Keyboard Wizard – Interview with Jordan Rudess

Firstly, welcome into the DT fold. I’m sure that everyone will welcome your talents into the band.

Thanks – I’m incredibly excited about being a part of this band.

Can we start by asking you give an approximate rundown of your career? Most people have heard about your involvement with The Dregs, Liquid Tension and RMP, but what led up to all that? Who, what, where, when, and where do they all fit in along the way?

Well of course my background is firmly rooted in classical music. When I was 9, I went to the Juilliard School of music in NYC and started playing professional concerts on radio and television by age 11. The training was very strict, but I was always a “closet improviser”. I would sneak into practice rooms at Juilliard and play my own stuff which I didn’t have a full perspective on then, but looking back sounded somewhere between Keith Emerson’s music and Chick Corea. I also became very good at looking at chords on guitar music and improvising around the chords. When I got into my later teens, people started to turn me on to ELP, Genesis, Yes, etc. That really changed my life. I started to paste pictures of Mini Moogs up all over my bedroom wall until it was covered and then managed to get the money to finally buy one! At this point of course my Juilliard days were numbered. Even though teachers and family wanted me to become the next greatest classical pianist, there was a different plan developing.

When I left Juilliard, the music I played was mostly very spacey synth music along the lines of early Tangerine Dream like the Phaedra album. I was big into the synth and figured out what every knob did even though I did not have a clue as to technically what I was doing. Years later I got that information. My interest in rock expanded into listening to a lot of Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Gentle Giant, etc. and I spent many hours with my instrument developing a new mind set for the future!

The first professional band I was in was call Speedway Blvd who released a record in 1980 on Epic Records. Check my discography (web site). As I think about it, probably the step that got my name “in the door” of the music business was actually my playing on Vinnie Moore’s Time Odyssey album. We also did a tour together. Other cool adventures along the way include a tour with fellow keyboardist Jan Hammer and Tony Williams in a cool quartet, which played a bunch of their music. I’ve also always been involved on some level in scoring work.

I wrote the score for an off Broadway show called “Mask, Myth and Magic” featuring the amazing internationally acclaimed magician Jeff McBride. To this day, I still occasionally work with Jeff. Over the last number of years, I have gigged and recorded with Paul Winter of the Paul Winter Consort. Interestingly enough, the gig with Paul is mostly on acoustic piano. I’ll skip now to being in the audience of a Dregs show and just going nuts over the drummer Rod Morgenstein. I thought and still think that he is incredible! It was a dream for him to be involved with my music in some way. Of course at that time, I did not know him or anybody else in that group. Well as miracles go, the phone rings and to cut the story a little short, it was the manager of the Dregs (who is now the manager of DT) asking if I wanted to play with the Dregs for the Full Circle tour. Rod and I hit it off and mostly travelled together in the same car to the gigs. We spoke about playing on each other’s recordings – I’d help him with his and he with mine, etc. That led to the making of the Rudess/Morgenstein Project. Some of you might have caught our show with DT, as we were the opening band on quite a number of concerts. We released an album on Domo Records and you could expect us to do another one sometime in the future because it was a great experience for us both! My connection with Dream Theater maintained itself over the years since my brief meeting with them 5 years ago at the Concrete Foundations gig. Mike called me for the LTE project and I was totally into it. Thankfully other people were too, which led to our being asked to do LTE2. The magic we felt in the studio working together was something everyone involved wanted to see continue on a “full time” basis, so this experience brought me into the world of Dream Theater.

I’ve heard about, nothing more, the albums “Listen” and “Secrets of the Muse”. Can you fill us in?

“Listen” was my first solo album. For me a great way to get out all the wacky progressive ideas that had been developing for a long time. I also sang lead on the record! It is on Invincible Records and can be found through my web site. I have two other solo recordings I’ve released entitled “Secrets of the Muse” and “Resonance”. Both of those are based on piano recordings I improvised ala LTE, although the music is mostly more mellow.

Who were/are your own musical influences?

Gentle Giant, Pink Floyd, Beatles, Hendrix, ELP, Yes, King Crimson, Genesis.

You first played with the guys at the Foundations Forum in ‘94. How did that come about?

As the story goes, I got the call for the audition because of two reasons. #1 Kevin had mentioned my name in conversation to them at some point. I presume favorably. #2 I was voted “best new talent” in Keyboard magazine that year and they figured since they all had received similar honors, why not contact the keyboardist who landed the same award as all of them!

Did you want the job full time back then, and if so, what happened?

As much as I was excited about DT – The Dregs job came up at the same time. The Dregs gig entailed much less travel (I had just become a father to Ariana Starr in 1993), also a chance to continue working with Kurzweil (I had just started) – and all together much less of a complete life change. It was a real mixed emotion, because an offer like DT does not happen every day! Thankfully as fate would have it, our connection remained strong and of course now is the time!!

Rod and yourself supported the band in Europe last year. How was that?

It was amazing. The crowd response was awesome and encouraging. It was affirmation that as two people playing keys and drums, we could really rock!

You hooked up with Mike and JP again last year for the LTE album, which is a minefield of stunning sounds. It is obvious from listening to it that it was a fun record to make. Very inspiring – very intense.

Those LTE sessions are really intense! Since it so quick, you have to depend on inspiration to be available on the spot. It’s not like you can wait for the muse to come knocking on your door. Thankfully working with John, Mike and Tony is incredibly inspiring!

I personally felt – and not taking anything at all away from the other guys – that you were the shining light on that album. So many great sounds and textures.

You flatter me!! It was a great chance to stretch out and do a lot of different types of keyboard work that I love. It’s unusual on one record to hear so many of my different musical personalities.

In the last issue of the fanzine, Mike is quoted as saying: ‘I would say he’s the greatest keyboard player I’ve ever seen!’ Some compliment?

You should have seen what I paid him to say that!

How did the ‘invitation’ to join the band come about? Was it into the LTE2 sessions that they came to you about joining the band, or was there some other factor?

It came about very naturally and gradually. I knew it was brewing during the LTE2 sessions. One evening the idea just kind of surfaced. A little maturing and thinking about the idea, and the next thing you know, I’m looking around and instead of Tony Levin, there is John Myung – and the band is called Dream Theater – so that transition was (is) pretty amazing.

Was it an immediate acceptance, or did you have any reservations?

Complete excitement...

What reaction have you had from the fans, and also when announced at the LTE shows?

2000 emails in the first week after the announcement. A big welcome to the DT family from everyone.

What do you feel you can bring to the band?

A very different yet very related way of creating music. As a keyboardist into orchestration and sound creation and with my keyboardist/composer view of harmony – all that brings many different elements into the band picture.

How have the initial writing and recording sessions gone so far? Anything yet laid down for the album?

We are mixing the album. It’s all composed and will be done pretty soon.

Hopefully we don’t get too much of the Jordan v Derek, Jordan v Kevin syndrome that we experienced when Derek joined. Fans do get very petty over these things instead of just accepting change.

I’m glad everybody is so into the band to talk about stuff, whatever that may be.

Do you expect to work with Rod on any DT downtime on future RMP projects?

I would really love to. I think that Rudess/Morgenstein is some of my strongest music, and of course Rod Morgenstein is one of my greatest friends and a supreme drummer.

With the new album almost complete, how do you think it went?

I’m completely excited about this album. Making this album was an incredible journey. I believe – as do the others – that this is Dream Theater’s best album!

What about the type of material you’ve laid down – where do you think it fits in, in the grand scheme of things?

Well if you like Dixieland, Polkas and a good Sousa March, you probably should not check out our new record. But if you like Dream Theater at their most progressive peak, you might enjoy what we laid down.

How different a process was the new album, than doing the LTE albums?

LTE is a big melting pot for any and all the styles that we play collectively. Dream Theater is a band with many years and many albums behind them. The conceptual/compositional approach with DT is more focused within a given style.

Where do you see things going from here?

I see myself going back to the studio to continue mixing, and learning all the DT repertoire so I can play this upcoming concert we have (my first) in Korea in two weeks!!!!

Anything else you want to mention?

Check out my new keyboard instructional video at my site! Visit my web site at: < http://www. jordanrudess.com >

The music is everywhere. It’s just a matter of letting it inside of you. Of course the musician’s art is not only to be the receiver but also the transmitter of that vibration into physical sonic reality.

Many thanks for your precious time.

Thanks Neil!

Take care,

Musically,

Jordan (July 3rd 1999)

Jordan Rudess – Factfile

Full Name: Jordan Rudess

Birthdate: November 4th 1956

Place of Birth: New York, USA

Height: 5’ 10”

Hair Color: Brown

Eye Color: Hazel

Favourites: My family, technology, Gentle Giant

Actor: Jack Nicholson

Actress: Ariana Starr

TV Shows: I hate TV

Music: Hendrix, Genesis, Pink Floyd, Yes, ELP, Chopin, Bach, King Crimson

Album: Dark Side of the Moon

Books: Elementary Training for Musicians – Paul Hindemith

Sport: Sex

Food: Depends on my mood. Everything from Indian to Italian!

Drink: Water

Equipment: See my web site please at http://www. jordanrudess.com