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A Q-Dance DJ contest in 2006 opened up many doors for Marcel Sprenger aka Marcel-S. “My hands were shaking which made it hard to align the next track. Man, that really sucked!”
“I’m actually quite a late bloomer. My first gig in front of an audience was in 2005 at my cousin’s birthday party. The party location was a warehouse. I was 31 at that moment, but age doesn’t matter if you want to reach your goal.”
The famous bedroom
“My cousin knew that I played sometimes, if only at home in the famous bedroom. I had bought a couple of Technics turntables in 2001. Also before and at that time, every weekend I was present at the well=known after parties in Club Lexion in Zaandam. This was before a huge fire burnt down the place. Those were the days! This is where the DJ virus in me was awakened.”
Stefanowitz
“You could often find me in the booth with the heroes of those days: DJ José, Mark van Dale, G-Spot, Calvin, André, Erick E and DJ Stefanowitz aka Stepen J. Kroos. After a while, Stephen and I made a deal: if I would buy turntables and a mixer, he would give me my first ten vinyls. And he kept his promise.”
Focused
“Back to 2005, my cousin’s birthday party. She had invited around 70 people and I was pretty nervous. It was a good nervous, the one you’re supposed to have in my opinion. It keeps you focused. Another DJ with some name and fame would play later that night, but I was the opener.”
Build up
“I played delicious groovy dance and house, because well, you have to build up your set. Everyone immediately went wild. After me the other more renowned DJ started playing. His set was alright, but still a lot of people came up to me asking if I could continue playing some more. That’s when I knew: I can do this!”
Q-Dance
“In 2006 I enrolled in a Q-Dance DJ contest with the name the Q-Factor. In those days, my style mainly focused on trance. In the finals I ended up third. During the contest I learned some really good stuff from the jury members, big boys like Bas (Bas & Ram), Jochen Miller and someone from Q-Dance. They gave some good pointers.”
Mistakes
“Obviously I made some mistakes during the contest and the records sometimes weren’t in sync, but I immediately corrected my missers. My hands were shaking which made it hard to align the next track. Man, that really sucked!”
Smile
“I still passed to the next round. They told me that I could learn from my mistakes. Also: ‘You heard what went wrong and dealt with it’, the jurors said. ‘Never get nervous when something goes wrong, continue to smile and solve the issue’. That was very helpful.”
FFWD Parade
“That third spot opened doors for me. That’s when the ball started rolling. Since then, I’ve played in many clubs and at many parties, all around The Netherlands. In played in Zaanstad for example in club Lexion, Latido and de Hemkade, but also in Marcanti Plaza in Amsterdam. In 2006 I performed at the FFWD Parade in Rotterdam. That was fantastic!”
Elements of House
“Since 2010 I’m a resident DJ for the event organization Creations. Also, every other week on Saturday night I host a radio show on Radio Aalsmeer, Elements of House. You can catch me there from 19 till 21 hrs. In 2014 I switched sounds. Trance is passé and I’ve embraced techhouse and house. That’s what I love to play these days.”
‘Order’
“I never prepare a set. In that sense: beforehand I listen and decide which tracks I’m taking to a gig, but I never know which ones I will actually play. It always depends on the atmosphere. Sure, I can play what I like, but if the people walk away from the dance floor, you will have to change your tune. A previously planned ‘order’ won’t help you then. I try to be at the event at least an hour before I have to play. When I hear tracks then that I also brought along, I’m not going to play them another time, of course. I personally hate it when I hear the same track three or four times a night.”
“I don’t have any heroes or examples. There are nights when the big names play nice and on other nights they don’t. When a DJ creates a great set, I listen. Whether it’s techhouse or trance is of no interest. Good is good. Is the next set of the same DJ not so much my taste, than I’m just as easily immediately done with it.”
This interview was originally published on Wednesday October 14th 2015 on DJMag.nl.
More Marcel-S?
In the year 2004, Marcel Sprenger a.k.a. Marcel-S regularly headed to the western part of the Netherlands to satiate his sense of house music in well-known clubs, particularly Marcanti in Amsterdam and Lexion in Westzaan. There, he connected with one of the resident DJs of that time, DJ Stephen J Kroos. With Stephen, he struck a deal of a lifetime. If he purchased his turntables and mixer, Stephen would provide him with his first 10 records… and the deal was sealed. He bought more records, started creating mixes in his bedroom, and soon received a request to DJ at a birthday party. With success, DJ Marcel-S was born!
Receiving many compliments, he felt inspired to take a more serious approach. After browsing the internet, he stumbled upon a DJ contest registration by the organization Q-Dance called Q-Factor. He entered, made it to the finals, and finished in 3rd place. This impressive achievement caught the attention of Crazyland’s organizers, leading him to perform at Quest & Friends on October 9, 2004. Marcel-S stood out and gained recognition from major clubs and organizations such as Decisions, Another Stage, The FFWD, Club Latido, Las Vegas, The Lexion, Happy Dayzz, and more. He became a resident DJ at SM-fetish parties on the Netherlands’ largest erotic boat: The Showboat. Nowadays, Marcel-S is giving a significant boost to his solo career. His powerful trance sets have already rocked numerous venues.