The Canadian Progressive Rock trio Rush has written, recorded, and performed several instrumentals throughout its career. This article includes information about each of them. Rush is a Canadian progressive rock band comprising bassist, keyboardist and vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. ... An instrumental is, in contrast to a song, a musical composition or piece without lyrics or any other sort of vocal music; all of the music is produced by musical instruments. ...

2112

Overture

"2112 Overture" opens up one of Rush's most popular concept suites. It features one of the first uses of synthesizer by the band in addition to light acoustic guitar toward the end. Geddy Lee's voice is recorded as an instrument in the early parts of the Overture, as he sings no words. However, there is, despite the Overture's overall instrumental nature, only one line sung at the end of the Overture as the piece transitions to "The Temples of Syrinx": "And the meek shall inherit the earth." A synthesizer (spelling var. ...

Grand Finale

Like the Overture, the Grand Finale of 2112 features some of the band's most "intense" music of the 1970s. It also includes some spoken (not sung) lines at the end: "Attention all planets of the Solar Federation: We have assumed control."

La Villa Strangiato

An instrumental from the Hemispheres album that is almost ten minutes long. The instrumental's subtitle is "An exercise in Self-Indulgence". The song was inspired by a dream guitarist Alex Lifeson had, and the parts to the song and the music in these parts act out the occurrences in his dream. The opening segment was played with a plectrum on a nylon-string classical guitar, while the live versions were played on an electric guitar. This segment is basically a Spanish-flavored tour-de-force based on E Phrygian. The next segment introduces the main theme of La Villa, the Strangiato theme. The song progresses to include an increasingly complex guitar solo backed by string synthesizer, followed closely by bass and drum fills. The Strangiato theme is then revisted before the song ends abruptly with phased bass and drums. The song is divided as follows: Hemispheres is the sixth studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1978 (see 1978 in music). ... A plectrum (plural: plectra) is a device for plucking or strumming a stringed instrument. ... Due to historical confusion, Phrygian mode can refer to two very different musical modes or diatonic scales. ... Martin EB18 Bass Guitar in flight case The electric bass guitar (also called The electric bass or simply The bass) is an electrically amplified fingered (or plucked) string instrument. ...

• I: "Buenos Nochas, Mein Froinds!" - (0:00)
• II: "To sleep, perchance to dream..." - (0:27)
• III: "Strangiato theme" - (2:00)
• IV: "A Lerxst in Wonderland" - (3:16)
• V: "Monsters!" - (5:49)
• VI: "The Ghost of the Aragon" - (6:10)
• VII: "Danforth and Pape" - (6:45)
• VIII: "The Waltz of the Shreves" - (7:26)
• IX: "Never turn your back on a Monster!" - (7:52)
• X: "Monsters! (Reprise)" - (8:03)
• XI: "Strangiato theme (Reprise)" - (8:17)
• XII: "A Farewell to Things" - (9:20)

"Monsters" contains segments of the song "Powerhouse" by Raymond Scott. Powerhouse is a composition by Raymond Scott which is most famous for appearing in more than 35 Warner Brothers cartoons, often used as the accompaniment for scenes depicting machinery or heavy industry. ...

Live versions of "La Villa Strangiato" have often featured certain additions—for instance, in Exit...Stage Left, Geddy Lee sings nonsense lyrics in one portion of the song, while on recent tours, as documented on Rush in Rio, a pause is inserted in the song for Alex Lifeson to make a stream-of-consciousness rant. Exit. ... Rush in Rio is a live album by Canadian band Rush, released in 2003 (see 2003 in music). ...

The studio version was allegedly recorded (after thorough rehearsal) in a single take, without overdubs. However according to an interview with Neil Peart in Modern Drummer magazine, Peart states that after many attempts to do a single take on this very complex piece, none of them measured up and ended up using 3 takes edited together.^{[citation needed]}

According to Rush: Visions: The Official Biography by Bill Banasiewicz, "La Villa Strangiato" translates roughly to "Weird City".

YYZ

Main article: YYZ (song)

From the Moving Pictures album. YYZ is the airport code for the Toronto International Airport, and the instrumental opens with a rhythm in 10/8 that is actually the Morse code for "YYZ" (-.-- -.-- --..). The piece evolved into a drum/bass solo during future tours, and is one of Rush's most popular instrumentals. "YYZ" was the first of four Rush songs (over three decades) to be nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best Rock Instrumental Performance. It was nominated in 1981, losing to The Police's Behind My Camel. YYZ is an instrumental song that eventually turns into a drum and bass solo that appears on the Rush album Moving Pictures. ... Neil Pearts drum kit, Moving Pictures tour Moving Pictures is the eighth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1981 (see 1981 in music). ... An IATA airport code, also known an IATA location identifier or simply a location identifier [1], is a three-letter alphabetic code designating many airports around the world. ... Toronto Pearson International Airport, or Toronto/Lester B. Pearson International Airport (IATA: YYZ, ICAO: CYYZ), straddling Mississaugas northeastern boundary with neighbouring Toronto, is Canadas busiest airport and part of the National Airports System. ... Grammy Award statuette The Grammy Awards, presented by the Recording Academy (an association of Americans professionally involved in the recorded music industry) for outstanding achievements in the recording industry, is one of four major music awards shows held annually in the United States (the Billboard Music Awards, the American Music...

Broon's Bane

Found on the Exit...Stage Left live album, "Broon's Bane" is a short classical guitar arrangement performed by Alex Lifeson as an extended intro to "The Trees". The song is named after Terry Brown (Brown is also referred to as "T.C. Broonsie" during the intro to Jacob's Ladder) who produced Exit...Stage Left and ten other Rush albums. It is not featured on any other live or studio recording by Rush. Exit. ... Alexander Zivojinovich OC (b. ... Terry Brown may refer to the following people: Terry Brown is a record producer known most notably for his work with the Canadian rock band Rush Terence (Terry) Brown is the chairman of West Ham United football club. ... Rush is a Canadian progressive rock band comprising bassist, keyboardist and vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. ...

Where's My Thing?

From the Roll the Bones album. The subtitle for this instrumental is "Part IV, 'Gangster of Boats' Trilogy." Neil Peart has explained this as a joke — there are only three items in a trilogy, not four (though, some examples beg to differ, such as a common calling of The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy as a five-part trilogy, so such oddities like the "Gangster of Boats" trilogy could take place). "Gangster of Boats" comes from the persistent threat from Geddy and Alex to title an album Gangster of Boats and never became an actual "concept" the same way that Rush's "Fear" trilogy had. [1] Where's My Thing? was the second song nominated for a Grammy, in 1991, losing to Eric Johnson's Cliffs of Dover. Roll the Bones is the fourteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1991 (see 1991 in music). ... The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy originated as a 1978 radio comedy series written by Douglas Adams. ...

Leave That Thing Alone!

From the Counterparts album. During the Counterparts, Test for Echo, and Vapor Trails tours, Leave that Thing Alone preceded Neil Peart's drum solo. The live version of the song featured more prominent bass when compared to the studio version. Leave That Thing Alone! was the third song nominated for a Grammy, in 1994, losing to Pink Floyd's Marooned. Counterparts is the fifteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1993 (see 1993 in music). ... Counterparts is the fifteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1993 (see 1993 in music). ... Test for Echo is the sixteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1996 (see 1996 in music). ... Vapor Trails is the seventeenth studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush released in 2002 (see 2002 in music). ...

Limbo

From the Test for Echo album. Like the "2112 Overture", "Limbo" features vocals by Geddy Lee; however, his voice is being used as an instrument because he is not singing any words, allowing the song to be categorized as an instrumental. The song also includes samples from Bobby "Boris" Pickett oldie The Monster Mash, 'Whatever happened to my Transylvania twist' & 'Ahh, Mash Good!'. Test for Echo is the sixteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1996 (see 1996 in music). ... Geddy Lee in concert with Rush. ...

R30 Overture

The opening song of Rush's 2004 tour dates featured an instrumental combining sections of one song from each of the band's first six albums.

The songs featured in the medley were:

1. Finding My Way (Rush)
2. Anthem (Fly by Night)
3. Bastille Day (Caress of Steel)
4. A Passage to Bangkok (2112)
5. Cygnus X-1 Prologue (A Farewell to Kings)
6. Hemispheres Prelude (Hemispheres)

Rush, released in 1974, was the groups first album. ... Fly by Night is the second studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released in February 1975 (see 1975 in music). ... Caress of Steel was the third album by Rush, released in 1975. ... For the year 2112, see 22nd century. ... A Farewell To Kings is the fifth studio album by the Canadian band Rush, released in 1977 (see 1977 in music). ... Hemispheres is the sixth studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1978 (see 1978 in music). ...

Neil Peart's drum solos

A staple and highlight of Rush's concerts is a drum solo by Neil Peart. These solos have been featured on every live album released by the band. On the early live albums (All the World's a Stage and Exit...Stage Left), the drum solo was included as part of a song ("Working Man/Finding My Way" and "YYZ", respectively). On all subsequent live albums, the drum solo has been included on a separate track. On A Show of Hands and Different Stages, the drum solos were titled "The Rhythm Method" (a pun on the form of birth control); on Rush in Rio, it was entitled "O Baterista"; on R30 Live In Frankfurt it was titled "Der Trommler" (the last two titles are nods to the native language of the country in which the album was recorded - Portuguese and German, respectively, and translate to "The Drummer"). (Actually, the idiomatic German word for a drummer playing a drumkit ("Schlagzeug") is "ein Schlagzeuger", not "ein Trommler" --- the latter is somebody who plays a single drum in, e.g., a marching band.) O Baterista was the fourth song nominated for a Grammy, in 2004, losing to Brian Wilson's Mrs. O'Leary's Cow. A drum solo is an instrumental solo played on a drum kit. ... Neil Peart in concert with Rush. ... All the worlds a stage is the phrase that begins a famous soliloquy from William Shakespeares As You Like It, spoken by the melancholy Jacques. ... Exit. ... A Show of Hands is a live album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1989 (see 1989 in music). ... Different Stages is a live album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1998 (see 1998 in music). ... Natural family planning (NFP), sometimes described as periodic abstinence, is a form of birth control that involves recognizing the natural signs in a womans fertility. ... Rush in Rio is a live album by Canadian band Rush, released in 2003 (see 2003 in music). ... Rush (30th Anniversary Tour) R30: Live in Frankfurt is a live DVD by the Canadian band Rush, that was released on November 22nd 2005 in Canada and the U.S. and November 28th 2005 in Europe and the UK. The DVD was released in a standard and deluxe set. ...

All of Peart's drum solos include a basic framework of routines connected by sections of improvisation, leaving each performance unique. Each successive tour sees the solo more advanced, with some routines dropped in favor of newer, more complex ones. Since the mid-late 1980s Peart has utilized MIDI trigger pads to trigger sounds sampled from various pieces of acoustic percussion that would otherwise consume far too much stage area, such as a marimba, harp, temple blocks, triangles, glockenspiel, orchestra bells, tubular bells, and vibra-slap as well as other, more esoteric percussion. Some purely electronic, description-defying sounds are also used. All are incorporated into each drum solo. Note names and MIDI note numbers massive erection Musical Instrument Digital Interface, or MIDI, is an industry-standard electronic communications protocol that defines each musical note or event in an electronic musical instrument or show device such as a synthesizer, precisely and concisely, allowing electronic musical instruments, computers and other... A Sound module (sometimes referred to as tone generator) is an electronic musical instrument without a human-playable interface such as a keyboard, for example. ... The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. ... The harp is a stringed instrument which has its strings positioned perpendicular to the soundboard. ... The temple block is a percussion instrument originating in China, Japan and Korea where it has a part in religious ceremonies. ... The triangle is an idiophonic musical instrument of the percussion family. ... Most orchestral glockenspiels are mounted in a case. ... A bell is a simple sound-making device. ... Tubular bells (also known as chimes) are musical instruments in the percussion family. ... A Vibraslap manufactured by LP LP Vibraslap showing metal teeth A vibraslap is a percussion instrument consisting of a piece of stiff wire (bent in a handle-like shape) connecting a wood ball to a block of wood with metal teeth inside. ...

Peart has utilized the marimba section of one of his solo tracks titled "Pieces of Eight" (which first appeared as a flexidisc record found in the May 1987 issue of Modern Drummer magazine) in every solo since 1987-88. Tours since the 1989 studio release of Presto have included a complex pattern from the song "Scars" as part of the solo. Another of Peart's marimba-based solo tracks, titled "Momo's Dance Party", has been used as part of the solo since the 1996 tour in support of Test for Echo. Since the Vapor Trails tour, each solo has been concluded with a section of the Count Basie standard "One o'Clock Jump", which Peart recorded while producing Burning For Buddy, a two-volume tribute album to legendary big band drummer and bandleader, Buddy Rich. Modern Drummer is the oldest magazine (still being published) devoted to the subject of drumming and percussion. ... Presto is the thirteenth studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1989 (see 1989 in music). ... Test for Echo is the sixteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1996 (see 1996 in music). ... Vapor Trails is the seventeenth studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush released in 2002 (see 2002 in music). ... William Count Basie (August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, and bandleader. ... One oClock Jump is a 1957 (see 1957 in music) album by the American jazz and blues singer Joe Williams, with the Count Basie Orchestra. ... A big band is a large musical ensemble that plays jazz music. ... Bernard Buddy Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. ...