Scratching/Skratcing

[Grant Barrett]

This story is rich in scratching (skratching) argot: hip-hop live mixing of vinyl on
turntables for musical effect. Includes discussion of a musical notation system for
the art form.

http://www.feedmag.com/templates/default.php3?a_id=1700

"Additionally, an extra line of symbols above the staff represents articulations,
the movements of the hand, which actually produce the skratch. These could also be
thought of as changes in the unimpeded motion of the record. "Anti-Matter" uses four main
markings: "+" for a forward cue (pushing the record slightly faster than normal);
"-" for a drag cue (slowing the record down slightly), "=" for a back-cue (dragging the
record backwards), and "o" for passages where the DJ's hand should be off the
record. With an "r" indicating a repeating pattern, these cover the basic moves from which
skratches are built, though Radar freely admits that numerous symbols could be added
to cover advanced and two-handed techniques, just as the conventions covering more
established instruments have resources to notate accents, glissandos, and trills."

--
Grant Barrett
New York loves you back.
http://www.worldnewyork.org/