From Encyclopedia Jr, free information reference for Kids
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid 1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more general term for a person who plays them. These keyboards include:
- electric pianos such as the Fender Rhodes and Wurlitzer electric piano
- electronic pianos such as the Roland Digital Piano
- Hammond and other organs such as the Farfisa and Vox Continental
- analog synthesizers such as Moog and ARP synthesizers
- digital electronic keyboards such as those produced today by Roland, Yamaha, Kurzweil and Korg
- samplers
- mellotron
- clavinet
- pianet
- piano (but see Pianist for a list of famous pianists)
- harpsichord
- celeste
- clavichord
- pipe organ
It has become stylish among hard-rock enthusiasts and musicians to adopt an attitude of scorn and derision towards keyboardists and keyboard music. As an example, guitarist Ted Nugent goes hunting and shoots a keyboard in one of his DVDs. However, in general, the keyboardist has seen something of a resurgence in rock music in recent years, with bands like Maroon 5, Athlete and The Killers featuring keyboards prominently.
[edit] Notable electronic keyboardists
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Main article: List of keyboardists
Note: while the term 'keyboardist' can cover a wide variety of instruments both acoustic and electronic, the following musicians are mostly known as electronic keyboardists, although they may also play piano or other acoustic keyboards.
[edit] Rock, Pop, Metal, Funk and Electronica
- Don Airey (Rainbow, Whitesnake, Deep Purple)
- Rod Argent (Argent, The Zombies)
- Nick Baines (Kaiser Chiefs)
- Karl Bartos
- Tony Banks (Genesis)
- Jesse Carmichael (Maroon 5)
- Vince Clarke (Erasure, Depeche Mode, Yazoo)
- Geoff Downes (Asia, The Buggles, Yes)
- Keith Emerson (Emerson, Lake & Palmer)
- The Edge (U2)
- Wolfgang Flür and Florian Schneider (Kraftwerk)
- Gillian Gilbert (New Order)
- Nicolas Godin (Air)
- Martin Gore and Andrew Fletcher (Depeche Mode)
- Jean-Michel Jarre
- Booker T. Jones
- Mark Kelly (Marillion)
- Robert Lamm (Chicago)
- Geddy Lee (Rush)
- Jon Lord (Deep Purple)
- Chris Lowe (Pet Shop Boys)
- Manfred Mann
- Ray Manzarek (The Doors)
- Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater}
- Gary Numan
- Billy Preston (solo artist and session player, noted for his work on The Beatles' Let It Be)
- Alan Price (The Animals)
- Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails)
- Nick Rhodes (Duran Duran)
- Sister Bliss (Faithless)
- Laurence Tolhurst (The Cure)
- Vangelis
- Rick Wakeman (Yes)
- Stevie Wonder
- Richard Wright (Pink Floyd)
[edit] Jazz
Generally speaking, in jazz music, electronic keyboard players are very often also pianists.
- Chick Corea
- Eumir Deodato (Deodato)
- Herbie Hancock
- Keith Jarrett
- Jimmy Smith
- Josef Zawinul (Weather Report)
[edit] Classical
- Wendy Carlos
[edit] See also
[edit] External links