A Brief History of Electronic Dance Music
Contents
A Brief History of Electronic Dance Music and its influence on popular culture.
Origins
Electronic dance music, also known as EDM, is a genre of music that emerged in the early 1990s. It is characterized by a heavy use of synthesizers, drum machines, and Samplers. EDM is often produced for use in live performances, nightclubs, and festivals. The genre has seen a resurgence in popularity in recent years.
Early electronic music
Early electronic music was created using a variety of instruments, including the theremin, synthesizer, vocoder and turntable. Musicians would often experiment with manipulating sounds to create new and innovative music. This type of music was often used in film and television, as well as in experimental theater productions.
During the 1970s, electronic dance music began to gain popularity in nightclubs. DJs would often play extended versions of songs, which they had created using multiple turntables. This allowed them to create seamless transitions between songs, which kept dancers on the dance floor for longer periods of time.
As electronic dance music became more popular, artists began to experiment with different types of equipment and sound effects. This led to the development of different subgenres, including techno, house and trance. Each subgenre has its own unique sound and style.
Today, electronic dance music is enjoyed by people all over the world. It has become one of the most popular genres of music, with festivals and clubs dedicated to its celebration.
The birth of disco
Disco was a music genre that rose to popularity in the late 1970s. It was a type of dance music that was played in nightclubs and featured a strong beat that people could dance to. disco was often associated with a certain type of fashion, which included flashy clothes and big hair. The music and the fashion were both very over-the-top, and this helped to make disco a very popular style.
However, disco did have its critics. Some people felt that the music was too repetitive and that it lacked creativity. Others simply did not like the style of the music or the fashion. In the early 1980s, disco began to decline in popularity, and by the middle of the decade, it was considered to be dead.
Rise of EDM
Electronic dance music has its origins in the underground rave culture of the 1980s and 1990s. Clubgoers would gather in clandestine locations to dance all night to the thumping sounds of early house and techno music. These illegal parties were often shut down by the police, but the music and the culture continued to grow and evolve. In the early 2000s, electronic dance music began to enter the mainstream.
The first EDM festivals
The first real EDM festival is widely considered to be the Berlin Love Parade, which started in 1989. This annual event was a celebration of peace, love, and music, and it quickly gained popularity. By the mid-1990s, the Love Parade was attracting over a million people each year.
Other early EDM festivals include Mayday in Germany (started in 1991), Awakenings in the Netherlands (started in 1997), and Ultra Music Festival in Miami (started in 1999). These events were all instrumental in helping to spread the popularity of EDM around the world.
Today, there are EDM festivals taking place all over the globe, with some of the biggest and most popular ones being Tomorrowland in Belgium, Creamfields in England, and EDC Las Vegas in the United States.
The second wave of EDM
The second wave of EDM began in the early 1990s and was defined by the emergence of rave culture in the United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. This new wave of electronic dance music was strongly influenced by acid house and techno. The most popular subgenres that emerged during this time were hard trance, jungle, happy hardcore, and gabber.
The present day
In the present day, electronic dance music is one of the most popular genres in the world. It has its roots in the 1970s, when electronic music artists started experimenting with new sounds and technologies. Today, electronic dance music is a multi-billion dollar industry, with festivals and clubs all over the world.
The mainstreaming of EDM
In the early 2010s, electronic dance music achieved widespread mainstream success in the United States. This was due in part to the commercialization of the genre by major record labels and festivals such as The Electric Daisy Carnival. As a result, electronic dance music became more accessible to a wider range of people.
Major artists such as Skrillex and Deadmau5 helped to bring electronic dance music into the mainstream with their unique sounds and styles. These artists found success not only in the United States, but also in other countries around the world. In 2012, Skrillex won three Grammy Awards for his work in the electronic dance music genre, further solidifying its place in the mainstream.
Since then, many other artists have found success with electronic dance music, and the genre continues to grow in popularity. Today, electronic dance music is one of the most popular genres of music in the world, and it shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
The future of EDM
The future of EDM is shrouded in mystery. Where will the music go next? Will it continue to evolve and change, or will it stay the same? Only time will tell.
There are many different subgenres of EDM, and each one has its own unique sound and style. It’s hard to predict where the music will go next, but one thing is for sure: the future of EDM is bright.
