JENN GETZ IS USING FREQUENCY TO CHANGE THE WAY WE THINK ABOUT DANCE MUSIC

YOU’VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT SOUND, FREQUENCY AND THE NERVOUS SYSTEM IN RELATION TO DANCE MUSIC. WHERE DID THAT INTEREST COME FROM?

DJs spend their entire lives working with sound. Basslines, sound systems, frequencies, the way energy moves in a room, but we rarely talk about what sound is actually doing to the body. Last summer I completed advanced training in sound healing and vibrational therapy because I wanted to understand sound on a deeper level.

HOUSE MUSIC HAS ALWAYS BEEN DESCRIBED AS HEALING. WHY DO YOU THINK PEOPLE FEEL THAT WAY ABOUT IT?

People instinctively know it feels good but most people don’t really know why. When you start understanding frequency and how the nervous system responds to rhythm and vibration you realise there are real reasons certain music feels so good and it can regulate the body and shift emotional states. Music makes you dance, dancing is healing too.

SOME PEOPLE MIGHT SEE CLUB MUSIC AND SOUND HEALING AS COMPLETELY DIFFERENT WORLDS. DO YOU SEE THEM AS CONNECTED?

They are very connected. Clubs are built on frequency. Bass literally moves through your body. Rhythm changes breathing and heart rate. When a room locks into a groove there is a collective shift in energy across the dancefloor.

Sound healing is really just looking at the same thing from another angle in a different environment. DJs already understand the language of frequency even if they aren’t aware of it because we just have not really talked about it in those terms.

HAS THIS KNOWLEDGE CHANGED THE WAY YOU PRODUCE MUSIC?

Definitely. I now think about sound not just as something people hear but something people physically experience. Things like tone, frequency range, rhythm and space inside a track can all influence how the body reacts. I am interested in making music that works on two levels. Music that makes people dance but also subconsciously regulates the nervous system.

SO YOU ARE ESSENTIALLY PRODUCING MUSIC THAT CAN INFLUENCE HOW PEOPLE FEEL PHYSICALLY?

Exactly. Music has that power - scientifically.

When thousands of people are dancing to a groove their breathing synchronises, their bodies move rhythmically and their nervous systems shift into a different state. Music can genuinely regulate people on a subconscious level and that is fascinating to me as a producer.

YOU’VE ALSO WORKED WITH A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY THROUGH SOUND SESSIONS. HOW HAVE DJS RESPONDED?

I actually just gave Hannah Wants her first ever sound bath, she loved it! It’s super interesting, at first a lot of people think it’s just spiritual but it's allllll science baby.

HAS THAT SHIFT INFLUENCED THE WAY YOU APPROACH YOUR LIVE SETS?

Definitely. When you are playing solo you trust your instincts more and respond to the energy of the room in a more direct way. It has given me the freedom to experiment more and let the set evolve naturally with the crowd.

HOW WOULD YOU SUM UP YOUR PERSPECTIVE ON MUSIC AND SOUND?

DJs understand music, what interested me was understanding the sound behind it. Music is what we hear, but sound is vibration and frequency, and the body responds to that. I just became interested in understanding that side of it and using it more intentionally.

WHAT SHOWS ARE YOU MOST EXCITED ABOUT THIS YEAR?

Elrow next month is a good place to start!! It’s my 3rd Elrow now and I love playing them!

WHAT DOES THIS YEAR LOOK LIKE FOR YOU MUSCIALLY?

It’s already a really exciting year, I have new management, new music coming out on some dream labels, iv spent so much time in the studio recently, it’s been amazing. This solo chapter has given me a lot of creative energy so there is quite a lot happening. Some very club focused tracks but also some music where I am experimenting more. It is all still house music at the core but I am exploring sound in slightly deeper ways as well.

YOU’VE ENTERED A NEW SOLO CHAPTER IN YOUR CAREER RECENTLY. HOW HAS THAT TRANSITION BEEN?

It has been really exciting creatively. After working in a duo for a long time it felt like the right moment to explore our own direction fully, both DJs and producers. This new chapter has given me the freedom to follow ideas that feel very personal to me musically.