Trance

Trance denotes any state of awareness or consciousness other than normal waking consciousness. Trance states may occur involuntarily and unbidden.

The term trance may be associated with hypnosis, meditation, magic, flow, and prayer. It may also be related to the earlier generic term, altered states of consciousness, which is no longer used in "consciousness studies" discourse.

Etymology

Trance in its modern meaning comes from an earlier meaning of "a dazed, half-conscious or insensible condition or state of fear", via the Old French transe "fear of evil", from the Latin transīre "to cross", "pass over". This definition is now obsolete.

Working models

Wier, in his 1995 book, Trance: from magic to technology, defines a simple trance (p. 58) as a state of mind being caused by cognitive loops where a cognitive object (thoughts, images, sounds, intentional actions) repeats long enough to result in various sets of disabled cognitive functions. Wier represents all trances (which include sleep and watching television) as taking place on a dissociated trance plane where at least some cognitive functions such as volition are disabled; as is seen in what is typically termed a 'hypnotic trance'. With this definition, meditation, hypnosis, addictions and charisma are seen as being trance states. In Wier's 2007 book, The Way of Trance, he elaborates on these forms, adds ecstasy as an additional form and discusses the ethical implications of his model, including magic and government use which he terms "trance abuse".

Uplifting trance

Uplifting trance (often synonymous with epic trance, anthem trance, emotional trance, or euphoric trance) is a large subgenre of trance music. The name, which emerged in the wake of progressive trance in 1996, is derived from the feeling which listeners claim to get (often described as a "rush"). The genre, which originated in Germany, is massively popular in the trance scene, and is one of the dominant forms of dance music worldwide. Historically it is related to the emergence of psychedelic trance and the two styles influenced each other. Classical music strongly influenced the development of uplifting trance both in the 1990s and at present, with film music also considered influential.

Characteristics

In general, uplifting trance is a style much lighter in tone than other trance genres (such as Goa). Instead of the darker tone of Goa, uplifting trance uses similar chord progressions as progressive trance, but tracks' chord progressions usually rest on a major chord, and the balance between major and minor chords in a progression will determine how "happy" or "sad" the progression sounds. The genre features longer major chord progressions in all elements (lead synth, bass, and treble). It also contains extended breakdowns, and relegation of arpeggiation (the melodic part of the song, usually consisting of "Saw Synths/Square Lead" type sounds) to the background while bringing wash effects to the fore (the harmonic element of the music, or "background fill", usually consisting of synth choir/voice/string chord progressions). There is a close relation between uplifting trance and uplifting house. As a rule of thumb, trance beats in the range of 136–142 BPM. Uplifting trance very commonly employs side-chain compression, a modern production technique. It is commonly referred to as "ducking the kick", where the background strings/synths have their volume automated, creating a pulsing effect on the off-beat.

Andrew Rayel

Andrei Rață (born 21 July 1992, Chișinău), better known by his stage name Andrew Rayel., is a Moldovan producer and DJ.

Career

Rayel's electronic music career started in 2009 at age 17, but he had started to produce music and develop his style four years previously. He is signed under the Armada Music label, co-founded by Armin van Buuren. His breakthrough followed the voting of his single “Aether” as “Tune of the Week” on Van Buuren's radio programme, A State of Trance. He performed at various "A State of Trance" events.

Rayel's tracks are frequently played by influential DJs and producers around the world, including Armin van Buuren, Tiësto, Markus Schulz, Dash Berlin, Bobina and Roger Shah. In 2012, Rayel was ranked number 77 in DJ Mag's Top 100 DJs; he was ranked #28 in 2013, winning the title of "highest climber" in the ranking. Rayel announced in 2013 that a new artist album was to be released in 2014.

In August 2013, Rayel announced his first official compilation, titled Mystery of Aether, including tracks from van Buuren, Ørjan Nilsen, Airbase and W&W, among others. It included new songs and remixes performed by Rayel. The album was released on 6 September 2013. In September 2013, he made an entry for the song he worked for the ASOT 650 Anthem contest, however did not win the contest.

Vocal trance

Vocal trance is a subgenre of trance music that focuses on vocals and melodies. The subgenre came into existence in the early 1990s, when trance was still developing. Although many early trance records used vocal samples mixed in with the beats, the earliest examples of the style appeared in 1992–93.

Characteristics

A typical track consists of three elements, though later tracks labeled vocal trance may not include all of them. A track begins with an intro of progressive beats. The melodic part starts incrementally, combining vocals, usually female, a melodic sound (for the most part high pitched and fast), and a bass pattern. Towards the end of the track, the melody fades out and the intro rhythm returns, usually with some minor changes.

Vocal trance producers frequently make use of session musicians, particularly females, for vocals on their tracks. Session vocalists have been featured on tracks that span different genres and subgenres, while some vocalists have chosen to work only within the electronic club and dance music genres.

Trance music

Trance is a genre of electronic music that developed during the 1990s in Germany. It is characterized by a tempo lying between 125 and 150 beats per minute (BPM), repeating melodic phrases, and a musical form that distinctly builds tension and elements throughout a track often culminating in 1 to 2 "peaks" or "drops." Although trance is a genre of its own, it liberally incorporates influences from other electronic music styles such as techno,house,pop,chill-outclassical music,tech house, ambient, and film music.

A trance refers to a state of hypnotism and heightened consciousness. This is portrayed in trance music by the mixing of layers with distinctly foreshadowed build-up and release. A characteristic of virtually all trance music is a mid-song climax followed by a soft breakdown disposing of beats and percussion entirely, and leaving the melody and/or atmospherics to stand alone for an extended period before gradually building up again. As a result, trance tracks are often lengthy to allow for this progression and have sufficiently sparse opening and closing sections to facilitate mixing by DJs.