Why auditioning every track stops working
Do the math: 1,000 new tracks at 30 seconds each just to decide where they go is over 8 hours. That's with fresh ears. By track 300 everything starts to sound the same, and you file things in the wrong place without noticing.
The usual shortcuts don't save you either:
- Filtering by genre tag. Downloaded tags say "Electronic" on a thousand tracks, or nothing at all.
- Filtering by BPM and key. Two tracks at 132 BPM in 8A can still belong in completely different folders: one bright and floaty, the other dark with a heavy bassline.
When you listen, you judge the whole character of a track, not a number. To skip the listening, something has to listen for you.
The method: let software learn from your own folders
You've been organizing music for years. Those folders are the best lesson there is:
- Each folder is a label: Melodic Techno, Hard Dance, Warm-up House, Xung Sáng… name them anything.
- The software listens to the tracks in each folder, analyzing everything from rhythm and energy to timbre, and learns what each label sounds like.
- When a new track comes in, it gives it the closest label and tells you how sure it is.
You don't stop listening altogether. You stop the pointless listening: the tracks that obviously belong somewhere. Your time goes to the few in-between tracks, exactly where a DJ's ears matter.
What automatic classification software should have
| What to look for | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Learns your labels | A stock list of genres never matches how you play |
| Listens to the audio | Wrong tags mean wrong results |
| Confidence for every track | You know what to re-check and what to leave alone |
| Never touches files on its own | Files are copied or moved only when you click |
| Runs on your computer | No uploading tens of gigabytes of music |
| Fast enough for a whole library | 1,000 tracks should take minutes, not days |
Confidence is the one you can't skip. Without it you don't know which tracks are doubtful, so you end up re-listening to everything and you're back at square one.
The four-step workflow
- Build example folders. Pick the most typical tracks for each label, about 100 per label. Leave the in-betweens out.
- Train. Hand the example folders to the software. Read the report afterward: if a label gets mixed up often, give it more examples.
- Classify new music. Drop in your new downloads, however messy. Every track gets a label and a % confidence.
- Review only the unsure ones. Filter the low-confidence tracks, listen, fix. Then copy the files into a folder per label.
Next time new music lands, you only repeat steps 3 and 4. Teach it once and it remembers.
FAQ
Do I still have to listen to anything?
Yes, but not much. You only listen to the tracks it isn't sure about, usually the ones sitting between two labels or ones that don't fit any. The clear-cut tracks you leave alone.
How many example tracks does each label need?
At least 2 labels with 2 tracks each gets you started. For predictions that really match your taste, aim for about 100 typical tracks per label.
How long does it take to classify 1,000 tracks?
With Taxonomy DJ, about 100 tracks a minute, so 1,000 tracks take around 10 minutes. Speed depends on your computer.
Is this the same as filtering by genre tag?
No. Filtering by tag only reads what someone else typed into the file. Automatic classification listens to the music itself and puts each track into one of your labels, so empty or wrong tags don't matter. More on why genre tags fall short.
Do it fast with Taxonomy DJ
Automatic music classification in Taxonomy DJ runs exactly this workflow, right on your computer:
- In the Training tab, click Add label and choose an example folder. All your label folders inside one parent folder? Click From parent folder and each subfolder becomes a label.
- In the Music Library tab, click Add music folder, choose Run full analysis, then click Scan. Every track gets a label with a % Confidence.
- Click Quick filter ▸ Needs review, listen, and fix wrong labels with the 1–9 keys.
- Select tracks, then File ▸ Copy to folder: one subfolder per label, originals untouched.
Your music never leaves your computer. Training and automatic labeling need Premium; copying and moving files work on the Free plan too. To design a label set that works, read how to classify Vinahouse and EDM your own way.