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A musician usually plays a musical instrument, especially (although not necessarily) as a profession.^[1] Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music. It's also a person who makes music a profession, anyone (professional or not) who's skilled in making music or performing music creatively, or one who composes, conducts, or performs music (especially instrumental music).^[2]

Musicians can be of any music style not limited to classical, orchestral or choral, and musicians can have skills in many different styles outside of their professional experience. Examples of musicians' skills are the orchestration of music, improvisation, conducting, singing, composing, arranging, and/or being an instrumentalist.^[3]

Medieval Musicians (400-1450)[link]

For further information, see Medieval Music

During this time period, instrumental musicians mostly improvised and with soft ensembles with soft (bas) or loud (haut) instruments, categorized by their use (indoor or outdoor). Most musicians during this time period catered to the influences of the Roman Catholic Church, providing arrangements structured around Gregorian chant structure and Masses from church texts.^[4]

	"It Was A Lover And His Lass" Written by Thomas Morley.
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Notable Musicians:[link]

• Phillipe de Vitry
• Guillaume Dufay
• Guillaume de Machaut
• Hildegard of Bingen

Renaissance Musicians (1450-1600)[link]

For further information, see Renaissance Music

Musicians in the Renaissance produced pieces of music that needed to be able to be played during masses for any church and important chapel. Vocal pieces were in Latin, as it was the basis for church texts of the time, and they typically were known as Church-polyphonic or "made up of several simultaneous melodies". By the end of the sixteenth century, however, patronage was split among many areas: the Catholic Church, Protestant churches and courts, wealthy amateurs, and music printing—all were sources of income for composers.^[5]

	"Combattimento" Written by Claudio Monteverdi.
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Notable Musicians:[link]

• Giovanni Gabrieli
• Thomas Tallis
• Claudio Monteverdi

Baroque Musicians (1600-1750)[link]

For further information, see Baroque Music

From about 1600 to 1750, the Baroque period was an era of music encompassed by counterpoint and basso continuo characteristics. Vocal and instrumental “color” became more important compared to the Renaissance style of music, and emphasized much of the volume, texture and pace of each piece.^[6]

	"Hallelujah Chorus" from George Frideric Handel's The Messiah.
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Notable Musicians:[link]

• George Frideric Handel
• Johann Sebastian Bach
• Antonio Vivaldi

Classical Musicians (1750-1820)[link]

For further information, see Classical Music

Classical music was created by musicians that lived during a time of a rising middle class called the bourgeoisie. Many middle class inhabitants of France during this time were living under the absolute power of their absolute monarchy that had been in power for some time. This caused much of the music to be made an performed in more constraint environments compared to the flourishing times of the Renaissance and the Baroque Era's.^[7]

	"Piano Sonata No. 8 in A minor" Composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
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Notable Musicians:[link]

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• Franz Joseph Haydn
• Franz Schubert

Romantic Musicians (1820-1910)[link]

" The early Romantic period thus coincides with what is often called the "age of revolutions"--including, of course, the American (1776) and the French (1789) revolutions--an age of upheavals in political, economic, and social traditions, the age which witnessed the initial transformations of the Industrial Revolution. A revolutionary energy was also at the core of Romanticism, which quite consciously set out to transform not only the theory and practice of poetry (and all art), but the very way we perceive the world. Some of its major precepts have survived into the twentieth century and still affect our contemporary period".^[8]

	"Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major- Andante con moto" Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven.
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Notable Musicians[link]

• Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
• Frédéric Chopin
• Ludwig van Beethoven

Twentieth-Century (1920-2000)[link]

The world made the transition from 19th-century Romanticism to 20th century Modernism and its inhabitants witnessed a drastic musical change. Twentieth-Century music started from composers and musicians rejecting the emotion-dominated Romantic period and represented the world as "it was actually perceived". Artists wrote to be "objective, while objects existed on their own terms. While past eras concentrated on spirituality, this new period placed emphasis on physicality and things that were concrete."^[9]

	"3 Pieces for Clarinet Alone" Composed by Igor Stravinsky, who also arranged The Rite of Spring
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Notable Musicians[link]

• Igor Stravinsky
• Claude Debussy
• Arnold Schoenberg
• Philip Glass
• John Cage

See also[link]

• Renaissance music
• Baroque music
• Classical music
• Romantic music
• Twentieth-Century music
• Singer
• Composer
• Music Artist (Occupation)
• American Federation of Musicians
• Eastern Fare Music Foundation

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Musician

Look up musician in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Media related to Musicians at Wikimedia Commons

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Nick Mason
Nick Mason in 2004
Background information
Birth name	Nicholas Berkeley Mason
Born	(1944-01-27) 27 January 1944 (age 68) Edgbaston, Birmingham, England
Genres	Progressive rock, psychedelic rock, hard rock, instrumental rock
Occupations	Musician, drummer, record producer, author, composer, auto racer
Instruments	Drums, percussion, keyboards, guitar, vocals
Years active	1964–present
Labels	Capitol, Columbia, Sony, EMI, Harvest
Associated acts	Pink Floyd, Sigma 6, The Screaming Abdabs, The Tea Set, Mason & Fenn, Robert Wyatt, Carla Bley, Michael Mantler

Nicholas Berkeley "Nick" Mason (born 27 January 1944) is an English drummer and songwriter, best known for his work with Pink Floyd. He is the only constant member of the band since its formation in 1965. Despite solely writing only a few Pink Floyd songs, Mason has contributed to some of Pink Floyd's most popular compositions such as "Interstellar Overdrive", "A Saucerful Of Secrets" and "Echoes".

He is the only Pink Floyd member to be featured on every one of their albums. It is estimated that as of 2010, the group have sold over 250 million records worldwide,^[1][2] including 74.5 million units sold in the United States.

He also competes in auto racing events, such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans.^[3]

Early life[link]

The son of the documentary film maker Bill Mason, he was born in Birmingham but brought up in Hampstead, London (many online biographies mistakenly cite the street address Downshire Hill – sometimes as "the Downshire Hills" – as a district of Birmingham) and attended Frensham Heights School, near Farnham, Surrey. He later studied at the Regent Street Polytechnic (now the University of Westminster), where he teamed up with Roger Waters, Bob Klose and Richard Wright in 1964 to form Pink Floyd's predecessor, Sigma 6.

Musical career[link]

Mason has been the drummer on every Pink Floyd album^[4] (but not on every song; some session drummers have been used^[4]).

Despite legal conflicts over ownership of the name 'Pink Floyd' which began when Roger Waters left the group in 1986 and lasted roughly 7 years, Waters and Nick Mason are now on good terms.^[4] Mason joined Waters on the last two nights of his 2002 world tour to play drums on the Pink Floyd song "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun", and he also played drums on some concerts of Waters' European tour in 2006, and during performances in Los Angeles and New York City in the United States. On 12 May 2007, Mason joined Waters again on stage at Earls Court to play The Dark Side of the Moon. Again on 12 May 2011 Mason was featured, along with David Gilmour, on the encore Outside the Wall at Waters´ concert who was performing The Wall in its entirety. Gilmour also performed on Comfortably Numb that night.

In July 2005, Mason, Gilmour, Wright, and Waters played together on stage for the first time in 24 years.^[4] A four song set was played at the Live 8 concert in London.^[4] Mason also joined David Gilmour and Richard Wright for the encore during Gilmour's show at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 31 May 2006, reuniting the post-Waters Pink Floyd. Mason has also claimed to be the link between Gilmour and Waters, and believes the band will play live again. His answers have ranged from "playing again for a charitable cause" to "a tour" given in various interviews in the last few years. He also stated in 2006 that Pink Floyd have not officially disbanded yet.

The only Pink Floyd songs that are solely credited to Mason are "The Grand Vizier's Garden Party Parts 1-3" (from Ummagumma) and "Speak to Me" (from The Dark Side of the Moon).^[4] The one-off song by the band entitled "Nick's Boogie" was named after him.^[4]

The only times Mason's voice has been included on Pink Floyd's albums are "Corporal Clegg", the single spoken line in "One of These Days" and spoken parts of "Signs of Life" and "Learning to Fly" (the latter taken from actual recording of Mason's first solo flight) from A Momentary Lapse of Reason.^[4] He does, however, sing lead vocals on two unreleased but heavily bootlegged tracks, "Scream Thy Last Scream" (1967) and "The Merry Xmas Song" (1975–76). In live performances of the song "Sheep", he did the spoken section.^[4]

Unlike the other members of Pink Floyd, Mason has rarely played an instrument other than his usual one (drums), although he has contributed sound effects to many Pink Floyd albums. He has only ever played non-percussive instruments on "The Grand Vizier's Garden Party", his personal composition from Ummagumma, where he provided some keyboard, guitar and bass noises, and on live versions of "Outside the Wall", where he played acoustic guitar along with the rest of the band. He has claimed that he took some failed violin and piano lessons as a child. However, on the Profiles album Nick released with Rick Fenn in 1985, he is also credited with keyboards.^[5] He can be seen playing a synthesizer in the promo video for "Lie for a Lie", but it is unknown if he actually played on the recording.

Mason has done some work with other people, notably as a drummer and producer for Steve Hillage, Robert Wyatt (with whom he appeared on Top of the Pops^[4]), The Damned and Gong.^[5] He also drummed for Michael Mantler.^[5]

Nick Mason used Premier drums in the 1960s and occasionally in the 1970s (mainly on recordings up to Wish You Were Here). After that, he used Ludwig drums from 1970 until 1992. He currently uses Drum Workshop (DW) drums, pedals and hardware. His kit is a DW double bass kit with the Dark Side of the Moon logo on the drums. He has also used Paiste cymbals during his entire career with Pink Floyd. He currently uses a mixture of Paiste Traditional, Signature and 2002 cymbals.

Nick Mason's book, Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd, was published in the UK in October 2004.^[4] It is also available, abridged, as a 3CD audio book, read by Mason.^[4] An updated edition was published, in paperback, in 2011.

Notable Pink Floyd songs co-written by Mason[link]

• Pow R. Toc H. (1967) (The Piper at the Gates of Dawn)
• Interstellar Overdrive (1967) (The Piper at the Gates of Dawn)
• A Saucerful Of Secrets (1968) (A Saucerful of Secrets)
• Careful with that Axe, Eugene (1968) (B-side of their single Point Me at the Sky)
• Atom Heart Mother (1970) (Atom Heart Mother)
• Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast (1970) (Atom Heart Mother)
• One of These Days (1971) (Meddle)
• Echoes (1971) (Meddle)
• Time (1973) (The Dark Side of the Moon)
• Any Colour You Like (1973) (The Dark Side of the Moon)

Drumming style[link]

Influenced by jazz and big band music, Nick was a pioneer who embraced acoustic drums, (both single and double headed) tuned percussion, electronic drums and Roto toms, melding all of these into a melodic whole. His snare drum sound shifted from harsh demarcation of beats 2 and 4 (Careful with that Axe, Eugene) to a fatter and gentler timbre (Echoes) — a change that reflected growing studio chops.^[6] Mason has been seen as playing a big part in creating the atmosphere and mood in Pink Floyd's compositions.

Non-musical ventures[link]

Nick Mason

Nationality	British
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Participating years	1979–80, 1982–84
Teams	Dorset Racing Associates EMKA Productions Dome Racing GTi Engineering
Best finish	18th (1979)
Class wins	0

Mason is married (to his second wife, Nettie) and has four children; two daughters (Holly and Chloe) from his first marriage and two sons (Guy and Cary) from his second. They live in Hampstead, London; however they often stay in the Wiltshire town of Corsham in the former home of Camilla Parker Bowles.

As Floyd's recording and touring schedule grew more sporadic, Mason was left with more time to pursue his favourite hobby: motor racing. He owns (through his company Ten Tenths) and races several classic cars, and has competed successfully at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. His collection has been a subject of his 1998 book, Into the Red in which he documents his experience with his cars, along with some histories.^[7] He is also a qualified pilot, and flies an Aerospatiale AS 350 Squirrel helicopter in specially painted colours.^[8]

Mason was invited by Ferrari to purchase one of their 400 Enzos, which he let Jeremy Clarkson borrow for reviewing purposes on the BBC motoring programme Top Gear. Mason agreed, on the sole condition that throughout the review, Clarkson promoted the release of the book Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd. This led to Clarkson using Pink Floyd album titles in his description of the Enzo and The Stig driving round the track with "Another Brick in the Wall" playing (despite the fact that the Enzo does not come equipped with a stereo). Mason says that his favourite car of all time is the Ferrari 250 GTO, and owns one of the 39 built (which is valued at between £16,000,000 and £20,000,000).

His wealth amounts to £55 million, according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2006–07.^[9]

Views and advocacy[link]

Mason has played concerts to raise funds for Countryside Alliance.^[10] He is a board member and co-chairman of the Featured Artists' Coalition.^[11][12]

Discography[link]

With Pink Floyd[link]

Pink Floyd portal

With Nick Mason's Fictitious Sports[link]

• Nick Mason's Fictitious Sports – 3 May 1981^[4]

With Rick Fenn[link]

• Profiles – 29 July 1985^[4]
• White of the Eye – 1987 (soundtrack)^[4]
• Tank Malling – 1988 (soundtrack)

With Michael Mantler[link]

• The Hapless Child - 1976^[5]
• Something There – 1982^[5]
• Live – 1987^[5]
• Review - 2000
• Concertos – 2008

As a producer[link]

• Principal Edwards Magic Theatre – The Asmoto Running Band (1971)^[5]
• Principal Edwards Magic Theatre – Round One (1974)^[5]
• Robert Wyatt – Rock Bottom (1974)^[5]
• Gong – Shamal (1976)^[5]
• The Damned – Music for Pleasure (1977)^[5]
• Steve Hillage – Green (1978); Co-produced with Steve Hillage. Mason also plays a drum on "Leylines to Glassdom"^[5]

Books[link]

• Into the Red: 22 Classic Cars That Shaped a Century of Motor Sport (with Mark Hales) – 3 September 1998 (first edition), 9 September 2004 (second edition)
• Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd – 28 October 2004^[4]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Nick Mason's Drummerworld profile
• Nick Mason interviews
• Ten Tenths official site
• Inside Out book page from Pink Floyd official site
• Pink Floyd Drums: The Division Bell Tour Drums
• Nick Mason's interview for Hit Channel website

Jordan Rudess
Jordan Rudess with Dream Theater 2007
Background information
Birth name	Jordan Charles Rudes
Also known as	The Keyboard Wizard[citation needed]
Born	(1956-11-04) November 4, 1956 (age 55)
Origin	Great Neck, New York, USA
Genres	Progressive rock, progressive metal, instrumental rock, jazz fusion, New Age, electronic music
Occupations	Musician, songwriter
Instruments	Keyboards, lap steel guitar, Morphwiz on iPad, electric guitar, vocals, continuum, keytar, Bassoon Tablet PC, Harpejji
Years active	1981–present
Associated acts	Dream Theater, Dixie Dregs, Liquid Tension Experiment, John Petrucci, Rod Morgenstein, David Bowie, Vinnie Moore, Tom Coster, Kip Winger, Nóirín Ní Riain, Rhonda Larson, Paul Winter, Scott McGill, Steven Wilson, Prefab Sprout, Jupiter, Neal Morse, Daniel J, Neil Zaza, Annie Haslam, John-Luke Addison, Behold... The Arctopus, Liquid Trio Experiment, Enrique Iglesias, Mr. Fastfinger, Ricky Garcia, Frost*
Website	http://www.jordanrudess.com

Jordan Rudess (born Jordan Charles^[1][2] Rudes on November 4, 1956) is an American keyboardist best known as a member of the progressive metal band Dream Theater and the progressive rock supergroup Liquid Tension Experiment.

Biography[link]

Rudess was born in 1956 into a Jewish family. He was recognized by his 2nd grade teacher for his piano playing and was immediately given professional tuition. At nine, he entered the Juilliard School of Music Pre-College Division for classical piano training, but by his late teens he had grown increasingly interested in synthesizers and progressive rock music. Against the counsel of his parents and tutors, he turned away from classical piano and tried his hand as a solo progressive rock keyboardist.^[3]

After performing in various projects during the 1980s, he gained international attention in 1994 when he was voted "Best New Talent" in the Keyboard Magazine readers' poll after the release of his Listen solo album. Two of the bands who took notice of Rudess were The Dixie Dregs and Dream Theater, both of whom invited him to join. Rudess chose the Dregs, primarily as being a part time member of the band would have less of an impact on his young family, a choice he was not given with Dream Theater.

During his time with the Dregs, Rudess formed a "power duo" with drummer Rod Morgenstein. The genesis of this pairing occurred when a power outage caused all of the Dregs' instruments to fail except Rudess', so he and Morgenstein improvised with each other until power was restored and the concert could continue. The chemistry between the two was so strong during this jam that they decided to perform together on a regular basis (under the name Rudess/Morgenstein Project or later RMP) and have since released a studio and a live record.

Rudess encountered Dream Theater once again when he and Morgenstein secured the support slot on one of Dream Theater's North American tours.

In 1997, when Mike Portnoy was asked to form a supergroup by Magna Carta Records, Rudess was chosen to fill the keyboardist spot in the band, which also consisted of Tony Levin and Portnoy's Dream Theater colleague John Petrucci. During the recording of Liquid Tension Experiment's two albums, it became evident to Portnoy and Petrucci that Rudess was what Dream Theater needed. They asked Rudess to join the band, and when he accepted they released their then-keyboardist Derek Sherinian to make way for him.

Rudess has been the full-time keyboardist in Dream Theater since the recording of 1999's Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory. He has recorded six other studio albums with the group: 2002's Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, 2003's Train of Thought, 2005's Octavarium, 2007's Systematic Chaos, 2009's Black Clouds & Silver Linings and 2011's A Dramatic Turn of Events. In addition, he has appeared on the live albums Live Scenes From New York, Live at Budokan, Score and Chaos in Motion.

In addition to working with Dream Theater he occasionally records and performs in other contexts, such as a 2001 one-off duo performance with Petrucci (released as the CD An Evening With John Petrucci and Jordan Rudess), as well as backing up Blackfield on their first short US tour in 2005 and playing a solo opening slot for them on their second in 2007. He also contributed to Steven Wilson's 2011 album, Grace for Drowning.^[4]

In 2010, Rudess composed "Explorations for Keyboard and Orchestra," his first classical composition. It was premiered in Venezuela on November 19, 2010 by the Chacao Youth Symphony Orchestra and guest conductor Eren Başbuğ. Rudess played all of the keyboard and synthesizer parts.

On July 28, 2011, in a poll conducted by MusicRadar, Rudess was voted the best keyboardist of all time.^[5]

Rudess says his influences as a keyboardist are Keith Emerson, Tony Banks, Rick Wakeman and Patrick Moraz.^[6] His favorite musical artists and groups include Gentle Giant, Yes, Genesis, Pink Floyd, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, King Crimson, Jimi Hendrix, Autechre, and Aphex Twin.^[7]

Use of technology[link]

While many keyboard players in progressive rock tend towards bringing numerous keyboards on stage, creating large racks of keyboards, Rudess took full advantage of the possibilities offered by the Kurzweil K2600xs during his live usage of the keyboard from the 1990s to 2004. Often sampling sounds from other keyboards he owned, Rudess creates a series of "setups", each of which maps different sounds to different layers and key ranges of the keyboard controller; these setups are then arranged in the order they will be required for a gig, and cycled through one at a time with a foot-switch (a control pedal placed on the floor underneath his keyboard). He often maps sounds to exact notes on the keyboard to avoid playing chords on sounds that are meant to be monophonic and to create realistic percussion sounds under the pitched sounds he is playing.

While Rudess' physical method of changing live setups will more than likely remain the same, his choice of hardware to implement this changed as of 2005. Citing a need for better tour support and more current technologies (his Kurzweil K2600XS's maximum sample memory of 128 MB had become insufficient for his touring needs), Rudess switched keyboard endorsements from Kurzweil to Korg's new flagship Korg Oasys workstation (which can support up to 2 GB of sample memory^[8]), which he first used on Dream Theater's 2005-2006 20th Anniversary tour, along with a Muse Receptor hardware VST and a Haken Continuum X/Y/Z-plane MIDI Instrument triggering a Roland V-Synth XT and a Synthesizers.com Modular. Rudess is the first well known keyboardist to bring a Haken Continuum on to a live stage. Rudess still uses the Kurzweil for studio recordings and some of his most well known sounds, such as "the pig", one of his signature sounds which is often played in unison with the guitar or bass guitar, were sounds from the K2600xs. In 2011 Jordan switched from the Oasys to the new flagship Korg Kronos. So on the concerts with Dream Theater now he uses the Korg Kronos together with a Haken Continuum, a lap steel guitar and a Harpejji and an iPad.

Since 2001, Rudess uses custom made rotating keyboard stands on stage for both Dream Theater and his solo career, which are built by Patrick Slaats from the Netherlands.^[3] On Dream Theater's 2007-2008 "Chaos in Motion" world tour, Rudess expanded his live setup with the addition of a Korg RADIAS, a Manikin Memotron,^[9] and a Zen Riffer keytar. Rudess stopped using his Synthesizers.com modular after the European leg of the tour due to its size and weight. Rudess still owns the synthesizer and keeps it inactive in his home studio. During the Progressive Nation 2008 tour, he introduced on the stage a Kaoss Pad 3 for the closing medley.

For the 2009-2010 tour, in support of Black Clouds & Silver Linings, Jordan introduced the Apple iPod Touch on stage, running an application called Bebot Robot Synth.^[10] He plays it during A Rite of Passage - both studio album and live versions of the song - and frequently uses it for improvised solos, like in Hollow Years' intro and during a new instrumental section on Solitary Shell.

On September 24, 2010, Rudess released the song "Krump," which was an electronica "single" released on iTunes. It featured the use of the new Roland Gaia, Roland's more recent keyboard.

Equipment[link]

Studio equipment[link]

• Korg Kronos (88 keys)
• Korg OASYS (88 keys)
• Korg Triton Extreme (88 keys)
• Korg RADIAS
• Haken Audio Continuum Fingerboard_{Rudess uses the upgraded half size model, which comes with inbuilt sounds as well as being used as a MIDI controller keyboard}
• Eigenharp Alpha
• Muse Research Receptor
• Kurzweil K2600X/S (88 keys)
• Kurzweil K2000VP
• Kurzweil K2600R
• Kurzweil PC2R
• Kurzweil K2661
• Roland Fantom-X8
• Roland Fantom G8
• Manikin Memotron
• Minimoog Voyager
• Roland V-Synth XT
• Roland V-Synth GT
• Roland VP-550
• Roland SH-01 GAIA
• Roland SH-201
• Synthesizers.com Modular synthesizer
• Dave Smith Instruments Evolver Keyboard
• A custom built lap steel guitar
• Harpejji by Marcodi Musical Products, LLC
• Clavia Nord Wave
• Dave Smith Instruments Prophet 08
• Novation Supernova
• Moog Little Phatty
• Moogfooger Freq Box
• Stylophone 350S
• Yamaha Tenori-On
• Apple Inc. iPod Touch
• Apple Inc. iPad
• PRS 6 string guitar
• A bass guitar (manufacturer unknown)
• A Music Man John Petrucci 6 string guitar (this particular guitar being the original prototype of Petrucci's signature model)
• Steinway & Sons model D Grand Piano

Virtual instruments[link]

• MOTU MachFive
• MOTU MX4 Soft Synth
• Korg Legacy Collection
• Spectrasonics Omnisphere^[11]
• Spectrasonics Atmosphere
• Spectrasonics Trilogy
• Spectrasonics Stylus
• Native Instruments Komplete 2
• Native Instruments Absynth
• Native Instruments B4 Organ
• Native Instruments Guitar Rig
• Native Instruments FM7
• Native Instruments Pro 53
• Synthogy Ivory
• Bebot Robot Synth for iPhone
• Korg iElectribe for iPad
• Looptastic for iPad
• Magic Piano for iPad
• JR Hexatone Pro for iPhone/iPod Touch
• ThumbJam for iPhone/iPod Touch
• Sampletoy for iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad
• MorphWiz for iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad
• SampleWiz for iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad

Live Rig[link]

• Korg Kronos (88 keys) _{Dream Theater}
• Korg Triton Extreme (88 keys) _{solo project}
• Korg KARMA _{solo project}
• Steinway grand piano _{solo project}
• Roland Fantom-G8 _{Liquid Tension Experiment and occasionally for Dream Theater's studio work}
• Freehand Systems Music Pad Pro _{Often known to fans as the "scratch pad", as he uses it to write down musical ideas. The sheet music for the entire live set is displayed on the pad for Rudess to refer to as he plays.}
• 3x Roland V-Synth XT
• Custom made rotating keyboardstands, by Patrick Slaats^[4]
• Lap steel guitar
• Haken Continuum Fingerboard _{controls one Roland V-Synth XT and also controlled his modular synth.}
• Zen Riffer ZR2 keytar, which controls a Roland V-Synth XT like his continuum.
• Apple Inc. iPod Touch
• Apple Inc. iPad
• Mackie 1604VLZ Pro Mixer
• APS Power backup
• Glyph and Iomega Hard drives
• Korg Kaoss Pad 3
• Muse Research Receptor
• Synthesizers.com Custom Modular Synth _{currently retired, was used to play "On the run" and was also controlled by his continuum}

Discography[link]

Rudess has participated in 59 albums.

Solo albums[link]

• Arrival (Cassette) (1988)
• Listen (CD) (1993)
• Secrets of the Muse (CD) (1997)
• Resonance (CD) (1999)
• Unplugged (CD) (2000)
• Feeding the Wheel (CD) (2001)
• 4NYC (CD) (2002)
• Christmas Sky (CD) (2002)
• Rhythm of Time (CD) (2004)
• Prime Cuts (CD) (2006, compilation)
• The Road Home (CD) (2007, covers album)
• Notes On a Dream (CD) (2009)

Dream Theater[link]

• Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory (CD) (1999)
• Metropolis 2000: Scenes from New York (VHS/DVD) (2001)
• Live Scenes from New York (3CD) (2001)
• Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (2CD) (2002)
• Train of Thought (CD) (2003)
• Live at Budokan (2DVD/3CD) (2004)
• Octavarium (CD) (2005)
• Score (2DVD/3CD) (2006)
• Systematic Chaos (CD) (2007)
• Chaos in Motion (2DVD/3CD) (2008)
• Black Clouds & Silver Linings (2009)
• A Dramatic Turn Of Events (2011)

Project albums[link]

• Rudess/Morgenstein Project (CD) (1997)
• An Evening with John Petrucci and Jordan Rudess (CD) (2000)
• Rudess/Morgenstein Project - The Official Bootleg (CD) (2001)

Liquid Tension Experiment[link]

• Liquid Tension Experiment (CD) (1998)
• Liquid Tension Experiment 2 (CD) (1999)
• Spontaneous Combustion (CD) (2007, as Liquid Trio Experiment)
• When the Keyboard Breaks: Live in Chicago (CD) (2009, as Liquid Trio Experiment 2)
• Liquid Tension Experiment Live 2008 - Limited Edition Boxset (6CD/2DVD/1 Blu-ray) (2009)

Guest appearances[link]

• Vinnie Moore - Time Odyssey (1988)
• Tom Coster - Did Jah Miss Me? (1989)
• Annie Haslam - Blessing in Disguise (1994)
• Nóirín Ní Riain - Celtic Soul (1996)
• Kip Winger - This Conversation Seems Like A Dream (1997)
• Rhonda Larson - Free as a Bird (1999)
• Jupiter - Jupiter Project (1999)
• Paul Winter and The Earth Band - Journey With The Sun (2000)
• Scott McGill - Addition by Subtraction (2001)
• Prefab Sprout - The Gunman And Other Stories (2001)
• David Bowie - Heathen (2002)
• Jupiter - Echo and Art (2003)
• Neal Morse - ? (2005)
• Daniel J - Losing Time (2005)
• Neil Zaza - When Gravity Fails (2006)
• John-Luke Addison - Multiple Valences
• Behold... the Arctopus - Skullgrid (2007)
• K3 - Under A Spell (2007)
• Ricky Garcia - Let Sleeping Dogs Lie (2008)
• Steven Wilson - Insurgentes (2008–2009)
• Michel Lazaro - Vision (2010)
• Steven Wilson - Grace For Drowning (2011)
• Len & Vani Greene - Luminosity (2011)
• Affector - Harmagedon (2012)

Other[link]

• Speedway Boulevard - Speedway Boulevard (CD) (1981)
• Various Artists - Romscape (1995)
• Steinway to Heaven - Chopin's "Revolutionary Etude (Op. 10, No. 12)" (1996)

References[link]

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External links[link]

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• Jordan's website
• Dream Theater's website
• Accent Magazine (Jordan's Online Magazine)
• Jordan's Online Conservatory
• Jordan Rudess performing on continuum live
• Jordan Rudess Liquid T Lead emulation tutorial on Progsounds.com
• Jordan Rudess emulated patches for various synths on Progsounds.com
• Wiki about Jordan and his equipment (French & English)
• Biography, pics, reviews and bonuses
• Jordan Rudess Youtube page

Joseph Arthur
Joseph Arthur playing in Barcelona, December 2007
Background information
Birth name	Joseph Arthur
Origin	Akron, Ohio, United States
Genres	Alternative rock, folk rock
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, harmonica, bass
Years active	1996–present
Labels	Lonely Astronaut Records
Associated acts	The Lonely Astronauts, Fistful of Mercy
Website	www.josepharthur.com www.lonelyastronautrecords.com

Joseph Arthur (born September 28, 1971) is an American singer-songwriter and artist from Akron, Ohio. Combining poetic lyrics with a layered sonic palette, Arthur has built his reputation over the years through critically acclaimed releases and constant touring; his unique solo live performances incorporate the use of a number of distortion and loop pedals, and his shows are recorded live at the soundboard and made available to concertgoers immediately following the show on recordable media. Arthur was discovered by Peter Gabriel in the mid-'90s, and signed to Gabriel's Real World label as the first North American artist on the label's roster. Arthur released his debut album Big City Secrets (1997) and follow-up, Come to Where I'm From (2000) on Real World before signing with various independent labels between 2002 and 2006. He established his own record label, Lonely Astronaut Records, in 2006, and released two studio albums, Let's Just Be (2007) and Temporary People (2008) with backing band The Lonely Astronauts. Arthur subsequently returned to performing and recording as a solo artist, releasing The Graduation Ceremony in 2011 and the double album, Redemption City in 2012.

Arthur is also an acclaimed painter and designer. His artwork has graced the sleeves of his entire discography; the sleeve design for his 1999 extended play Vacancy was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording Package.

Musical history[link]

[edit] Early life and Big City Secrets

Joseph began writing and playing music in his early teens, after inheriting an electronic keyboard from his aunt.^[1][2] At age 16, he played bass in a blues band called Frankie Starr and the Chill Factor, which disbanded by 1995.^[3] Joseph graduated from Firestone High School in 1990 and continued developing his music.^[4] In the early '90s, Arthur relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, continuing to record home demos, playing local clubs and working as a guitar salesman at Clark Music Store.^[5]

In 1996, Peter Gabriel's A&R associate Harvey Schartz presented Gabriel with a demo of Arthur's first EP, Cut and Blind. Gabriel and Schwartz arranged a live audition at The Fez nightclub in New York City, and Arthur flew up from Atlanta. The night was a success; not only was Lou Reed a guest in the audience, but within a few months Arthur was officially signed,^[5] making him the first American recording artist signed to Gabriel's label^[6] Arthur recorded his debut album at Gabriel's Real World Studios in England with producer Markus Dravs (Björk, Coldplay, Arcade Fire). The debut album Big City Secrets was released worldwide in spring 1997, and Arthur joined Gabriel's WOMAD tour in Europe.^[7] Big City Secrets displayed Arthur's often angsty and emotionally-wrought lyrics coupled with diverse instrumentation, which he himself described as "someone struggling to heal over experimental folk-rock",^[8] but went virtually unnoticed by the mainstream.^[9] Two years later, he recorded an EP called Vacancy, which earned him a Grammy nomination in 2000 for best recording package.

[edit] 2000–2003: Come to Where I'm From and Redemption's Son

In April 2000, Arthur released his sophomore studio album Come to Where I'm From, which was co-produced with T-Bone Burnett and Tchad Blake. The album exhibited a more polished and accessible sound,^[10] and received positive accolades from Pitchfork Media^[11] and Entertainment Weekly.^[12] Arthur began playing for larger audiences, opening for Ben Harper and Gomez. During that same period, he released a promotional live album recorded at the Gypsy Tea Room bar in Dallas, Texas.

After releasing a series of four EPs called Junkyard Hearts, which were only available to purchase at his live shows, his third album, Redemption's Son, came out in May 2002 in the UK. The American release was delayed until November 2002 since Arthur had been dropped by EMI in North America, having been picked up by Universal Music Group imprint Enjoy Records.^[13] The double album furthered the themes of emotional and spiritual dislocation found on Come to Where I'm From,^[14] and was described by Allmusic reviewer Thom Jurek as a "sleeper hit."^[15]

While on tour, Arthur regularly released recordings of his performances soon after each show. He also recorded an album with alternative rock side project Holding the Void, featuring himself on vocals and guitar, Pat Sansone on vocals and bass, and Rene Lopez on vocals and drums.^[16] In Summer 2003, he toured with Tracy Chapman in the US.^[17]

[edit] 2004–2006: Our Shadows Will Remain

Arthur signed a new recording contract with Vector Recordings and began recording his fourth studio album, Our Shadows Will Remain across New Orleans, New York City, London, and Prague. The album was released in September 2004, and was Arthur's first album to feature string arrangements, provided by the City of Prague Philharmonic. The album was released to widespread critical acclaim; Allmusic's Thom Jurek awarded the album 4.5 out of 5 stars, praising that, "Arthur is in a class of his own and Our Shadows Will Remain is a monstrous, memorable outing, his finest moment in a career that is thus far full of them."^[15] Entertainment Weekly gave the album an A rating, hailing the album as "especially forceful and cohesive";^[18] The Guardian hailed that Joseph "might just be a genuine mad genius";^[19] Stylus Magazine gave the album an A– rating;^[20] and Chris Rubin of Rolling Stone named Our Shadows Will Remain as the number 1 album of the year 2004 in the year-end critics' pick list.

Arthur toured the US alone and with Joan Wasser to promote the album, and a new EP called And the Thieves Are Gone, which collected unreleased tracks from the Shadows recording sessions, came out in December. Shortly afterward, Arthur went on a brief tour of Europe with R.E.M..^[21] Our Shadows Will Remain was picked up by 14th Floor Records for distribution in the United Kingdom in 2005, which yielded the release of four singles: "Can't Exist" in July, "Even Tho" in September, "Devil's Broom" in February 2006 to coincide with his first headlining appearance at London's Shepherds Bush Empire, and a reissue of "Can't Exist" in May 2006, although none of the singles charted on the UK Singles Chart.

In August 2006, Joseph was invited to help launch the project A River Blue, where a group of young people in northern Uganda were brought together to participate in a music, drama, and art festival.^[22] Joseph also recorded the song "A River Blue" for the foundation.^[23]

[edit] 2006–2007: Lonely Astronaut Records, Nuclear Daydream, and Let's Just Be

Joseph Arthur performing live at Avalanche Records, Glasgow, in February 2006.

Also in 2006, Arthur started the record label Lonely Astronaut Records with longtime professional partner Lauren Pattenaude. He released a book entitled We Almost Made It, a visual collection of his artworks, along with an accompanying instrumental CD titled The Invisible Parade in May 2006.^[24] In September 2006, Arthur released his fifth studio album, Nuclear Daydream, which was recorded in Berlin and Los Angeles. The album would be the first release on his new label. Joseph then embarked on a worldwide tour with his new backing band, The Lonely Astronauts.

His song "In the Sun" was covered by Michael Stipe of R.E.M. and Chris Martin of Coldplay in 2006 for a Hurricane Katrina relief EP. The EP includes six versions of the song, one featuring Arthur himself singing with Stipe and another remixed by Justin Timberlake, and is available only on iTunes. On March 26, 2007, Joseph's then-UK label 14th Floor Records released a re-recorded version of his 2002 song "Honey and the Moon" as a special single in the UK only. In April, he released his sixth studio album, Let's Just Be, and embarked on an extensive US tour. This was Joseph's first album with The Lonely Astronauts; the band recorded as many as 80 songs in late 2006,^[25] with only sixteen appearing on the album. The album was released to lukewarm critical reception, with Pitchfork Media calling the album "unfocused" and "sloppy", summarizing that the album "sounds like it came together on the fly, in jam sessions that didn't stem from any kind of solid idea."^[26]

2008–present[link]

In 2008, Arthur released four EPs in a four-month span: Could We Survive on March 18, Crazy Rain on April 15, Vagabond Skies on June 10, and Foreign Girls on July 8.^[27] Regarding these releases, Arthur noted, "I have so much music piled up, like strange animals in a cosmic cage begging for release. The jails were overcrowded. I had to let some of them go."^[28] He played seven solo shows during the SXSW 2008 Festival, six in Austin and one in Dallas.^[29] Live dates in Europe and an extensive US solo tour coincided with the new releases.^[30] Temporary People, his seventh full-length studio album and second with The Lonely Astronauts, was released on September 30, 2008. The album was received warmly by critics, with The Times Online stating that it "evokes the loose, rocking swagger and country melancholy of early-1970s Stones",^[31] and Crawdaddy! noting that Arthur "treats his audience to a brawny and brooding rock album, notching his most fully realized LP to date in the process."^[32] The album came out in Europe in late October, and afterward Arthur embarked on a solo tour and opened for Tracy Chapman on her six-week "Our Bright Future" European tour,^[33] followed by tour dates in Canada.

Arthur recorded a cover of The Afghan Whigs's "Step Into the Light" from their 1996 album Black Love for the tribute album, Summer's Kiss: A Tribute to The Afghan Whigs. Following UK tour dates with The Lonely Astronauts in July, Arthur embarked on a solo tour of France in October 2009.^[34] A reissue of his 2006 album Nuclear Daydream with six previously unreleased bonus tracks was released during this tour.^[35]

Arthur, Ben Harper, and Dhani Harrison formed the supergroup trio Fistful of Mercy in 2010, and their debut album As I Call You Down was released on October 5, 2010.^[36] Arthur's first solo studio album since Nuclear Daydream, titled The Graduation Ceremony,was released on May 23, 2011.^[37][38]

Visual art[link]

Arthur has also received acclaim as a painter and designer. His artwork has graced the sleeves of his entire discography, notably the album covers for Come to Where I'm From and Our Shadows Will Remain, which included a 36-page booklet featuring prints of his original artwork, and was released with a die-cut outer slipcase sleeve.^[39] Arthur and frequent graphic design collaborator Zachary Larner's sleeve design for the 1999 extended play Vacancy was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording Package. He staged his first art exhibition in 2006 at the Vertigo Gallery in London from February 10 to February 12,^[40] and released a 110-page book entitled We Almost Made It, a visual collection of his artworks, along with an accompanying instrumental CD titled The Invisible Parade in May 2006.

He set up his personal art gallery The Museum of Modern Arthur in June 2007 as a brick and mortar location in Brooklyn's DUMBO District.^[41] According to an article on Stereogum.com, Joseph and the MOMAR were evicted from the building. Joseph held a record release party for Temporary People before the closing of the gallery in September 2008.^[42] The MOMAR gallery soon morphed into an online gallery.^[43]

Live performances[link]

Arthur's one man band live performances incorporate looping techniques and several distortion techniques. His live performances are recorded through to the last note and then burnt to CD-R. They are sold immediately to fans after the concert.^[44] Beginning with his fall 2006 tour, Arthur incorporated a full band, The Lonely Astronauts. They are no longer together.

The Lonely Astronauts were:

• Joseph Arthur – vocals, guitar
• Kraig Jarret Johnson – guitar, keyboards, vocals
• Jennifer "Jen" Turner – guitar, vocals
• Sibyl Buck – bass, vocals
• Greg "G. Wiz" Wieczorek – drums, vocals

Instruments and loops[link]

Of the guitars that Joseph utilizes, his primary acoustic guitar is an Irish Lowden 012C.^[45] Some of Joseph's other guitars include a Garrison G-50-CE, a custom-painted Godin Kingpin CWII, a Gibson ES-335, and a '70s Fender Strat.

To incorporate his looping techniques, Arthur uses a myriad of rackmounted units of the Lexicon JamMan. He plays his guitars through an impressive floor of effects pedals.^[46] When performing solo live, he often records a sample of guitar, percussion, or vocals which he can then loop periodically throughout a song, allowing him to perform verses with the added effect of harmonizing with himself.

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

• Big City Secrets (1997)
• Come to Where I'm From (2000)
• Redemption's Son (2002)
• Our Shadows Will Remain (2004)
• Nuclear Daydream (2006)
• Let's Just Be (2007) (with The Lonely Astronauts)
• Temporary People (2008) (with The Lonely Astronauts)
• The Graduation Ceremony (2011)
• Redemption City (2012)

EPs[link]

• Cut and Blind (August 1996)
• Vacancy (May 11, 1999)
• Junkyard Hearts I (February 15, 2002)
• Junkyard Hearts II (February 28, 2002)
• Junkyard Hearts III (March 15, 2002)
• Junkyard Hearts IV (March 28, 2002)
• And the Thieves Are Gone (December 7, 2004)
• Could We Survive (March 18, 2008)
• Crazy Rain (April 15, 2008)
• Vagabond Skies (June 10, 2008)
• Foreign Girls (July 8, 2008)

Soundtracks[link]

• Television
  • Conan (2011) ("Father's Son")
  • Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (2010) ("Father's Son"))
  • Numb3rs (2009) ("Killer's Knife")
  • Hung (2009) ("Walk Away")
  • House (2008) ("Could We Survive")
  • True Blood (2008) ("Stumble and Pain")
  • Scrubs (2006) ("In the Sun")
  • The O.C. (2003) ("Honey And The Moon")
  • Wasted (2002) ("In the Sun")
  • The L Word ("In The Sun")

• Cinema
  • Shrek 2 (2004) ("You're So True")
  • Saved! (2004) ("In the Sun")
  • American Pie 3 (2003) ("Honey and the Moon")
  • The Bourne Identity (2002) ("In the Sun")
  • Shallow Hal (2001) ("Chemical")
  • The Bourne Identity (1999) ("Porcupine")
  • Bone Collector (1999) ("Bed of nails")
  • Hell's Kitchen (1998) ("Invisible Hands", "Lost Gypsy Weapon", "Eyes on My Back", "Pictures of Life", "Cinderella Under Glass", "Big City Secret", "Good About Me", "Crying Like a Man", "Porcupine")

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Joseph Arthur

• Joseph Arthur's official website
• Joseph Arthur's Tumblr blog
• Lonely Astronauts – fan website
• Lonely Astronaut Records website
• Joseph Arthur on IMDb

Mike Tompkins (born November 29, 1948) is a U.S. politician who was the Natural Law Party vice presidential candidate during the 1992 and 1996 presidential elections.

Education and career[link]

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, ^[1] he graduated from Harvard University in 1970 and completed his post-graduate studies at Maharishi European Research University (MERU) in Seelisberg, Switzerland in 1984, where he received a doctorate in the Science of Creative Intelligence.^[2] He became an associate director of the Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi that defines itself as a "progressive policy think tank."^[3]

Political campaigns[link]

In 1992, Tompkins joined John Hagelin as the first national candidates for the Natural Law Party. Hagelin, a quantum physicist, was the director of the Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy and director of the physics department at the Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa. Hagelin and Tompkins received ballot placement in 32 states and their campaign qualifed for federal matching funds.^[4]

In 1996, Hagelin and Tompkins ran again as the presidential and vice presidential candidates on the Natural Law Party. During a campaign stop at the University of Houston, Tompkins defended the party’s place in the U.S. political landscape by stating, "The Natural Law Party was founded as an alternative to the Republicans and Democrats, and an answer to the great many issues and great many solutions that were not being brought to the public. We are building this party as a permanent part of the American political landscape. We want to win and influence debate…(America has) the least democratic society. We have made a political system that excludes new voices, new people and new ideas."^[5]

Hagelin and Tomkins received 39,000 votes, or 0.04% of the total voter input, in 1992. In 1996, they were on the ballot in 44 states and received 110,000 votes, or 0.1% of the total voter input. In 2000, Hagelin ran for president again on the Natural Law Party, but Tompkins was replaced as the vice presidential candidate by Internet entrepreneur Nat Goldhaber.

References[link]