January 7, 2011
Spotted this on the Suhr Gallery, some pics from June last year of Ed Yoon and Guthrie Govan having a look around the new Suhr Rasmus factory during their Asia tour:
November 1, 2010
Now this is a Vai’s fan dream come true.
Steve Vai has teamed up with his old school Berklee to offer a 12 week online course:
October 6, 2010
I’ve been meaning to blog about this.
An official documentary about the truly inspirational Jason Becker is in the works. Details of which can be checked out at www.JasonBeckerMovie.com:
‘Perpetual Burn: The Story of Jason Becker’ from Jason Becker: Perpetual Burn on Vimeo.
Funds are needed to help with production of the film and I wholeheartedly recommend you chip in whatever you can. Jason Becker’s story is a testament to a wonderful musician and player who didn’t let obstacles get in his way. Whenever you think you are having a bad playing day look to Jason for *true* inspiration.
‘Perpetual Burn: The Story of Jason Becker’ is a new feature-length documentary film about the legendary guitar hero, Jason Becker. It will feature interviews with Jason, his family and friends, and many of the amazing musicians he’s worked with over the years. There will be plenty of great Jason Becker performance footage from Cacophony through to his solo work, as well as tons of unseen footage and unreleased music from the Becker archives.
But we need your help to make it happen.
We’re sick and tired of being turned away by producers and commissioners who only want to make films about Lady GaGa and the Jonas Brothers and not about real musicians and heroes like Jason. So we need YOU, the fans, to help make sure this film gets made and Jason’s story and music is seen and heard by millions around the world.
HOW THESE FUNDS WILL BE USED
All funds raised via IndieGoGo will go toward the principal production of the film scheduled to begin end of November 2010. This includes travel and accommodation for our small film crew, camera & lighting equipment rental, camera stock, insurance, and rights clearances for news broadcasts, archival footage and music. Funding will also go toward post-production, animation work, sound mixing and language translation.
We realize times are tough for some people but even $5 will be an enormous help in making the dream of telling Jason’s story to the world a reality.
WHAT YOU GET
In exchange for your generous contributions, we are offering some rare Jason Becker memorabilia as well as advance copies of the Limited Edition DVD and Blu-Ray, Limited Edition Jason Becker Movie T-Shirts, Film Posters, Jason Becker CDs, and credits in the film.
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE
We are making this film for Jason. We want to be able to bring his music and spirit to the rest of the world and film is a very powerful way of doing this. With your support, we can make a film that can screen at film festivals and cinemas all over the world opening up new possibilities not just for Jason, but for other sufferers of ALS. It’s important that people are made aware of this disease but also to show that people with ALS can still live fulfilling lives and do amazing things. This film will not be able to fund itself so we need your help to make it happen.
SUPPORTING PARTNERS
This film is supported by the San Francisco Film Society so all donations are tax deductible. You can make a donation on behalf of yourself, your company or your band. We are supported by the Les Turner ALS Foundation, the ALS Film Fund, the MND Association, and the ALS Association.
LANGUAGES
The film will be translated into over 10 languages including Spanish, Portuguese, Bahasa Indonesia, Italian, Turkish, Japanese, French, and German. If we’ve left any out please let us know!
HOW ELSE YOU CAN HELP
You can also help by directing people to this page or our website www.JasonBeckerMovie.com
Help us make this film and to help introduce more people around the world to Jason and his ability to inspire through his music, his mind, and his awe-inspiring determination and spirit.
Thank you.
One of my favourite Jason Becker clips, casual use of the yo-yo 
September 30, 2010
Master transcriber Adrian Clark ( who transcribes for jamtrackcentral.com, Guitarist Magazine and Guitar Techniques amongst other top publications ) has just relaunched his custom transciption website at http://www.custom-transcription.com.
If you want *accurate* transcriptions at a great price then get in touch. Adrian’s reputation speaks for itself:
Struggling to figure out that amazing lick you recorded at last night’s rehearsal? Perhaps I can help…
Complete songs, solos or just a riff… it’s up to you!
Powertab, Guitar Pro… high quality PDF always provided.
Guitar arrangements from keyboard or other instruments.
Most bass styles also covered… contact me for details.
Optional theory, scale or technique information.
Here are a couple of example transcriptions in PowerTab format:
September 30, 2010
Recently posted up on Vai.com some great old rare photos of Steve Vai:
August 26, 2010
The Registry of Guitar Tutors has just launched a new Performance Diploma for Jazz Guitar:
RGT offers a series of fully-accredited post-Grade Eight Performance Diplomas that reflect the specific musical skills needed by jazz guitarists.
There are four levels of Jazz Guitar Performance Diploma available:
Diploma Of The London College Of Music – DipLCM
Associate Of The London College Of Music – ALCM
Licentiate Of The London College Of Music – LLCM
Fellowship Of The London College Of Music – FLCM
Each diploma provides guitarists with the opportunity to gain an internationally recognised professional qualification and to develop their jazz playing skills to an advanced level. The Diplomas are awarded by London College of Music Exams and are accredited by Thames Valley University.
The syllabus is available here.
August 10, 2010
Pro Tone Pedals have revamped their website with a great new layout and shop section detailing each of their pedals with some amazing demos by top players:
