Disco

From ArticleWorld

Disco is a musical genre considered an entertainment that plays recorded music as opposed to the live performances of artists. The term derives from the French “discotheque”, which was a kind of nightclub.

The beginning

It is hard to define a starting point in Disco evolution. Elements that can be considered to be influence were visible a long time before the genre officially appeared. 1973 is the year that is considered to have released the first Disco song. In 1972 Manu Dibango’s Soul Makossa is thought of as the first such record. The reason behind its development stood in the need of nightclubs to have dancing songs in their repertoire and it appeared as opposed with the needs of radio stations. As time passed popular tunes played on radio became common in discotheques as well. The only feature such a song needed was a rhythmic structure of around 120 BPM (Beats per minute). Disco music was strongly influenced by soul, salsa and folk. The sexual revolution, the gay liberation, the women’s financial independence and the racial minorities spreading were all elements that are important in disco appearance and popularity.

Popularity

Disco music became the most popular musical genre of the time. In 1975 many such tunes took over and the first disco mix featured on an album appeared in Gloria Gaynor’s Never Can Say Goodbye. The peak of the genre was timed in the period between 1977 and 1980. Because of the rhythmic structures it presented the firs pre-choreographed dances appeared with the line dance increasing in popularity. As time passed the genre took over many countries around the world with France showing the first artist outside the USA that sung such music. That singer was Dalida and her first hit song was J’Attendrai.

DJs

The complexity of the songs being recorded brought in more producers than ever before. Orchestral music became popular again and it was used in several disco recordings. This led to the extensive use of mixing engineers because of the numerous vocal and instrumental tracks being used. The success of a disco song stayed in the clubs. It was popular if it was played in many dance floor based buildings and DJs became a needed element in promotion and success.