Trance

Trance is defined by its ambition to produce a psychological state — through sustained melodic development, rising builds, and euphoric breakdowns. The genre crystallised in Germany and the Netherlands in the early 1990s through producers like Sven Väth, Paul van Dyk, and early labels like Eye Q and MFS, before its melodic peak was reached in the late 1990s with Tiësto, Armin van Buuren, and Paul Oakenfold. Trance is built around the 16-bar rule: tension maximised before a breakdown, release engineered through the reintroduction of the kick. The genre's golden era — the Gatecrasher compilations, the Energy events, the early A State of Trance broadcasts — produced some of electronic music's most recognised melodic moments. Mixprism's trance database captures this full history: from classic 1998-2003 tracks that still appear in modern DJ sets, to contemporary releases from Ferry Corsten, Above & Beyond, and Cosmic Gate, whose presence in the platform's most-played sets confirms trance's sustained global following.