THE TIESTO MIX

DJ Tiesto is known to constantly experiment with sound,mixing technique with an element of surprise

TILL the 90s,the only rockstars in the music industry were those that strummed the guitar,beat the drums or sang sweet nothings on the microphone. Rock and pop were crowd favourites and electronica was the step-brother that stayed underground with the modern day hippies. After all,what did a DJ really do,apart from spinning records on a turntable? It was this perception that Tijs Michiel Verwest,popularly known as Tiesto,changed,giving DJs and electronica dance music (EDM) a superstar status. Now,his Indian fans are in for the night of their lives as the 44-year-old embarks on his debut tour of the country,starting March 29.

What started off as an experiment as a teenager spinning music at house parties in Holland became a full-blown career with the release of his first solo album In my memory in 2001. Since then,his music has changed course several times jumping from trance in early 2000 to electro-based grooves in his latest albums. Music created with computers is always evolving. If I had to term In my memory,I would say it was primarily trance while Kaleidoscope (2009) is a blend of trance,house and electro, says Tiesto. What sets him apart from other prominent EDM artistes is his constant urge to experiment with sound. While his signature mixing technique can be heard in each track,his genius lies in the surprise element that they all store cleverly mixing genres,adding sudden guitar riffs and trance-y vocals. Tiesto has worked with well-known musicians such as Bono from Irish band U2,Armin van Buuren,Nelly Furtado and Calvin Harris,among others.

With five studio albums and a Grammy nomination to his credit,Tiestos music defines EDM. His live shows draw crowds in six figures and are no less than parties with smoke machines,streamer cannons and crazy lights. But it wasnt EDM that first attracted him. Ive grown up looking up to Van Halen,Def Leppard and Iron Maiden. I started DJing for local house parties during my teens, he says,in an email interview.

Stamped as the King of EDM,Tiesto is also credited for changing the way dance or club music is experienced. Instead of limiting it to clubs and discos,he went to stadiums that earlier only hosted rock and pop bands,invited thousands to his gigs and gave dance music a stadium status. His 2011 gig in a California stadium with 26,000 seats made news across the globe,for not a single seat was unoccupied. Not to forget,Tiesto was the first DJ to play at the Olympics opening ceremony in Athens in 2004,hence giving EDM the boost it needed. About the reach of dance music,he says,EDM is global and each country has its own flavour,India included. Its amazing to see the recognition it has received as a genre. Its a global form of music and it will continue to get bigger with time.

This is also the perfect time for Tiestos debut India tour as EDM has been the reigning genre for a few years now,especially with successful gigs by international EDM artistes such as David Guetta,Armin van Buuren and Swedish House Mafia in the past. He credits Sunburn Festival for introducing a range of EDM artistes to music revellers in the country. Probe him about possible collaborations with Indian artistes and he says,You never know,perhaps Ill find one when Im in India on this tour. I am familiar with some Indian artistes but I am looking forward to learning a lot more about them.

Tiesto will perform in Mumbai on March 29,Bangalore on March 30 and at Unitech Golf Course in Noida on March 31. Tickets available at http://www.sunburn.in,priced between Rs 2,950 and Rs 6,290

Tiesto has a clothing line with mega brand Guess that includes leather jackets,shirts and jeans with LED screen prints on them.

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Forbes magazine ranked him the richest DJ in the world in 2012 in their Electronic Cash Kings list. According to the magazine,he earned a whopping $22 million that year.

According to British monthly DJ Mag,Tiesto was world number 1 DJ from 2002 to 2004 and was ranked at number 2 in 2012.

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