The resource is based on the following previous work:
'Spin Science' a case study: Are Turntablists the new Musical Pioneers?' by Laurent Fintoni (2002/2003) and the further research/writing of Yeshen Venema and Laurent Fintoni (2002-?).

This resource is intended to be an on-going project, with the aim of becoming a definitive online turntable music resource. The aim is to provide a place where fans, DJs, tablists, professionals and newcomers alike can come and learn about the artform, its history, its present and its future, its meaning and its essence. Though centering on the scratch DJ/turntablist this resource is also there as a testament to the musical and social importance of DJ culture in all its forms and shapes.
Turntablism as an artform, a music and a culture is still at its early beginnings and its future lies in its practioners, fans and people who have grown up with the music and the beliefs attached to it. Thus with this resource we aim to give back to the artform what it has given us and so many others: a love of music and an open mind to what music is and can become. This is dedicated to the people who are responsible for making the artform what it is and all the people who live it, breathe it and spend their lives dedicated to it in any shape or form...

DJs are everywhere today, but they usually speak with their hands. The turntable is a musical instrument that can be used in many different musical contexts. Sounds can be manipulated, created, transformed and innovated using what was always looked at as a home appliance. The future of turntable music is here, and we at Spin Science want to make its history available and better understood to all those who wish to know more. How can you know where you are going if you do not know where you came from? Call it scratching, turntablism, DJing, it all comes down to the music...

Here is a brief outline of the original subject matter which was used for the case study and upon which this resource is based and how it has evolved since the resource was started:

The turntable's evolution from home appliance to musical instrument has created a whole new culture and musical movement. This movement and culture is often referred to as turntablism, and its practitioners as turntablists, a term which was first coined by DJ Babu in 1995 to differentiate himself from the rest of the DJs which do not follow a similar route.

"One who has the ability to improvise on a phonograph turntable.
One who uses the turntable in the spirit of a musical instrument."
(DJ Babu 1995).

Another definition from Battlesounds.com
"A musician, a hip-hop disc jockey who in a live/spontaneous situation can manipulate or restructure an existing phonograph recording (in combination with an audio mixer) to produce or express a new composition that is unrecognisable from its original ingredients."

Turntablist/ism was/is essentially another name for a certain type of Hip-Hop DJ. This term became a reference point for most DJs and journalists alike, and was the name which i used to base my case study upon.

' If turntablists are the new musical pioneers then how did we get there and what justifies this new musical and social status?' was the central question upon which i based my original studies.

As work on this resource and my own personal work and research has led me to find, many people today, including most turntablists and people in the scene, are starting to turn away from the term as it as become more of a burden and is forcing them and their work to be cornered, before even being given the chance to be judged on its own or alongside other music(s). Essentially what a turntablist does is musical by nature and form and thus their work should be considered so. As Kid Koala said: "You don't call music played with the guitar 'guitarism' or music played on the sax 'saxophonism'".
Now it is important to understand the following to see why the term isn't practical when talking about or even trying to discuss the relevance of certain aspects of turntable music:
- Turntablism is just another aspect of DJ culture, integral to the culture and at the same time on its own as unlike any other aspect of DJ culture it involves certain aspects that make it able to stand on its own as a valid form of music.
- A turntablist can filter through any music and make it different, manipulating records and effecting them in ways that were before thought impossible. Styles are infinite and what a DJ can do with a turntable is also infinite. Definitions become a burden and hinder any possible evolution.
- After nearly 5 years in the media spotlight and countless works of art and music it's now evident that turntablism is music and that the turntable is an instrument, and it is important therefore to stop trying to prove the point and instead focus on the growth of the artform and the music and its future by letting it stand on its own against accepted musical genres.

Because I have chosen with this resource to focus on the music and musical aspects of turntablism and turntablists relying on a term when exploring the full meaning of the work these people do is too problematic.
As you will see in the work we have done, i first started with the term as the basis for a lot of the work before realising that it became too restrictive when talking to people and trying to look at their work and its meanings. Therefore we do use the term within the context of this resource and the work we are putting together but it is important to remember that it is only a definition and should not be seen or thought of as the be all and end all of what a DJ can do musically. Turntablism as a musical genre is still in its infancy and it is only fair to look at it as any other musical genre and try and create an understandable and relevant context in which to look at it, learn from it, study it and evolve it.

Please sit back and enjoy the resource and what it offers, any feedback or comments should be directed to laurent