Dream Theater's mammoth An Evening With Dream Theater tour kicks off next month in Portugal. With so much music to rehearse (including the epic 22-minute cut Ilumination Theory), you'd think that keyboard master Jordan Rudess wouldn't have time for anything else. Yet here he is, releasing All That Is Now, a 13-track album that's all about the man and his piano - in this case, a nine-foot Steinway concert grand.
Rudess created All That Is Now as part of a PledgeMusic crowdsourcing campaign that saw almost 1,000 fans pledge between $10 to $5,000 in exchange for updates on his recording process and a host of goodies such as private lessons and backstage passes. The campaign also raised money for Rudess' upcoming orchestral album which will be released early in 2014.
"This album is very close to my heart," Rudess says. "For years, I searched until I found the instrument of my dreams that would be the perfect extension of my musical thought, playing literally every piano I could find all over the world. I found my concert grand seven years ago, and ever since, my deepest musical connection occurs when I play my Steinway.
"It is my lifetime goal to purely translate the music in my mind, to my hands and then onto the keyboard. This album captures the magic of that connection. The recording was done simply in the piano room of my house using just my Steinway D and Earthworks microphones."
In addition, Rudess is is releasing an interactive iOS app, Jordan Rudess Explores, through Wizdom Music. The app enables an interactive aural and visual experience with the music from the CD.
You can purchase All That Is Now via iTunes. For the Jordan Rudess Explores app, visit Wizdom Music.
