Stratovarius Community

I talked with guitarist Herman Li in Wacken, and he was really nice and easy-going. And he wasn't like: "okay, take your questions, I'll answer them, but don't expect more from me". He was asking some things too, like how was the weather in the mud.

Jens is incredible and a very inspiring musician. I don't consider any musician the best, but yes Jens is of the greatest keyboard players around. I also enjoy the works of Vitalij Kuprij and Richard Andersson. Michael Pinnella from Symphony X also has some nice stuff.

The DF guys are in no way arrogant they're totally kool to hang with!

Sorry for a stupid question but where (band or project) does this f*ucking good Vitaliy Kupriy play?

IceBreaker wrote:Sorry for a stupid question but where (band or project) does this f*ucking good Vitaliy Kupriy play?

Vitalij has a band named Artension and many solo albums. He also has some classical piano albums. Also plays in the band Ring of Fire (Really good stuff). He's an amazing keyboardist/pianist. I'm really in awe of his abilities and the intense feeling of his playing.

i can only say that johansson is a master of the keyboards, BUT, i think that Jordan Rudess really kick some mother fucking ass, not to mention Rick Wakeman whic is one of my faves.

i just put this names out, rick wakeman, jordan rudess and kevin moore, if you dont have hear anything of this guys, you should.

Jens!
Jens!
Jens!

adrian9 wrote:i can only say that johansson is a master of the keyboards, (...) not to mention Rick Wakeman which is one of my faves.

Jens is my fave keyboardist ever, and I agree about Rick, Yes is fucking awesome!
It's only a shame I don't hear anything from him for a loong time...

Jens is GOD

Song like glory of the world, run away, keep the flame, curtings are falling and why are we here are really kikck ass songs!!!

I hope that Jens create two songs for the new album....

Do you hear his works on barilari solo proyect? the last viking? and the solos of winterhearts night really good!

Lord_ZX wrote:Jens is GOD
and the solos of winterhearts night really good!

At least the opening solo on The Cage rocks like hell, it´s very professional made. Bonrik Klingenberg can never play it as good as Jens have done it. That´s for sure.

IceBreaker wrote:

Lord_ZX wrote:Jens is GOD
and the solos of winterhearts night really good!

At least the opening solo on The Cage rocks like hell, it´s very professional made. Bonrik Klingenberg can never play it as good as Jens have done it. That´s for sure.

Yeah, that's true. He could play it good only once (I heard him playing it live 4 times, and on some clips), but as good as Jens...

no one can top Jens....his playing technique and style is so developed, that only he knows how to make everything sound so great. Especially his vibrato, which no one can match unless they made that pitch wheel of his

oh c'mon you are so into detail!!!! hahahaha :p just... aftertouch and don't make a mess of your life!!

btw is your jensalike changed keyboard working fine?

htcdude wrote:*coughVadimPruzhanovcough*

*coughnowherenearasgoodororiginalcough*

NeonVomit wrote:

htcdude wrote:*coughVadimPruzhanovcough*

*coughnowherenearasgoodororiginalcough*

htcdude wrote:

NeonVomit wrote:

htcdude wrote:*coughVadimPruzhanovcough*

*coughnowherenearasgoodororiginalcough*

You have to face the truth that NeonVomit is right.

Some of you people REALLY don't get it.

That mp3 file I really like is here http://www.heptagon.se/audio/016_10.mp3

The keyboard stuff starts about 5 minutes into the track. I can guarantee that if Vadim or any of these other clowns put this on half speed and figured out how it worked it would do them a lot of good.

Here are just three examples of very unusual phrases in the beginning of this amazing solo, there are many.

5:27; ok, the meter is 17/4.. here there are 33 notes very evenly spanning 10 of those 1/4 beats.. and ending up on the right note.. sounding as easy and natural as anything.

5:55; 18 quarter note beats (which by the way go across the line between two of those 17/4 bars).. a 26 note figure which somehow still ends up sounding "right" in the 17/4 pulse.

6:11; 10 beats here, with 27 fast notes over them.. again somehow landing exactly on the feet.

To be able to do this thing for 5 minutes in 17/4 and 13/4 and to make it sound easy.. on a throwaway track... it is just insane. The guy has to be something like an idiot savant. And no offense I sometimes wonder what he is doing in Stratovarius where this talent doesn't get used nearly at all.

yep, absolutely right. Jens was working with Mastermind when he got a call from Timo Tolkki asking him to join stratovarius. Timo also offered him a ridiculous amount of money to play in the band, because Jens was like a God to him. When tolkki put an ad in the paper, it read "Keyboard player needed that plays like Jens Johansson" but he never thought that he could actually get Jens to join, and he did. Jens likes the music too, so thats why he's in the band really.

I just got Jonas Hellborg's album - e

JENS YOU'RE THE FUCKING BEST!

Yeah, Jens is really great. But why doesn't he get a nicer keyboard?? The Dx7 he uses are just too old. In the Mexico concert he was always sticking the midi cable in, it seemed that the midi ports are worn off. Besides he uses a JV1080 that also is quite old. There are so many new cool stuff out. It should be nice to watch him with a new controller keyboard or a new synth. I mean those DX7 are going to break down with time.
His other keyboard is the korg O1/W that is form 1990 more or less. But he just used them as a controller, so why not get a dedicated controller that is better and NEW, new keys, new buttons!! I don't know, but I love the feeling of a new keyboard.

I bet, it's another funny thing from him using that DX7. It looks so cheap, but still, he plays better on it than anybody else on a much more expensive synth.

Vadim is not as good as Jens though you can NOT put music as a form of competition... To make it in music you got to innovate not emulate... both stratovarius and dragonforce are pretty much innovaters... Dragonforce does som crazy stunts on their twin guitar solos... Innovate don't emulate(so what if I got i from the box wich my fender amp came in)

To me, Jens is GOD
there is nothing to say, but to say that he's my Idol, my hero....(yeah, I'm such a fan of him )
But I want to listen the works of the other players yo've mentiones. would you put some liks to listen to?

Is he plugging back that cable?