Denon presents an interview with DJ Chris Romero, a high school teacher by day, and mobile and club DJ by night, as well as the founder of his company, Cutmaster Music, Albequerque’s premiere mobile DJ service.

For the past 8 years, Chris Romero has been DJing, pursuing his musical passion along side his profession as a high school teacher. He has been a resident in Neds downtown and the Paramount in Santa Fe, and is currently a resident DJ at One Up Elevated Lounge in Abuquerque, playing during “Latin Tinge Thursdays”. It is in his club residency that he gets to hone his skills in DJing, and how to handle the mic, in order to give customers of his Cutmaster Music company the best bang for the buck.

Chris handles most of the DJing and emcee’ing when Cutmaster Music gets the call. His company specializes in weddings, dances, parties, and even performing in clubs, pumping out music from different genres and styles, bringing “club-style” beatmatching, scratching, mixing, and the like. On top of being a high-school teacher and DJ, he still has quality time with his two sons, pursuing their sports and recreation activities on a regular basis.

Tell us about yourself.

What is my profession: by day I am a high school science teacher and by night I’m a mobile DJ and club dj. I own my own mobile DJ company called Cutmaster Music. I am born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I’ve lived here all of my life and am currently raising a family here. Albuquerque is home…

When did you first decide to become a DJ, & what inspired you?

I first became interested in music when I was in elementary school and joined the band. I was always interested in the drums and played multiple instruments (low brass, clarinet, drums, guitar). It wasn’t until college that I became interested in taking music to another level and become a dj. I started out dj’ing at a couple of clubs in town doing both salsa and top-40. After being asked to do weddings, we started getting more referrals which led me to form my mobile dj business about 5 years ago. The number of events have increased every year, with 2010 being our best year yet.

When did you first fall in love with music?

I first fell in love with music when I was a little kid. I don’t remember the exact age, but my father always listened to interesting music from his era, like the Cars, Michael Jackson, the Who, etc. I was exposed to many different types of music at an early age and grew up in the 80’s when pop was huge. The 90’s were my middle school years and when in my opinion, rap and hip-hop were at their best. I could never get enough of Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Ton Loc, and even Vanilla Ice. The beats of hip-hop always stuck in my ear, but I always liked many different genres. Even today I listen and dj in and out of genres from rock to rap to salsa.

Describe your perfect listening experience?

My perfect listening experience is in the live domain. There is nothing like seeing a concert from a band that you admire musically. I can watch the Dave Matthews Band all day long because those musicians are so talented. At the same time, even though some may say they’re not as technical as DMB, I will watch bands like 311 and Pepper and just go into a trance because their sound hits me at the core. I get the same feeling when I’m listening to great Cuban Salsa (Timba) from the likes of Los Van Van or Maikel Blanco.

What was your first connection to Denon?

My first connection to Denon was with one of their first dual deck cd players. I’m not even sure which model it was because it was a friends set we used for mobile dj’ing. My first personal piece of Denon gear was the DN-X900 mixer. The mixer was so good that we bought a few for our company fleet of setups.

Have you ever owned a piece of DENON equipment?

We now own a grip of Denon equipment! We have a few DN-X900 mixers, 2 DN-S3700’s, HC-5000, HC-1000, and the Denon headphones. We’ve gone through a lot of other equipment as well, but usually upgrade every couple of years.

Tell us about your most memorable DENON moment?

My most memorable Denon moment was showing another fellow dj the DN-S3500’s for the first time. He approached me from the front of the booth and immediately asked what kind of decks they were. He used the pio 1000’s and was shocked at the spinning platter of the 3500’s. At that moment, I felt like I was taking part in the DJ revolution that Denon had created. I’ve always been proud to rock the spinning platters at my events and have always given the edge to Denon over the competition after having used both over the years.

Who are your favorite artists today?

My favorite artists today would have to be 311, Incubus with DJ Chris Kilmore, DJ AM (RIP), DJ Kid Capri, Sublime, Pepper, The Expendables, Notorious BIG, Berna Jam, Los Van Van, El Gran Combo, Calle Real. I could go on and on…

Who is doing work today that really inspires you?

The first person that comes to mind is DJ AM. I know he is no longer with us, but over the past 5 years, what he was doing with the decks is what has inspired me to take dj’ing to another level. I’ve always believed that you can play anything and mix genres as long as you know your crowd. This is something that AM was able to master. He brought back classics from the 80’s and mixed them with alternative grunge and rock anthems that everyone has loved for decades. He was not afraid to bridge the gap and play something outside of the mainstream/norm. This has been my inspiration since I first saw and heard AM.

What are your favorite 5-10 songs that we would find on your music play list?

1. Taio Cruz – Dynamite
2. Far East Movement- Like A G6
3. Usher- DJ’s Got Us Falling In Love Again
4. Flo Rida- Club Can’t Handle Me
5. Sean Kingston- Letting Go (Dutty Love)
6. Gyptian- Hold Yuh

What do you think the future of music holds in store for us?

I think the future of music is going to be interesting. I think music trends go in cycles. The popular music that is trendy now (in top-40) were a lot of the same sounds we heard in the 80’s. It’s real up tempo dance tracks. In the 90’s it was more about hip-hop and street beats, which I think will make another go-round. I see a lot more synthesizing happening with electronic beats. I feel this is where music will eventually go in the future. There will be new sounds created, which we are already hearing in groups like the Far East movement. I think we will see a lot more unique rhythms and beats emerge in live sound also. It only makes sense that as technology evolves, so will the music that surrounds it.

If you could own a piece of sound equipment that would enhance your music or home theater experience, what would that be?

Something that would enhance my home theater experience that I don’t have right now is a killer surround sound setup. I have two basic speakers and that’s about it. I’ve spent all my money on Denon DJ gear…lol!

For all your DJing needs in the Albequerque area, check out DJ Chris Romero and the rest of Cutmaster Music at their website, http://www.cutmastermusic.com/