End of Term Update and DJ Controller Recommendations!
With this school year already flying by, we thought it was about time we provided an update on everything that’s happening here at NextGen Music!
Firstly, we’d like to offer a warm welcome to all new parents and students, whilst also thanking all of those who have chosen to continue lessons with us. Thanks to all of you, we are now teaching a record number of students, who are all excelling at their various stages of the curriculum; which as we’re sure you’ll agree, is absolutely amazing to see!
Since our last newsletter, we’ve had students at The Petersfield School and St Philip Howard Catholic School recording their debut mixes and we’re pleased to say that all of them have now progressed from the ‘Debut’ to ‘Breakthrough’ stages of the curriculum, so a big congratulations to all of them! We’ve also got students at various other schools, including Bohunt Horsham and Bishop Luffa, currently preparing their debut mixes, which we have no doubt will be sounding awesome; so, we look forward to seeing all of them progressing soon too. And we are delighted to announce that we have started offering DJ lessons at Ormiston Six Villages Academy!
Secondly, with Christmas very much on the horizon, we have been receiving various emails from parents, asking for advice on which equipment would be suitable for their children to receive as gifts. So, to try and help out, we’ve provided a short list of recommended equipment below, all of which are considered industry standard, but which vary on the price scale. They are as follows:
Low Price
Pioneer DDJ-200 - £135
The DDJ-200 compact controller for beginners gives you the ability to stream music from SoundCloud and Spotify. A perfect choice for anyone wanting an introduction to DJing.
Medium Price
Pioneer DDJ-400 - £260
The Pioneer DDJ-400 Rekordbox controller allows you to connect and DJ with Rekordbox (free software) on your desktop or laptop computer. This lightweight controller gives advanced FX and looping capabilities for the more advanced beginner DJ.
High Price
Pioneer DJ XDJ-RR – £1,029
The XDJ-RR is one of Pioneer’s most advanced all-in-one controllers, which gives the user you the option of performing from a USB storage device or connecting their desktop/laptop computer to DJ with Rekordbox.
*This is the equipment which your child uses each week in their lesson*
Our Top Recommendation
Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX4 – £279
The DDJ-FLX4 is Pioneer’s brand new controller and we believe it provides the most value for money. It has inherited key features from the DDJ-400 (medium price option), but offers a more up-to-date user-friendly design with which ensures learning to DJ has never been easier. Ideal for a vast range of capabilities, from beginner to more advanced DJ’s.
We hope you find this information helpful and we’re sure that your child will enjoy receiving any of them as presents this Christmas! Just don’t forget to make sure they give you a demonstration or two over the holidays!
Finally, we’re pleased to announce that after a lot of hard work, we have managed to add the finishing touches to our ‘Music Production’ curriculum! It will allow students to learn all about how they can create and produce a variety of different music genres, using a digital audio workstation (DAW). At first, these lessons will be offered in select schools from January, with the curriculum aiming to be rolled out to further schools in the future. If this sounds like something your child would be interested in, please make sure you keep your eyes peeled for further information!
Last but not least, with this being the final newsletter of the calendar year, we’d like to take the time to again thank you all of you for your continued support; whilst also wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all of us here at NextGen Music. We hope you all have a fantastic time over the festive period and we look forward to welcoming you back in 2023!
