Multi-instrumentalist Geert Bevin, who has been working with Roger Linn on the firmware of the LinnStrument controller, shared this video of Jordan Rudess‘ first couple of minutes on the new instrument.
Check out how Rudess goes from ‘zero to shred’ in about 60 seconds!
For some background on the new controller, see our post on Roger Linn introducing the LinnStrument.
Jordan Rudess did the most cringeworthy Korg demo on the Kronos and if I had a dime for everytime he mentioned he was in his shit band I could buy the Kronos.
Not a big fan of Rudess piano playing, but I was very impressed by this performance. I feel like I finally saw a good example of how expressive one can get on that linnstrument.
You found that pentatonic bendfest impressive? uh, ok…
You thought that was in a pentatonic scale? lol, indeed!
Ok. Now you’re getting quite specific. Yes, it was a pentatonic scale 90% of the time. The other 10% it was diatonic.
That’s ok. The main take home is that he shows that the instrument is responsive and not that hard to figure out.
‘Yes, it was a pentatonic scale 90% of the time. The other 10% it was diatonic.’
Except when he was using a blues scale.
Impressive skills! You can see and hear him get more confident with the LinnStrument as the video goes on, until he’s wailing away on it after a bit.
I’m starting to get interested in this. If they do a few videos that really show of this thing’s playability, they’ll have all the demand that they can handle.
Just buy an electric guitar, memorize a couple scale “shapes” and you’ll be doing that generic noodling in no time.
I need to find out more on the Linnstrument, and so far, what I’ve seen does’nt convince me its that much better than a good MIDI keyboard, or the Abelton Push. Looks cool, but it does not have that ‘Oh Wow’ factor for me, that the ROLI Seaboard has… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8n-bEy9ISpM Of course, the Seaboard is so expensive, so I’ll probably never have the chance to own one of those.
But I’m open to being swayed over on this. Roger Linn is one of the key creative thinkers in the industry, and therefore I’m willing to be convinced this instrument is something worth buying.
I got to spend a while with the Linnstrument last week, and it’s really fun to play, and I could imagine dropping money on one (unlike a lot of recent alternative controllers like the Eigenharp, which I can’t see achieving any kind of virtuosity on).
Jordan obviously has a lot of experience with unusual and poly-touch pitch layouts due to his iPad involvement, but he does come from a keyboard background and I bet that influences his approach. I’ve been wondering recently how a Chapman Stick player might come at a Linnstrument, as they share some similarities. I wonder what kind of difference that would make versus a keyboardist background.
Jeff Moen plays Chapman Stick, Warr Guitar, and other “touch guitars”. He’s posted some YouTube videos of himself playing LinnStrument; they’re worth checking out.
Rudess was also an early proponent of the C-Thru AXIS alternate keypad, who are unfortunately going out of business in a few days at the end of January. In some ways, particularly where new instrumental paradigms are concerned, musicians can reveal very conservative tendencies.
Good call about the Chapman Stick. The Linnstrument basic setup is the equivalent of 8 “strings” offset by 4ths. This can be changed – there’s an 8 string guitar preset in there, too, although I haven’t futzed with it yet. I don’t think there’s a built-in preset to put the “bass strings” in the middle (ala a Stick), but I think it would not be difficult to set up. I’m having a really good time with just the basic layout/tuning. Im actually a better guitar player than keyboard player, and I’m finding my guitar skills work pretty well on the Linnstrument.
Jordan really seemed to pick it up pretty quickly. He was just noodling so it’s not like he laid down The Most Epic Solo Ever – but he really seemed to “get” how it worked. And fast.
My goatee just got Longer watching this video.
Rudess is very talented, but I can’t say that I’m a fan of anything that he has written.
Jordan Rudess, the Endorser!
The haters on this site are hilarious… it’s irrelevant what you think of his music or whether playing pentatonics are beneath you. It’s a video that someone grabbed of him playing with the Linnstrument that shows it off a bit. That’s it. Not a product demo or some kind of endorsement plug or a plug for his new album all done on the Linnstrument, it’s just him noodling on something I don’t know if he’s used before.
I liked it. it looks like it would be fun to mess around with.
Why demo this amazing instrument with an electric guitar sound? Meh. Like the world needs more guitar solos.
Not sure why reading comprehension is failing so many commenters today, but this video isn’t a demo or an ‘endorsement’. Rudess stopped by the LinnStrument booth and the LinnStrument guys filmed him checking the thing out – like anybody with a booth at NAMM would do!
You’d expect that most electronic musicians would understand that, since this is a MIDI controller, you can use it with any sounds that you like.
What this is, instead, is a good example of how in a trained musician’s hands, the LinnStrument can be a very expressive and playable instrument. And that it looks like it should be pretty easy to adjust to the keyboard layout.
Synthtopia, the new Youtube. Where trolls troll and haters hate.
This video and the video of Roger testing out the wireless MIDI prototype with his Linnstrument shows how cool this device can be. Roger should sell enough of these to make back his development costs and maybe a bit of profit.