The past years have seen the rise to fame of the music genre called trance. Defined loosely as a type of electronic-based music or club music, trance has a beat of 124 to 160 BPM and features repeated synthesizer grooves in the whole track. Sometimes including vocals, this genre is actually very similar to techno and house music. But mainly, the genre earned its label of trance for the repetitive sounds and beats that put a person in an almost trance-like condition. It is even said that trance music has a hypnotic quality which induces partygoers to dance until the wee hours of the morning.

Trance music traces its origins in Germany during the 90s when DJs began incorporating electronic sounds with psytrance in their music. As mentioned, this genre is considered by some to be comparable to techno and house music as they share the same elemental design with regard to their beats and rhythms. Trance music, however, has more melodies which were the trend in the European club stage then. In fact, early tracks of trance music generally have catchy tunes and increasingly repetitive rhythmic beats.  

Eventually, trance music began dominating the dance music scene just after a few years after its advent in Germany. Many DJs and artists began creating their own mixes and tunes of trance, which later on led to the creation of different subgenres for this music.

Among the subgenres of trance is the acid style, wherein a bass machine is usually used to make edgy sound effects. Evolving from the original classic trance, acid trance dominated the club scene in the early 90s but during that time, another style of trance was slowly emerging - the progressive style. The progressive trance is a direct offshoot of acid style, and is actually considered the model for the modern trance genre. In progressive trance tracks, bassline and melodies dominate, producing an effect of fast and progressive sounds.

Shortly after progressive trance became popular, the anthem trance made its debut on the dance floor. In anthem trance, there is a prolonged progression on bass and treble elements which give the tracks stronger and distinct melodies. However, anthem trance is not the only subgenre that has earned its uniqueness in the area of melodies and beats. With its beginnings in India's state, Goa trance is also an early style of trance music and dance trance, distinctly characterized by energetic thumping drumbeats, rhythm, and loops. During its peak, Goa trance underwent a lot of musical experimentation which led to the creation of an altogether different sound of trance music, eventually known as psychedelic trance. The psychedelic style came into the trance mainstream during the mid-90s and was distinguished for its futuristic sound and vibe.  

Though the some, if not most, of the subgenres of trance rely heavily on equipment and remixes, trance also has subgenres that highlight the lyrical and vocal parts of music. For instance, the vocal trance is a type of music that features lengthy lyrics often sung by a female vocalist. In this subgenre, artists rarely sing in their own tracks. Vocal trance is mostly even confused with Euro trance because both styles employ vocals in their tracks. The main difference between vocal and Euro trance, however, is that Euro trance tracks are characterized by more enthusiastic lyrics and upbeat tunes - characteristics which are also reminiscent of tribal trance, only the tribal subgenre prevalently has ethnic sounds and bongo beats coupled with percussion and rhythm.

Indeed, whether it's the catchy melodies or the groovy rhythm, people just can't seem to resist dancing to the tunes of trance. With the various subgenres and new forms still emerging, there is no doubt that from its inception, trance has held countless partygoers all over the world spellbound and will still continue to dominate the club scenes around the world. Suffice it to say, dance music and party life would not be the same without trance.