A Sit Down With DJ Faruk Sabanci

Turkish dance music authority Faruk Sabanci is back with a mammoth dance floor creation, ‘Home’ Ft. Sabrina Signs – out now via Sony Music Turkey. Exhibiting Faruk’s immense musical skills and melodic feel, ‘Home’ is a festival-ready cut that is built up around Sabrina Signs soaring vocals. Combining strings, stabbing synths and frenetic snares, ‘Home’ hits the senses hard, while Signs’ touching vocals juxtapose the heavy instrumental arrangement. Exploring immersive drops and an explosive finale, ‘Home’ is destined to be heard at the world’s most in-demand festivals, played by some of the biggest names in the industry over the next few months.

 

“My production and DJ style can be best described as big room, diverse and euphoric.”

 

You started your career as DJ/Producer at a very young age. How did you got involved with Electronic Dance Music, DJing and Producing?

My passion for DJ’ing started long before I got into producing. Dance music was not very accessible in Turkey at the time when Tiesto’s concert DVD’s came out and seeing how a DJ can control a large crowd musically was very inspiring so I thought I’d have a go. I never could’ve imagined I would be sharing stage with him a couple of years later.

Who are some of the up and coming producers we should be looking out for coming out of Turkey?

You should definitely keep an eye on Nurettin Colak, an extremely talented multi-genre producer, as well as upcoming Trance producer Arman Aydin and Sezer Uysal who has been making waves in Deep House for a while already.

Beside your work as a DJ/Producer you’re also a label owner. Why did you start this label?

Indeed, I run the Arisa Audio label group together with my business partner Joseph Arias. We established this label in order to create an outlet for what we consider quality music as well as a platform for talented new artists. What started out as more of a hobby has turned into one of the stable brands in the industry, we can’t thank our supporters enough!

What artists have influenced you the most in regards to your productions?
In the early days when I had just started out I was heavily inspired by Trance music artists such as Ferry Corsten, Armin van Buuren, Above & Beyond and Paul van Dyk. Nowadays I could be inspired by any artist; from anything to a new Major Lazer record to non-dance artists like Drake or Lorde, sky is the limit!

Can you mention your biggest personal life achievements in 2017 that make you extremely proud

This changed my life forever… losing 95KG’s (yes, 95) hence becoming a completely different person

A lot of Dj/Producers have a recognizable sound. How would you describe the typical Sabanci sound?

I have a slightly different approach on having an own sound, I prefer having a recognisable theme and structure in my music while the sound itself keeps evolving track by track, ranging from deeper tracks at 128BPM to 140BPM up-tempo Trancers. For me it’s all about being versatile and keeping it fresh while maintaining the core elements of my music instead of sticking to the same sound after a successful record.

Best Dj equipment (software or hardware):
Software: Ableton Live, Hardware: Pioneer Products

What are the biggest changes in the record industry you have noticed since you became a label boss?

Well I’m not a veteran in the label business yet so I won’t be telling you about how sad it is that vinyl is no longer there or anything like that. What I did witness however, is the takeover of Streaming. Streaming is the future and will grow beyond the point of making digital sales irrelevant, especially for new artists.

Best music composition software:
Each to his own, but for me it has to be Logic Pro X.
What has been your greatest accomplishment so far in your career?
I’d rather not pick and choose, I’m just blessed to have accomplished some of my childhood dreams but we’re just getting started with a long way to go!

Questions? Comments? We want to know:@djfollower