DJ Industry Continuing Education & Community Building: always priorities at Sound In Motion!

By Adrian Cavlan

As proud members of the American Disc Jockey Association, we were lucky enough to be invited to the Mobile Beat Pioneer DJ Tour stop here in San Jose to take part in some education and fun! I went and was joined by my partner Raffi Nalvarian, our San Francisco manager Kevin O'Scanlon, one of our DJ and A/V techs Henry Chen and last but certainly not least Raffi's son, our up-and-coming lighting guru Henry Julian.It was a great night for the Bay Area DJ scene as lots of the big players in the area were there. Besides getting caught up on our businesses and personal lives, we all got to share some nice refreshments (provided by our hosts at Dave & Buster's), play with some of the newest gear being offered by Pioneer, American DJ, Hercules and others, and best of all, hear two GREAT seminars!

The first was from Philadelphia's Jason Weldon, who got a less-than-warm reception from the partisan crowd when he baited us over his Phillies getting smoked in last year's playoffs but that they have some kind of "revenge" thing planned... whatever. World Champs... ahhem... Cody Ross... cough... ; ) He more than made up for that though by delivering an outstanding presentation on lighting and all of the innovative ways to use it to make weddings and other special events look spectacular! Not only that but he shared a lot about how to effectively manage a lighting department, which we all could use pointers on as we continue to grow in this service area.

Next up was our friend from Connecticut, Mr. John Rozz. John is a legend in our industry: two-time winner of the national DJ Of The Year competition, a member of the DJ Hall Of Fame, John has been at the top of his craft for FIFTY YEARS in the entertainment business and his vast experience, enthusiasm and infectious energy washed like a wave over the crowd as he showed that even at his age, you can be vibrant, energetic and up-to-the-minute on your music... and YOUNG at heart, which is where it counts : ) He immediately won everyone over when he burst on to the stage wearing full San Francisco Giants regalia and then proceeded to tell us all about how to entertain Tots (2-5), Kids (6-9), Tweens (10-15) & Teens (16-20) in creative and innovative ways. All in all a presentation filled with nuggets that we will be using here at Sound In Motion as we continue to expand our services and target markets.

At the end of the night, Ryan Burger and his Mobile Beat crew led the raffle where lots of great swag was given away along with a few big prizes. And you know who won the BIGGEST prize of the night? Our very own Henry Chen!! A brand-new Hercules MIDI DJ controller with software valued at $500!!

Congrats Henry, and one heck of a great way to end a great night of education and community building here at Sound In Motion!!

Adrian Cavlan