Jordan Rudess interview (excerpt)

Az Chaudhry: How do you freshen everything up? The new Dream Theater album Distance Over Time for example, what makes this one different from what you have done before?

Jordan Rudess: There is no lack of inspiration so I don’t feel the need to freshen up because I don’t get bored or feel stale. I’m excited about making music and music technology and all the cool sonics available. Keeps me rocking!

AC: How do you balance solo work with Dream Theater, given that the two albums are being released so close together?

JR: Although Dream Theater works a lot, it is not constant so very often there are breaks between tours and breaks between when we finish a tour and when recording starts. I don’t have any hobbies other than making music so whenever I have time I get in there and make music. When I saw an open chunk of time in my schedule I went into my studio and started going crazy writing and recording music for my solo album.

AC: What do you get from your solo work that you don’t get from Dream Theater?

JR: There are many things that I can do on my solo stuff that I cannot do in Dream Theater. I’m totally into all the sonic potential of my instruments and like pushing the boundaries. My sound palette is limitless for my solo albums because I can stretch things as far as I want in the stylistic and sonic domain. I can go electronic, I can go super Prog calling on my Gentle Giant and ELP influences. I can go Stravinsky or Bartok and have a bassoon solo followed by a jazz clarinet section. I’m open to all of it and solo albums allow me that bandwidth to do it all. In addition, I sing and write lyrics all over this new solo album.

AC: How was your solo tour down under before Christmas?

JR: Amazing! The piano tour down under was really fun with the highlight being playing the Sydney Opera House.

AC: You are playing Download with Dream Theater in June but any plans for a full tour of the UK/Europe next year – either solo or with the band to promote the new albums?

JR: I’m sure Dream Theater and I will get back to the UK for headline shows. At the moment we don’t have it in the schedules but pretty soon I’m sure we will!!

AC: Back to your early days... you have a classical upbringing, so how did you end up getting in to Prog?

JR: When I was a teenager my friends would turn me on to things like Genesis and Yes and ELP. I was very inspired by all that. Slowly but surely it influenced me to make the decision to leave the Classical path and look for ways to express myself outside of Classical. It took time because I was told that everyone making music outside of the classics was like a second-class citizen or some kind of low life. I had to figure out the ways of the world to see how I could fit in and what I could do with my interest in Prog and electronic music. I gradually worked things out of course.