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Jordan Rudess - Keyboards

It all started the day my 2nd grade teacher called to tell my mother how beautifully I was playing the piano in the classroom. By the next week there was a White Estey baby grand in the living room. Lessons followed weekly. Big notes on the page changed quickly to chord symbols, followed by spontaneous improvisation which after one year led to a more serious teacher.

Magda's plan was to prepare me for Juilliard. Her own son had left the classical world and went off to play in Guy Lombardo's band and she was going to make sure the same thing didn't happen to me. Gentle kicks under the piano helped me to focus on Bach, Beethoven and Chopin. After two years I successfully auditioned for the Julliard school at age 9. This success meant that I would spend every Saturday in N.Y. City studying piano, theory, ear training and composition. These times were among the most focused times of my life. I made an assortment of incredibly talented friends. There was an interesting development going on. In regular school, I was losing interest, not doing homework, not caring, and sometimes not even going. (I stayed home to practice.) Meanwhile over in music school I was excelling in everything. I would look forward to my Saturdays where I would regain my confidence and come into my own strength. To this day I'm very one sided. (Music is my life.) I stayed at Julliard for 9 years.

My interest in pop music started out with listening to the Beatles on the old 45's. My life changed when a friend turned me on to ELP's Tarkus album. My casual interest in life outside of Julliard turned into a passion. At age 17, pictures of Mini Moogs decorated my bedroom walls. My rebellion had begun. I finally got a Mini Moog when my father worked out a plan to have one of my uncles pay for it. Dreams become reality! All this was happening around the time that I was supposed to move into the college level program at Julliard. I was losing interest in my serious studies, but I was strongly encouraged by teachers and family to proceed with my classical training. I entered Julliard with a scholarship and my new teacher's vision that I would be the next great young American pianist. It didn't take long and I was gone. With one hand on the controls and the other moving rapidly on the keyboard, I packed my echo machine and was on my way.

My first gigs were doing live midnight space jams on various college radio stations with "Complex" - a trippy little three piece including Joseph Lyons who happened to have been my very first theory teacher at Julliard when I was 9. These are the days when I developed my "mind" connection with the synthesizer. I realized that by playing my synthesizer I could effect a whole different area of consciousness. All was changed for me now.

My enjoyment of rock music eventually landed me back in this world. In Maryland I played with a cover group called "Apricot Brandy". Sometimes we would try out my new progressive music at the senior proms, and the high school dances we played. I still remember some of the faces the kids made.

I eventually made my way back to N.Y. to join a band that had a deal with Epic records called "Speedway Blvd. It was all very exciting. We spent about a year in the studio writing songs and recording. The style was rock with some prog rock elements that we managed to sneak in. In a typical large record company move, they stopped promoting the album just when it was beginning to have an impact.

Some excitement happened when I got a call from guitarist Vinnie Moore. We had met at a trade show. I brought a portable battery operated synthesizer to the show. When I saw Vinnie playing burning leads in his booth I just plugged my synth in and jammed with him. Two years later when he was getting ready to record "Time Odyssey " he managed to get in touch with me. I recorded the album with him, contributed some material the record, and then later we took the show on the road.

I learned a lot more about synthesizers when my good friend Jack Hotop connected me with a position at Korg. We developed a three piece, all keyboardist's, progressive band that rocked many of the industry's trade shows. It was during that time that I began to get recognized partly due to Keyboard Magazine's mentions and reviews of our performances.

Jan Hammer was always a hero of mine and I was blown away to have the chance to play in a group with him. The band consisted of Jan, myself, Fernando Saunders and Tony Williams. It was mind blowing to be performing some of the music that really influenced me in the first place. We played dates around the US, and headlined the Montreal Jazz festival.

The "Paul Winter Consort" has been in my life for many years now. I have enjoyed playing in all parts of the world with them. It's a wonderful musical family with many branches. It started when Cellist Eugene Freisen found me, made his way over to my studio, plugged in, and we JAMMED.

It was time now to record my own solo album. I met Liv Khalsa at Invincible records who gave me the opportunity to create "Listen." Finally the music that had been brewing inside my head for many years could be expressed.

In 1994 I was Voted Best New Talent in the Keyboard Magazine Readers Poll. What got me really high was coming in second to Keith Emerson in the Overall Best Keyboardist category. That honor really helped to ignite some fires.

When it rains it pours!!... In the course of one week I got a call from "Dream Theater" and the "Dixie Dregs". I had about one week to transcribe the music and program all the sounds for an upcoming Dregs tour. On top of that I did the same with Dream Theater's music because I had an audition with them two days before going out to Steve Morse's house for rehearsal. I had a great whirlwind experience with Dream Theater, and actually performed at the Concrete Music Convention with them. When the storm blew over I decided to join the Dregs, and stay on for all the upcoming tours. That was not an easy decision!

Flashback......

I had seen the Dregs perform in N.Y.City about three years prior to the big phone call. I was just another fan. I stood in the audience and fantasized about how cool it would be to have that drummer (Rod Morgenstein) playing my music. Pay close attention to dreams!

One evening in concert with the Dregs, the power went out on everybody's gear but mine. Rod and I just get playing. I switched to a mightier sound and just improvised on the themes of the tune we had been playing. The other guys in the band were naturally uptight about what had happened but after a minute or so were smiling because it turned into a pretty cool jam. When the power resumed they joined us again and brought the song to a big ending. This was the beginning of the Rudess Morgenstein Project and with that, I must conclude this fascinating story...I have to meet Rod in the studio in ten minutes.