbing melodies which would presumably put the listener into a trance-like state. As this music is almost always played in nightclubs at popular vacation spots and in inner cities, trance can be understood as a form of club music.

Contents

History

Origins

Early electronic art music artists such as Klaus Schulze have proven to be a significant influence on trance music. Throughout the 1970s Schulze recorded numerous albums of atmospheric, sequencer-driven electronic music. Also, several of his albums from the 1980s include the word "trance" in their titles, such as the 1981 Trancefer and 1987 En=Trance.

Elements of what became modern club music also known as trance music were also explored by industrial artists in the late 1980s. Most notable was Psychic TV's 1989 album Towards Thee Infinite Beat, which featuring drawn out and monotonous patterns with short looping voice samples and is considered by some to be the first trance record. The intent was to make sound that was hypnotic to its listeners, this would also lead to a strain of trance known as Euphoria being developed which caused an uplifting sensation among its listeners who became somewhat euphoric during listening.

These industrial artists were largely dissociated from rave culture, although many were interested in the developments happening in Goa trance which is a much 'heavier' sound than what is now known as trance. Many of the trance albums produced by industrial artists were generally experiments, not an attempt to start a new genre with an associated culture -- they remained firmly rooted culturally in industrial and avant-garde music. As trance began to take off in rave culture, most of these artists abandoned the club style.

Trance begins as a genre

Main articles: acid trance, Goa trance
The earliest identifiable trance recordings came not from within the trance scene itself, but from the UK acid house movement, and were made by The KLF. The most notable of these were the original 1988 / 1989 versions of 'What Time Is Love' and '3AM Eternal' (the former indeed laying out the entire blueprint for the trance sound - as well as helping to inspire the sounds of hardcore and rave) and the 1988 track 'Kylie Said Trance'. Their use of the term 'pure trance' to describe these recordings reinforces this case strongly. These early recodings were markedly different from the releases and re-releases to huge commercial success around the period of the 'White Room' album (1991) and are significantly more minimalist, nightclub-oriented and 'underground' in sound.

The trance sound beyond this acid-era genesis is said to have begun as an off-shoot of techno in German clubs during the very early 1990s. Frankfurt is often cited as a birthplace of Trance. Some of the earliest pioneers of the genre included DJ Dag (Dag Lerner), Oliver Lieb, Sven Väth and Torsten Stenzel, who all produced numerous tracks under multiple aliases. Trance labels like Eye Q, Harthouse, Superstition, Rising High, FAX +49-69/450464 and MFS Records were Frankfurt based. Arguably a fusion of techno and house, early trance shared much with techno in terms of the tempo and rhythmic structures but also added more melodic overtones which were appropriated from the style of house popular in Europe's club scene at that time. This early music tended to be characterized by hypnotic and melodic qualities and typically involved repeating rhythmic patterns added over an appropriate length of time as a track progressed.

Of worth to note, the album that is generally accepted as THE definition of the frankfurt trance sound, and which subsequently influenced all of the early pioneers mentioned above, was the Pete Namlook "4Voice" album. Of note, one of the studio engineers who worked on this pioneering effort was one Maik Maurice, otherwise known as 1/2 of Resistance D, the famed Hard Trance duo. If you are a fan of the frankfurt sound, this album is the beginning.

At about the same period of time in the late 1980's and early 1990s, a musical revolution was happening in Goa, India. Electronic body music (EBM) bands like Cabaret Voltaire and Front 242 came to Goa and began influencing artists like Goa Gil, Eat Static, Doof, and Man With No Name who heard the psychedelic elements of EBM, expanded on them minus the vocals and guitars to create Goa trance. Goa music is heavily influenced by Indian culture and psychedelic drugs, as seen in numerous references to both in track and album titles.

The sound of modern trance

Main articles: progressive trance, anthem trance
By the mid-1990s, trance, specifically progressive trance, which emerged from acid trance much as progressive house had emerged from acid house, had emerged commercially as one of the dominant genres of dance music. Progressive trance set in stone the basic formula of modern trance by becoming even more focused on the anthemic basslines and lead melodies, moving away from hypnotic, repetitive, arpeggiated analog synth patterns and spacey pads. Popular elements and anthemic pads became more widespread. Compositions leaned towards incremental changes (aka progressive structures), sometimes composed in thirds (as BT frequently does). Buildups and breakdowns became longer and more exaggerated. The sound became more and more excessive and overblown. This sound came to be known as anthem trance.

Immensely popular, trance found itself filling a niche as 'edgier' than house, more soothing than drum and bass, and more melodic than techno, something that makes it accessible to many people. Artists like Paul van Dyk, Ferry Corsten, and Armin van Buuren came to the forefront as premier producers and remixers, bringing with them the emotional, "epic" feel of the style. Meanwhile, DJs like Paul Oakenfold, DJ Tiësto, and DJ Jean were championing the sound in the clubs and through the sale of pre-recorded mixes. By the end of the 1990s, trance remained commercially huge, but had fractured into an extremely diverse genre. Some of the artists that had helped create the trance sound in the early and mid-1990s had, by the end of the decade, abandoned trance completely (artists of particular note here are Pascal F.E.O.S. and Oliver Lieb).

Perhaps as a consequence, similar things were happening with the DJs as well. For example, trance duo Sasha and Digweed (also known as Delta Heavy), have helped bring the progressive sound to the forefront, all but abandoned it by 2000, instead spinning a darker mix of the rising "deep trance" and "tech-trance" style they pioneered along with producers and DJ's like Slacker and Breeder. Sasha and John Digweed might argue that their 2000 release "Communicate" not be called trance at all.

Trance in the mainstream

As trance has entered the mainstream it has alienated many of its original fans. As the industry became bigger, companies (especially Ministry of Sound) and DJs began to alter their sound to that of a more pop based one, so as to make the sound more accessible to an even wider, and younger, audience. Vocals in particular are now extremely common in mainstream trance, adding to their popular sound.

Definition and styles

Trance is a style that employs a 4/4 time signature, complemented by a 4/4 bass drum on its downbeats. Utilizing synthesizers and drum machines, Trance has a BPM of 130-160 beats per minute, somewhat faster than house music. Arpeggios and minor scales are common features. Much, but by no means all, trance music contains minimalist vocals.

The unwavering drum mechanism may be constantly tweaked with for effect, with the Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release (ADSR) all given liberal treatment. Trance is produced with keyboards, computerized synthesizers, drum machines, and music sequencer software connected via MIDI.

Some sub-genre classifications of trance include:

Notable trance records

1988

One of the KLF's first proto-trance recordings from the acid house era. The main thing keeping this record from being indisputably trance is its lack of any sort of kick drum. Interestingly, however, DJs were occasionally known to spin this on top of stripped down house beats -- a combination which, taken as a whole, would have to be considered "true" trance. While it's probably going too far to say that "DJs invented trance," it's food for thought.
1989
An early production of Oliver Lieb. Too mechanical and amelodic to be considered trance, but a seminal contribution to the burgeoning German techno scene which would soon spawn trance.
  • Pacific by 808 State
    • While not truly a trance track, the moody and ethereal atmosphere of this turn-of-the-'90s anthem would prove to be a definitive influence on budding German producers of the time.
    1990 Huge, early Future Sound of London production, which helped secure the UK's dance music production credentials.
    A driving piece of early tech-trance.
  • Age Of Love by Age Of Love
    • Many DJs and fans of the time as well as trance historians consider this record a trance classic, even before trance became a genre of its own. The ethereal sound of this record is the foundation of the trance sound. The original mix from 1990 should not be confused with the far more well-known Jam & Spoon remix from 1992, the latter having been produced and released after trance had become an established style in the German underground, complete with gated choirs and dramatic chord progressions. The original mix from 1990 was far more minimalistic and quite similar to the slower techno and new beat recordings of the time. Nonetheless, sufficient similarity can be heard between this and other early trance tracks to consider it truly a member of the genre. Released near the beginning of the year, in March!
  • We Came In Peace by Dance 2 Trance
    • The classic trance record which very probably officially gave a name to the genre in Germany, where the sound was first emulated and produced by subsequent German artists, and played in underground clubs and raves; never alone, but always with another genre of electronic music, as the DJ's back then never played only one style of music. Note that this track did not see wide release until 1991, but it did get a significant promo release in 1990, and was often heard in 1990.
    1991
    A classic rave-era, UK progressive breaks track that also defined a huge part of trance's later sound, direction and high prooduction values. FSOL were established at last.
  • Go by Moby
    • Moby's most famous track before he found fame from his album Play.
  • No Fate by Zyon
    • The first successful trance release on Eye Q. One of the most renowned tracks of the label.
    1992
    A monster track of Summer 1992, this was a huge leap forward for trance. The heavily detuned pads, ethereal pianos, and sparse analog basslines in this track were among the first of their kind, immensely foreshadowing of what was to come later.
  • Perfect Day by Visions of Shiva
    • Cosmic Baby and Van Dyk sure started on a high with this piano-fuelled-delicacy-turns-monster...
  • Liquid Is Liquid by Liquid
    • This is a prime example of atmospheric "old skool" trance, with its continuous arpeggios and haunting sound. One of the first tracks to enjoy anthem status. 11 years later it was revamped by Scooter in their album The Stadium Techno Experience.
  • Rave Generator by Toxic Two
    • The title says it all really, as to which direction this first true commercial trance track took... 'generates the ecstacy in you', anyone?!?
  • Stella by Jam and Spoon
    • A classic Balearic trance track.
  • Pacific Symphony by Transformer 2
    • Big rave / trance hybrid piece from 1992, epic strings with cheesy vocals.
  • Camargue by CJ Bolland
    • Strings, chords and elegant techno-trance from the ex-hardcore man who would bring the darkside in 1992's 'Mantra' and the seminal, groundbreaking 'The Fourth Sign' LP (1992)
    1993
    Cosmic Baby and Van Dyk get deeper, darker and more driving with this highly musical track.
  • Love Stimulation by Humate
    • The Paul van Dyk Lovemix is easily considered a defining moment in art of remixing, giving an otherwise plain tune "classic" status.
  • Outface by Komakino
    • Outface is in the middle of the road between techno and trance and serves as a perfect guide in order to understand the evolution from one genre to the other.
  • Right In The Night by Jam and Spoon
    • Is the earliest vocal trance track and a great inernational hit.
  • Abduction by Eat Static
    • One of the very first Goa trance artist albums. This album set a standard for future releases in this genre.
  • Café Del Mar by Energy 52
    • Has become one of the most well known trance tunes of all time. Remains one of the most popular and energetic trance records to this day sprouting off numerous remixes.
  • The First Rebirth by Jones & Stephenson
    • Perhaps the first hard trance track, at least the first well known one, with a very deep bassdrum and possibly one of the most recognisable melody lines in trance music. Also regarded as a classic in the hardcore techno scene.
  • Vernon's Wonderland by Vernon
    • While this track was merely another in a long string of trance hits during German trance's original heyday, it is notable because of the exposure it got in other parts of Europe, and particularly the UK. One of the first trance tracks to gain such popularity outside Germany, along with "Stella" by Jam & Spoon and "Hello San Francisco" by Dance 2 Trance.
    1994
    a signature track from the influential "Dubnobasswithmyheadman" that rocketed Underworld's recognition in the music scene, as well as laid groundwork for artists to come.
  • The Milky Way by Aurora Borealis
    • A fast and hard trance track, originated in France
  • For an Angel by Paul van Dyk
    • An early trance classic it defined a style and a sound that continued for a decade. Paul van Dyk continues to play it.
  • The Orange Theme by Cygnus X
    • This Cygnus X (aka A.C.Boutsen) classic continues to be played even today and has been remixed countless times. It is notable for the number of scales the main theme is played.
    1995
    Blue Fear by Armin Van Buuren was his first big success on Cyber Records. Along with 'Communication', this made it to the UK charts on its first day debut. Remixers include Solid Globe, Agnelli & Nelson and Scott Mac.
  • Oasis by Paragliders
    • One of the last major classic-style trance tracks before the progressive sound emerged.
  • Twisted by Hallucinogen
    • Considered to be one of the most original and innovative psychedelic goa trance albums. Completely representative of psychedelic goa trance at that time (others such as Astral Projection and X-Dream are typical of a slightly later sound (1996 onwards)), and some claim that it defines the sound of psychedelic trance music, it has been highly influential. This was one of the first Goa Trance albums to sell over 50,000 copies.
  • Mahadeva by Astral Projection
    • This is considered by many the greatest ever goa trance track. Mahadeva catapulted Astral Projection to the top of the genre and brought to prominence the Israeli psy-trance scene.
  • Children by Robert Miles
    • A powerful dream trance/house hit that has received acclaim from critics both inside and outside trance. This is a song which has introduced many music lovers into the world of dream trance and is widely considered one of the greatest trance songs of all time.
    1996
    The Salone Margherita mix, at this time played often by Pete Tong on BBC Radio 1 is a key example of trance at its peak demonstrating its amazing symphonic and anthemic qualities. While one variant of this record actually came out in 1995, it is listed here, since most versions of the record came out this year.
  • Flaming June by BT
    • A widely-accepted classic. Example of progressive trance. Composed in thirds, the structure of this tune represents the evolving, progressive structure of mid-1990s progressive trance.
    1997
    a venerable club classic, At the Villa people came from the rather underground club "At the Villa, which at this time was located in a church in Belgium, the original location, which was a true villa, had burned down.
  • Desert Storm by Desert Storm
    • originated from Germany, a slow paced, heavy bass tune, very long, and very deep. Originally released in 1994, but re-released in 1997 on the At the Villa compilation maxi bundle called "At the Villa Laurence, Music from the Club".
    1998
    An epic trance monster that took Binary Finary (producers Matt Laws and Stuart Matheson) worldwide within a year and became an all time classic overnight. Famously influenced by goa and psytrance.
  • Words (of Love) by Paul Van Dyk
    • Another widely accepted classic of Paul Van Dyk's. Considered by many to be a stronger track than even his ultimate classic "For an Angel."
  • Universal Nation by Push
    • Belgian immortal Uplifting trance and club classic by Push aka M.I.K.E.
  • Madagascar by Art of Trance
    • This track from the Platipus label was composed by Simon Berry and has been remixed several times since its first release.
    1999
    This track blew up on the Finnish, UK and US club scene and helped bring recognition to Hard Trance. Darude originally found fame as an online unsigned artist on the now demised mp3.com site. As well, reletively unknown musically, Finland also became prominent on the Dance music scene with JS16 producing the subsequent album in 2000, Before The Storm.
  • Better Off Alone by Alice DeeJay
    • A UK #2 and a debut hit by Dutch Trance act Alice DeeJay in July 1999. The track and the band are similar to Finnish act Darude. It was a big headline hit for Dance festivals that summer.
  • Another Way by Paul van Dyk
    • An amazing and awe-inspiring journey through the mind and beats by one of the true pioneers of the genre.
    This driving epic trance track was produced by Vincent de Moor & Ferry Corsten and is regarded as one of the tracks that defines epic trance.
  • Out of the Blue by System F
    • This track has become a huge success, giving trance a big popularity boost.
  • Saltwater by Chicane
    • This uplifting, epic track was produced by the British DJ Nick Bracegirdle and is widely regarded as one of the greatest trance singles ever.
  • Ayla (Veracocha mix) by Ayla
    • A high energy trance classic remixed by Veracocha.
  • Barber's Adagio for Strings (Ferry Corsten Remix) by William Orbit
    • This Ferry Corsten treatment of William Orbit's rendition of the Adagio For Strings by Samuel Barber, has been one of the most successful marriages to date of classical music and trance.
  • Xpander by Sasha
    • This track is probably the highlight of Global Underground 13: Ibiza, arguably the best GU album that was released at the height of popularity of progressive trance. Probably heard mostly in Wipeout 3 by the mainstream gamers in US.
  • Kernkraft 400 by Zombie Nation
    • This thumping tune hit high in the charts and became instantly popular in clubs.
    2001
    This is a widely regarded classic released by Dutch DJ Tiesto at the height of his career.
    2002
    A relatively recent track that has been an important addition with its euphoric and emotional melody to any dj's sonic arsenal.
    2003
    Finnish trance artist Darude does it again with his new album Rush in which his two most popular singles, Music and Next To You brought about the same popularity of his 1999/2000 offerings Sandstorm, Feel The Beat and Out Of Control. It is widely stated that the Bostik Radio Edit version of Music from the Rush album is considered to be the best version, even over the original album version.
  • Burned With Desire by Armin Van Buuren
    • Trance superstar Armin Van Buuren's Burned With Desire took vocal trance to the next level with its uplifting beat and female vocals. Trance artists that remixed this song include Ronski Speed and Riley & Durrant.
    2004
    Israeli trance duo Infected Mushroom produced this album on their CD IM the Supervisor, which was a hit at its debut release. It is a song with vocoded lyrics, spurring a few remixes
    2005
    DJ Ferry Corsten released this album in 2005, which contains powerful and moving tracks like the critically acclaimed singles 'Fire' and 'Galaxia'.

    External links

    Electronic music | Genres
    Ambient | Breakbeat | Drum and bass | Electronica | Electronic art music | Hard dance | Hardcore | House | Techno | Trance | Industrial | Synthpop

     

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