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Routine: Stem Stories with José Cabello

By Dean Zulueta on May 15, 2017

It has been two years since the Stems were introduced to Traktor. Since then, we’ve seen the format slowly grow with more and more producers releasing Stem tracks as well as DJs making their own. These Stems serve as powerful tools to build dynamic DJ sets and today José Cabello is back with his latest Tecnica Futura video, Stems Stories.

José’s video does a great job at demonstrating the versatility of Stem tracks. He also takes the viewer through each track, explaining how all the sounds are put together to build his routine. With a Traktor Kontrol D2 and a trusty Midi Fighter Twister, José can easily manipulate the sounds of each track.

The Breakdown

Deck A contains four tracks: synth bass, synth noise, synth pad 1, and synth pad 2. The synth bass and noise provide a harmony for the routine when played together. The pads serve as complimentary sounds that can be played at any time. Through the use of cue points, José is able to access 8 different notes and chords to play several harmonic combinations.

Deck D contains two arpeggio loops, with one being duplicated, and a noise loop. Slots 1 and 3 contain the same arpeggio loop with one playing at a different speed to create a more vibrant rhythm. The second arpeggio loop in Slot 2 is played in a separate scale and the Slot 4 simply plays noise. Thus, effectively setting a foundation for the routine with Deck A complimenting as needed. And, on top of it all, are some effects of tying everything together.

Once again José shows the DJTT community how live production techniques can be used to build expressive DJ routines. Versus a pair of decks, one can also pick the Kontrol D2 and a Midi Fighter Twister (made with Stems and Remix decks in mind) to blend the worlds of production and live DJing at a gig.

Watch more inspiring DJ routines by clicking the button below to see every routine posted on DJTT:

See all Routines

Cabellodj routineJoséJose CabelloKontrollive performancelive productionMidi Fighter Routinemidi fighter twisterNative InstrumentsNIremix decksroutinestemstraktor kontrol d2Traktor RoutineTraktor Tips
Comments (5)
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  • CUSP

    Cool, how is he changing the pitch with the pads?

    • David Wujcik

      Jumping to different cue points where it’s recorded at different keys, or possibly it’s mapped to change the key of whatever is currently selected.

      • CUSP

        Ah OK… I thought there was a triggerable option to map +1/-1 octave or something like that.

  • Göran Svensson

    Very nice, maby addd a Maschine Jam or some sort of drum pad