July 30, 2010
Alex Morrissey has scored an Internet first with his Virtual Mixer. This innovative simulated turntable lets users choose from a catalogue of 5,000 songs to custom mix their favourite dancehall/reggae tunes. Morrissey, Manager, Design and Online Media at Panmedia, created the interactive feature in Flash and PHP. The Virtual Mixer is availabe on Jamaicansmusic.com, a popular portal Morrissey launched in 2008 that has an exhaustive online database of Jamaican music.
Virtual Mixer features:.
- 400 + pre mixed CDs to download and play
- A Pull Up feature to add sound effects and restart a track
- Song or albums access through iTunes
- Double click feature to queue tracks
- 2 Decks for mixing
The software's key benefit is that DJs can now mix music online for their sessions without having to invest in expensive equipment or rent a studio. Virtual Mixer offers the added benefit of letting users listen to all the music for free, and artistes get paid from iTunes for any music sold.
Morrissey already has a version 2 planned for a December launch that will offer additional features such as record to desktop, cue and scratch. "The idea is to offer functionality that's interactive and can engage visitors to the portal," says Morrissey.
Jamaicansmusic.com itself was an innovation among the many portals dedicated to the island's music. It gives visitors a road map to the roots of contemporary Jamaican hits, from Mento to Rock-Steady to Dancehall. There are in-depth artiste profiles with links to their social media pages, more than 3,000 videos, a Jamaican culture section, and a much anticipated and unprecedented Online Rhythm Archive.
Dedicated dancehall enthusiasts use the site to search, research and listen to its 300 rhythms. The powerful search feature makes it easy for visitors to find whole track collections by rhythm.
The portal hosts more than 20 streaming radio stations for online listeners, and has new dancehall and new reggae of the month sections.