Artist Bio
Even now, after two decades in the music industry, Peter Gordeno is still a man in motion. As producer and songwriter, his credits include artists like JLS, Il Divo and Seal, while his work as a top session keyboard player, arranger and musical director has brought him into the orbit of U2, The Who and George Michael. In perhaps his longest-running role, Peter has toured with electronic legends Depeche Mode since 1998, ensuring that synth-pop classics like Personal Jesus retain their dark majesty in the modern age. As an analogue aficionado who lived through the digital revolution – not to mention a self-confessed “piano snob” – it takes a special kind of keyboard to catch Peter’s ear. Look out for the new Roland JD-XA and RD-800 in his setup when Depeche Mode hit the road in 2016.
Using the RD-2000 Stage Piano as his main keyboard on the band’s Global Spirit world tour, Peter is able to blend cutting-edge technology with an authentic acoustic playing feel.
“I take care of most of the piano stuff,” he says, “and it’s important for me to have a really nice hammer action. One of the highlights of the show is the acoustic songs that I do with Martin, and one of the excellent things about the RD-2000 is being able to play those songs with a really nice action. We’re quite early in the tour, so I’m still messing around with my favourite sounds in there. I think I’ll probably have decided on my favourite by the Madison Square Garden show…!”
Peter Gordeno on the RD-2000 Testimonial
"One of the highlights of the show is the acoustic songs that I do with Martin, and one of the excellent things about the RD-2000 is being able to play those songs with a really nice action.”
Peter Gordeno on the JD-XA Testimonial
"It's almost like this instrument was made for musicians like me who had an early fascination with the classic analogue Roland synths of the seventies and were also around for the digital revolution that happened after that. This synth gives me that warm fuzzy feeling that the classic Jupiter 8 and Junos always did and if I'm feeling a bit more manly, I can 'nasty' it up with some badass digital edginess!...it's like my whole career in one keyboard.It also has cool red lights which my Mum think look really pretty and keeping mums happy is important!”
— Peter Gordeno
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