D. J. Fontana

Dominic Joseph Fontana (born March 15, 1931, Shreveport, Louisiana, United States) is an American musician best known as the drummer for Elvis Presley for 14 years. He played on over 460 RCA cuts with Elvis.

Biography

Nicknamed "D. J.", Fontana was employed by the Louisiana Hayride to be an in-house drummer on its Saturday night radio broadcast. In October 1954 he was hired to play drums for Presley, and that marked the beginning of a fifteen-year relationship. He performed on the NBC television special known as the '68 Comeback Special.

Fontana joined a band (originally assembled by Sam Phillips without a drummer) consisting of Scotty Moore (lead guitar), Bill Black (bass) and Elvis Presley (rhythm guitar), calling themselves "The Blue Moon Boys". This became the band that would perform and record the vast majority of the Elvis Presley hits of the 1950s (some also including piano and backing vocals from the Jordanaires) including "Heartbreak Hotel", "Hound Dog", "Don't Be Cruel", and "Jailhouse Rock". The band also toured extensively and performed on several television appearances including The Ed Sullivan Show through 1956 and 1957.

Julian Fontana

Julian (or Jules) Fontana (31 July 1810 – 23 December 1869) was a Polish pianist, composer, lawyer, author, translator, and entrepreneur, best remembered as a close friend and musical executor of Frédéric Chopin.

Life

Born in Warsaw to a family of Italian origin, Fontana studied law at the University of Warsaw and music under Józef Elsner at the conservatory, where he met Chopin. Fontana left Warsaw in 1831, after the November Uprising and settled in Hamburg, before becoming a pianist and teacher in Paris in 1832.

In 1835 in London he participated in a concert with music played by 6 pianists, the others including Ignaz Moscheles, Johann Baptist Cramer and Charles-Valentin Alkan.

In 1840, Chopin dedicated his 2 Polonaises, Op. 40, to Fontana. These included the "Military Polonaise" in A major.

He took up a wandering life that included:

Disc jockey

A disc jockey (abbreviated DJ, D.J. or deejay) is a person who plays recorded music for an audience, either a radio audience if the mix is broadcast or the audience in a venue such as a bar or nightclub. In venues such as a club event or rave, this is an audience of dancers. Originally, "disc" (uncommonly spelled "disque" in French or commonly "disk" in American English) referred to phonograph records, not the later compact discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter which medium is used (e.g. vinyl, CDs, MP3 players).

The title "DJ" is also commonly used by DJs in front of their real names or adopted pseudonyms as a title to denote their profession and the music they play.

Types

There are several types of disc jockey. Radio DJs or radio personalities introduce and play music that is broadcast on AM, FM, digital or internet radio stations. Club DJs select and play music in bars, nightclubs or discothèques, or at parties or raves, or even in stadiums. Mobile DJs travel with portable sound systems and play recorded music at a variety of events. Some mobile DJs also serve as the master of ceremonies (MC) directing the attention of attendees, and maintaining a room-wide focus on what is included in the event's agenda. There are also many competitions that specialise in mixing, scratching or other kinds of techniques.

Deja

Deja may refer to the following:

See also

Aurra

Aurra was an American 1980s soul group, which, at the time of its biggest success, was composed of Curt Jones and Starleana Young.

Career

Aurra started off in 1979 as an offshoot of the funk band Slave, Aurra was created by Steve "The Fearless Leader" Washington which featured Curt Jones, Starleana Young, Charles Carter, and Buddy Hankerson on the first LP. Aurra initially signed with Dream Records and then Salsoul Records when Steve Washington and Thomas Lockett became members of Aurra with the addition of Phil Field. During the early 1980s, the group found success with hits such as "Are You Single" at number 16 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, "Checkin' You Out" and "Make Up Your Mind", which was its biggest US hit under this moniker- reaching number six on the R&B chart and number 71 on the pop chart. Legal issues with Steve Washington over the name Aurra made the duo change its name to Déjà, after which the group had a big hit with "You and Me Tonight", which reached number two R&B and number 54 pop in the US. A deal with Virgin affiliate 10 Records in the UK resulted in the song reaching number 12 on the UK Singles Chart, their best showing on that chart.