Is this On The Backs of Angels by Dream Theater? Actually chords used point directly to John Petrucci

It is most definitely not Jethro Tull's Aqualung (which I have actually transcribed though in the past!).

 

The song in my transcription was released in the fall of 2011 and was nominated for a Grammy Award at last year's show. The guitarist who played it is widely regarded as one of the best in rock/metal music today and knowing and working with him is absolutely one of the highlights of my career as a transcriber.

 

"Public Enemy #1 by Megadeth (w/Dave Mustaine)??.....(thank you, Wikipedia).

 

Am I correct? And if I am, do I win a free PMDG 777?

There seems to be a need for an AVSIM Music Forum!

Is this On The Backs of Angels by Dream Theater? Actually chords used point directly to John Petrucci

 

Ding, ding! Winner!

 

The solo in the transcription starts at 6:19:

 

Here's me on stage at a show from their last tour playing through JP's rig (JP took the pic!):

That's what I call souvenir

What?! It's not jethro tull? Ok now I have to play it on my keyboard when I get home.

In my head it sounded like Tull.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone...typing errors imminent

Here's me on stage at a show from their last tour playing through JP's rig (JP took the pic!):

 

Ryan.....We always thought of you as kind of a "rock star" because of your work with the PMDG team. We never realized just how right we were....lol

Ryan.....We always thought of you as kind of a "rock star" because of your work with the PMDG team. We never realized just how right we were....lol

Ha ha. It just goes to show how some people involved in some of the most intellectual (and somewhat nerdy) hobbies lead vastly different lives in the real world.

Ha ha. It just goes to show how some people involved in some of the most intellectual (and somewhat nerdy) hobbies lead vastly different lives in the real world.

 

I consider music to be pretty nerdy too at least to get really good at it. Music theory is a pretty complicated subject with nerdy sounding phrases like "Mixolydian mode", "sweep arpeggio", "whole tone scale", etc. This is before you even start talking about guitar gear - there may not be a nerdier group of people alive than guitar gear fanatics. Listen to people debate the optimum plate voltage for preamp and power tubes in an amplifier for a while and you'll long for discussions of VNAV path mode logic haha.

I consider music to be pretty nerdy too at least to get really good at it. Music theory is a pretty complicated subject with nerdy sounding phrases like "Mixolydian mode", "sweep arpeggio", "whole tone scale", etc.

Theory tests have always seemed daunting to me. We were required to complete occasional theory tests for music class using a computer program called Musition, which involved analyzing chords and inversions, key signatures, and various forms of scales, as well as tapping to crazy computer-generated rhythms using the space bar and failing miserably. I believe my piano teacher mentioned Lydian mode regarding the Chopin nocturne I am currently playing, but I had not heard of Mixolydian mode before—this is getting nerdy quite quickly!

 

But whenever rock stars are mentioned, I tend to picture a lifestyle vastly different compared to that of most enthusiasts of our little hobby, even though I know there are great complexities involving music composition, lyrics, and theory.

 

This is before you even start talking about guitar gear - there may not be a nerdier group of people alive than guitar gear fanatics.

It seems as if there is a passionate enthusiast group for almost every single "hobby"!

Ding, ding! Winner!

 

The solo in the transcription starts at 6:19:

 

Here's me on stage at a show from their last tour playing through JP's rig (JP took the pic!):

Very nice Ryan ! Nice pic !

Dream Theater is pretty freaking awesome. That's cool to hear.

It's been a while since I last played guitar regularly, but it was a huge passion of mine when I was young. I'm self taught, playing by ear with assistance from tabs and watching lots of "Headbanger's Ball". I was first bit by the bug when I saw Metallica's "One" video in 1989, and have learned just about every song of theirs on guitar and bass, at least up to the Load/Reload albums.

 

I was bored a few weeks back and picked up my Epiphone Les Paul Standard to see if I still had it, and I can kind of remember some things (Metallica is mostly root fifth chords so that is very easy), but the strings felt painful on my fingers! Anyways, tabs were a savior for me, as I had no interest in learning how to read music proper. I have deep respect for Ryan's work, as Dream Theater is some very complex stuff. I know some parts of "Pull me Under", and a friend I used to jam with was obsessed with DT. I'm sure he owns some of Ryan's books.

Very cool discussion.

 

I'm in the market to learn how to play the bass... Any suggestions of a cheap(er) way to start?

 

Lee

There's no cheap way, always buy as good equipment as you can afford, or even better! This way, you wont be limited by your gear, also there will be no excuses like: "I can't play this, because my bass sucks...", and if you wanna be really good, expect to sacrifice a lot. Being "touched by god" and having natural talent is good, but without long hours spend on practicing, means nothing.