Product Details

• Actors: Dream Theater
• Directors: Mike Portnoy
• Format: Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC, Full Screen
• Language: English
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 2
• Studio: Hal Leonard
• VHS Release Date: November 15, 1999
• Run Time: 175 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00003IE4L
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #409,423 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

2-video boxed set documents Portnoy's innovative drumming style. Volume One features music by Liquid Tension Experiment. Mike performs eight songs and breaks down parts from each, focusing on how to develop a toolkit of fills and patterns. Volume Two focuses on the music of Dream Theater, and deals with odd time signatures, double bass techniques, soloing, and much more. Both instructional drumming videos feature band studio footage. 89 and 86 minutes respectively.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Drummers who are Dream Theater Fans, BUY IT!, December 2, 1999

By 

GQ (Greenville, MI USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mike Portnoy: Liquid Drum Theater [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This video is great. Mike Portnoy breaks down drum parts from Liquid Tension and DT songs and shows how and what is going on. Some parts anwersed questions on how he did some things. The drum solo on part 2 with audience partipaction shows what a player and gentleman Mike Portnoy is.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rockin', November 24, 2001

By 

Jason Lindsey (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mike Portnoy - Liquid Drum Theater DVD (DVD)

This Two-Disc DVD set is really an improved version of the VHS tapes released two years ago, but now include bonus live performances, an audio commentary from Mike, camera angle switching options and photo gallery.

The cool thing about this DVD set is that it really underlines the potential for the DVD format in the area of instructional videos. For anyone who has used VHS to learn either an instrument or foreign language, you know how difficult it is to keep forwarding and "bookmarking" particular sections that you are trying to study. Nobody just watches a video from beginning to end while learning a particular subject. You will want to focus on sections, sometimes for weeks at a time. With the DVD format and chapter breaks, it's simple to do and frankly makes any instructional VHS tape obsolete.

The next fascinating thing about the DVD is the audio commentary. Already there are over 3 hours of playing and instructional information, but with the audio commentary on, you get a behind the scenes view of what it takes to make a video like this. One interesting tidbit was when Mike was talking about how a particular drum sequence was so difficult to get right in one take, that they actually took several different takes of him playing and spliced them together! You would have never guessed this unless you had the commentary on. The other great thing about it is just the ease at which Mike talks to the viewer and lets them in on all the details of being in a working rock band. He tells interesting stories of tours, recording sessions and drum technique. All of this is extremely interesting to practicing musician who just can't hear this stuff enough.

Another technology introduced on this DVD is the multiple camera angles provided in certain sections. Mike is known for his use of double bass work and being able to fix the camera on those sections that are difficult to the viewer is invaluable!

In conclusion, the DVD set is a MUST BUY for any musician hoping to improve their chops or just be entertained by the amazing drumming of Mike Portnoy. My girlfriend, who isn't even a musician, let alone drummer, actually enjoys just watching the DVD because of the great music. There is so much to this deep and useful instructional video that you will continue to view it for years to come.

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very clear and concise instruction and demonstrations, May 19, 2002

By 

Roland Benavides (Killeen, Texas USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mike Portnoy - Liquid Drum Theater DVD (DVD)

This is a tremendous video, with all the best angles for watching Mike and his double-bass technique. He shares with you the beginnings of Liquid Tension Experiment, along with the writing and thought process that's involved with both Dream Theater and LTE. This DVD contains the angle feature during his songs, that show all perspectives. Mike Portnoy goes into his "bag of tricks" and tells you the fills he incorporates in his music, as well as his drum solos. There is alot of classic footage of Mike Portnoy in the early days of Dream Theater. Did I mention that this is a double DVD? 190 minutes long, with bonus footage! A must have for any Dream Theater fan. Another side note: at the end of the DVD, your given a password that gives you access to all of the sheet music, for all of the songs on these DVDs.