Jonathan from Sa Trincha- the Best Beach DJ in the World-

As the long term mixmaster on Ibiza's best known clubbing beach Salinas, DJ Jonathan holds what's arguably the best DJing residency in the world. Every afternoon between June and September he spins ambient gems alongside retro classics to an ever-changing selection of polysexual, multi-racial clubbers, many of whom sunbath naked in front of the beachfront cafe Sa Trinchas. A former photographer and new age traveller, Jonathan turned up there in 1993, when Salinas was an unknown entity, populated by the island's hippies and large numbers of gays. These days the beach is listed in every guide to Ibiza and is consequently rammed with clubbers, though remains sufficiently off the beaten track to retain some kind of special vibe. It also still attracts celebrities and some of the most beautiful people in the world.

Unfortunately for Skrufff's Jonty Adderley, though, interviews happened in London in a windowless conference room at Sony's headquarters. His reason for leaving his island was to promote his new chillout compilation, The Salinas Sessions which features many of the tracks he drops each day.

Skrufff: You're well known for playing hundreds of tracks over an average week in Ibiza, how did you choose the selection for this compilation-
Jonathan: "I was trying to pick tracks that weren't on loads of other albums so that cut out a lot of tracks straightaway. I wanted to represent the vibe of the beach, split over two CDs; one chill out and one more house-y; I wouldn't necessarily call it dance music, but the music's more up-tempo. I also really like mixing different styles of music together which people wouldn't expect would fit together, but they do."

Skrufff: How important is new music for your beachside sets-
Jonathan: "I'm an obsessive collector of music so I'm always buying new stuff; I buy the majority of my records myself. Old tracks like the Pink Floyd one (Shine On You Crazy Diamonds) always goes down well, the moment it comes on the whole beach picks up the vibe- I can feel it, and so can they. That's the definition of a vibe; we all know we're feeling something (extra)."

Skrufff: Do you save tracks like that for sunset or toss them on anytime-
Jonathan: "Errm, it's difficult, I'm playing out in the open so I'm really guided by the people around me. I work spontaneously, I don't have a set list that I stick to. It requires a certain amount of discipline to be spontaneous but that's the way I like to play. Sometimes we have parties on the beach- never officially, it's just that sometimes people stand up and start dancing. You can't get any better than that spontaneous feeling - it's better on the beach than clubs because in clubs people are actively going there to dance. What I really like doing though is keeping people completely chilled all the time. I wind them up a little bit with a few beats, then wind them down."

Skrufff: Living in Ibiza all year round, how much preparation is involved pre-season-
Jonathan: "As soon as the season finishes I'm collecting music for the next one, which usually involved four or five trips to England. It's a continual process foraging for music. I travel around DJing in Europe throughout the winter too, sometimes in tiny clubs, sometimes big ones."

Skrufff: Ibiza's best beaches and locations always seem to be at risk of hordes of other holidaymakers descending on them and ruining them in the process, do you have any concerns that by making this record, you'll bring even more people down to Salinas-
Jonathan: "It was great when I first started DJing there, because the places really was a secret then. All the locals started coming and for the first couple of years it was fantastic - not many other people knew about it. Then some people started discovering it by accident. I used to watch people turning up, loving it. Obviously things have changed but it's still the same beach, with the same small bar run by the local family. It still retains its original vibe."
Tags

• Ibiza
• Jonathon