It took me 10 minutes to get it under my fingers. So why did it take Vai "hours and hours" ? Because Steve knows he has to play it perfectly, standing, his hands tired because it's not the first song of the concert, etc. It didn't take him "hours and hours" to get it under his fingers, but to be able to play it with the level of perfection he is known for. He could be dead drunk and still be able to play it flawlessly.
"I have to do this. This is what I'm here for" LOL It's refreshing when you see someone with a sense of duty. Thanks for the video and all the music over the years. BTW, the online lesson was great. Again, Thanks
I have been teaching guitar for the past year and half to mostly young kids and when steve said in the video that he practiced getting each note perfect before speeding it up is awesome. When us mere mortals watch him on stage and videos we get to see the end result of years and years and years of practice and hard work. I preach this to every student that anyone can learn to be a technical guitar wizard if they put the time in like Vai and others did
It is really good of him to make videos like this. When you see guitar gods it can naturally be discouraging since they play so effortlessly, so knowing that it took him hours of struggle to get it right is very inspiring.
One of the things I like about Steve is that he really works on his stuff. A lot of us think he´s gifted (wich he is) but he´s very disciplined and we want to nail his work without any effort when he himself has to work very hard to get his work well done. He´s an example of constance and effort.
Not only I learned how to play this piece, but I've been also able to use the technique in a few songs of mine. It's really not that hard when you get used to it. It's kinda like playing the piano. :)
Its tough isn't it?! But yeah...its one of those things (reminded of learning a tough piano piece as a matter of fact) and then one day it "clicks" and you got it!
dajzilla the cool part about is you can practice it without the actual instrument, at least the sequence of notes itself. Just practice on any solid surface, and start tapping with your fingers, as if you're drumming. Practice alternating the fingers between 2 on the left hand and 3 on right hand. It's kind of like tapping your head while rubbing your tummy!
I have just been trying to count the timing of the groove whenever I listen to the song to get used to how it's played over a big halftime groove. It's been a long journey JUST for that.
for me the hard part was the index finger at the right hand -aside from the speed-, it taps three times and next time you dont play it, and then play the exact same thing...my index finger wanted always to tap the forth time lol
Probably Steve are not gonna see this, but still...: It is so good to see this testimony; Everyone has to take one step at a time to climb a mountain. Some people when they see you play, they can not imagine how many failures, how many hours you spent to get to the top. That gives me more strength, more patience to learn a little bit more to play my guitar, even if very little compared to Steve. Tnks Steve, this is a real-life teaching, you inspire me. God bless you! Rodolfo
L1,R1, L2,R2, L3,R1, L1,R2, L2,R1, L3,R2 repeated = 12 notes in the pattern. Times 2 is 24 with 8 left over L1,R1, L2,R2, L1, R1, L2,R2. Thank you for the lesson and love Steve!
Thanks Steve.. this is exactly the kind of inspiration that we need. I've had similar moments myself, though I am far from anything you have done, and I can totally relate to a lot of what you have said. It's nice to see you being so honest and down to earth about the entire process behind these things because it really does look effortless when you do it on stage..but it's all those hours of REAL work you put in that counts.
this is so good. thank you for posting this video! it shows how much effort even great musicians like you have to go through to get a sound or even something that you really want to do!
It took me a half hour to just memorize the notes and the pattern, and then an hour and a half to just be able to play it in 16th notes. I'm really close to being able to play the intro at full speed. It's one of those things that's freakishly hard to play but one you finally figure it out it's awesome.
In a way it's good to see that it can take even the best musicians "hours and hours" of practice just to get a riff etc just right. You kind of take it for granted the can turn their hands to anything but obviously not the case. This video has helped put my own practice into perspective esp' if it takes me days and not hours to get a riff/solo down. Thanks for sharing and letting us know in a way your not above a great deal of practice Steve!
Great video Steve. It's very interesting when you talk about how you had to struggle on a particular lick. I know it takes me playing a single lick about 100 times before I really begin getting comfortable with it.
Awesome, see guys it's all about passion, practice, and effort that's all, and patience of course. I like your hat Steve, i was looking for it, It's a Bula hat, I was looking for his exact same hat, but.... I've never been able to find it... man i love his hat!.
After doing those 12 hour workouts in the 80's I am disabled now . My body hurts just hearing technical music. I guess it's because the neurons are still firing in my head creating patterns. weird . lol ..I will have to take some meds before I try this. hehe..love it !
@MU2GTR you're absolutely correct , thanks. if you look at the video you can see him wrap his ring and pinkey finger around the neck which keeps his left palm down.
@MuseManMike Same song as the riff he's teaching. It was the live version of "Building The Church" from Minneanapolis. It's from the DVD "Where The Wild Things Are".
At first when I watch this video and he talked about his shoulder burning I laughed, after about 20 minutes of practicing I realize he was not kidding. Also the biggest challenge of the song so far is playing the notes without hitting other strings and getting a whole bunch of noise.
@WoxHax Thats's right... His FLO III (The guitar he is using in this vid) is fully scalooped. From 24 - 21 the frets is really scalooped and from 20 - 1 the frets is lightly scalooped.
@progate23 It's all one riff. That "second part" is just the end of the riff. If you pay attention to when he first plays the whole thing, that part is in it.
@IbanezMS1995 I know, but in this guitar it looks like it's been fully scalloped, and it is. Like AdamHaga said, from 1 to 20th fret it's a light scallop, but from 21 to 24 its a full scallop.
Steve Vai you are the BEST musician in the life¡¡ and my most important influence i dont really know if you reading this but had to say it... or at least try Pd: sorry for the bad english
I believe you, but its interesting how people talk how they fast they learn certain technique or riffs, but on stage probably FREEZE (definitely with this riff). You must be prepared 120% like Steve is, I respect his effortless performance and his psychology of music, concentration and slow playing. And from other side is how U play not just what U play and how fast U learned. :)
Wow... just wow...! And this riff - he said - is quite hard to play... not to mention - I think - the second take, the one beginning at 3'26" in the entire track...!
Akira Takasaki of Loudness did the same technique too on the 'Soldier of Fortune' and 'In The Mirror' solos...he's one of the best tappers out there till today..anyone agree?
@Krauser1226 On the Ibanez website, it says just the 21-24th frets are scalloped. He may have had the rest scalloped on this guitar, though. It really is quite hard to tell from the video
@AciDXRaiN27 they are used in drums, but the band animals as leaders uses them A LOT! they use odd time signatures on guitar and layer that over a 4/4 drum beat and that is what i meant buy the polyrythm. What steve is doing is different.
@INKASANT Building The Church, as he played it in the DVD "Live In Minneapolis - Where The WIld Things Are". What you hear in the beginning is how it ends.
I am not sure, but I thing I've heard this start tune long before the record was released. This melody was in the computer game warcraft 2. When you play the human campaign and you order a peasant to build the church, during this process, when you click on that church, you can hear this pretty cool sound, as it on the Steve's track. After the building is complete, the sound changes, when you click on that church. So i think Steve steels the main idea from computer game sound. And that is why the name of track - Building the Church
@fretmaestro13 ..think about how your fingers (on your left hand) would be positioned doing this phrase both ways ..it would be more comfortable to do it the way he does it....the way he does it...fingers parrellel to the strings (hand over neck) versus perpindicular to the strings w/ (nand under the neck) and yes i very much see where his arm would hurt where he mentions..but i have had the same thing happen..but repetition works the muscles out and eventually it stops hurting.....
@kelmaur sure okay, that makes sense. it's just weird because most of the time in his songs (e.g., bad horsie) he plays the other way. I guess it comes down to figuring out the best combination of comfort and efficiency for the riff being played
... I complaint how long it is taking to master fast picking (going on a year and a half) to where it is perfect and when I'm practicing I'm thinking that Vai, Satriani, don't struggle with anything. This is very encouraging, to know that he has to still practice certain techniques, he is a guitar Yedi!
philosophy is a very interesting thing and it also shows his character a lot better and I would rather find out his personality and his method, as well as how to play it, rather than just how to play it
The most difficult thing is not playing it, it is actually creating the lick , the melody and the harmony (chords) that go with it. I think many players can play lots of licks but how many can compose interesting music like he does? Not many!
I used to get frustrated at the lack of progress in my own playing. I quit being frustrated when I realized that the players who’s music I wanted to learn LIVED the guitar, not played. When your entire life is devoted to something, your progress and mastery is at a whole different level than someone who works a job and has maybe 30 minutes a day or every other day to devote to the instrument.
@ICEMANdrake214 He has a sustainer pickup which allows him to play a note and basically have it sustain forever. Then he just hits the tremolo bar. probably muting other strings with his other hands too
Upanishads is a really cool song and I’m kinda sad that that intro riff wasn’t in that song after he did modern primitive. But I understand why it’s not.
Thanks Steve. I'll give that a bash and i'm gonna tell my brother that i had a lesson with Steve Vai......if it realy is you of course. YOU THE DADDY!!!
Steve Vai : For hours, and hours, and hours...
Me : For years, and years, and years...
😂😂😂 It 's the same thing for me. But never give up.
It's so good to hear that he needed hours and hours to make it good =)
Still doesnt sound anywhere near as good on my guitar. Despite hours and hours... yes, I´m humble.
building church joe satrieni thougt vai how to play gutar
It took me 10 minutes to get it under my fingers. So why did it take Vai "hours and hours" ? Because Steve knows he has to play it perfectly, standing, his hands tired because it's not the first song of the concert, etc.
It didn't take him "hours and hours" to get it under his fingers, but to be able to play it with the level of perfection he is known for. He could be dead drunk and still be able to play it flawlessly.
Exactly Payne. And sorry for your loss.
It's probably because of a phenomenon known as the "Morphogentic Field"
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morphogenetic_field
To see such an incredible talent come across as being so humble is quite refreshing. You have to love Steve.
"I have to do this. This is what I'm here for" LOL
It's refreshing when you see someone with a sense of duty.
Thanks for the video and all the music over the years.
BTW, the online lesson was great.
Again, Thanks
I have been teaching guitar for the past year and half to mostly young kids and when steve said in the video that he practiced getting each note perfect before speeding it up is awesome. When us mere mortals watch him on stage and videos we get to see the end result of years and years and years of practice and hard work. I preach this to every student that anyone can learn to be a technical guitar wizard if they put the time in like Vai and others did
It is really good of him to make videos like this. When you see guitar gods it can naturally be discouraging since they play so effortlessly, so knowing that it took him hours of struggle to get it right is very inspiring.
One of the things I like about Steve is that he really works on his stuff. A lot of us think he´s gifted (wich he is) but he´s very disciplined and we want to nail his work without any effort when he himself has to work very hard to get his work well done. He´s an example of constance and effort.
still one of the coolest things i've ever heard anyone do on a guitar
I always thought it was some sound effect or something and when I saw him play it live I almost shat myself when he did it.
Not only I learned how to play this piece, but I've been also able to use the technique in a few songs of mine. It's really not that hard when you get used to it. It's kinda like playing the piano. :)
Its tough isn't it?! But yeah...its one of those things (reminded of learning a tough piano piece as a matter of fact) and then one day it "clicks" and you got it!
dajzilla the cool part about is you can practice it without the actual instrument, at least the sequence of notes itself. Just practice on any solid surface, and start tapping with your fingers, as if you're drumming. Practice alternating the fingers between 2 on the left hand and 3 on right hand. It's kind of like tapping your head while rubbing your tummy!
I have just been trying to count the timing of the groove whenever I listen to the song to get used to how it's played over a big halftime groove. It's been a long journey JUST for that.
for me the hard part was the index finger at the right hand -aside from the speed-, it taps three times and next time you dont play it, and then play the exact same thing...my index finger wanted always to tap the forth time lol
Probably Steve are not gonna see this, but still...: It is so good to see this testimony; Everyone has to take one step at a time to climb a mountain. Some people when they see you play, they can not imagine how many failures, how many hours you spent to get to the top. That gives me more strength, more patience to learn a little bit more to play my guitar, even if very little compared to Steve. Tnks Steve, this is a real-life teaching, you inspire me. God bless you! Rodolfo
It's so refreshing to see that you are indeed, Human! In my opinion, your humility is as inspiring as your musical capabilities!
Thank You.
L1,R1, L2,R2, L3,R1, L1,R2, L2,R1, L3,R2 repeated = 12 notes in the pattern. Times 2 is 24 with 8 left over L1,R1, L2,R2, L1, R1, L2,R2.
Thank you for the lesson and love Steve!
I'm glad someone out there takes the time to figures out stuff like this. Awesome technique.
It is such a kick-ass riff. Thank you Steve for bringing it into this world.
this track was actually my first favorite from Vai. and still love it.
my buddy practices this technique all the time, i love listening to it. thanks for sharing Steve
Fact: the electric fan Steve uses on stage is only for show. His hair just dances naturally when he plays.
he always inspire me and makes me pick up my guitar every time i watch one of his vids
No one has ever worked harder to be extraordinary. A lesson for all of us in dedication to purpose.
Thanks Steve.. this is exactly the kind of inspiration that we need. I've had similar moments myself, though I am far from anything you have done, and I can totally relate to a lot of what you have said. It's nice to see you being so honest and down to earth about the entire process behind these things because it really does look effortless when you do it on stage..but it's all those hours of REAL work you put in that counts.
steve proves that with hard work practice and passion u can become an amazing guiatrist
Mr.vai you never cease to amaze me.
saw steve last night, he played this song flawlessly
this is so good. thank you for posting this video! it shows how much effort even great musicians like you have to go through to get a sound or even something that you really want to do!
It took me a half hour to just memorize the notes and the pattern, and then an hour and a half to just be able to play it in 16th notes. I'm really close to being able to play the intro at full speed. It's one of those things that's freakishly hard to play but one you finally figure it out it's awesome.
I just realized now when Steve Vai said, that the intro tapping was indeed polyrhythmic. Fascinating!
Hey, I`ve seen that tapping riff in one of the old Steves live perfomances, with Alcatrazz, I guess)
In a way it's good to see that it can take even the best musicians "hours and hours" of practice just to get a riff etc just right. You kind of take it for granted the can turn their hands to anything but obviously not the case. This video has helped put my own practice into perspective esp' if it takes me days and not hours to get a riff/solo down. Thanks for sharing and letting us know in a way your not above a great deal of practice Steve!
Great video Steve. It's very interesting when you talk about how you had to struggle on a particular lick. I know it takes me playing a single lick about 100 times before I really begin getting comfortable with it.
Awesome, see guys it's all about passion, practice, and effort that's all, and patience of course. I like your hat Steve, i was looking for it, It's a Bula hat, I was looking for his exact same hat, but.... I've never been able to find it... man i love his hat!.
always so humble , Great Vai! thx master
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, STEVE. GOD BLESS YOU
Man Steve Vai is a wizard. Awesome.
He is the legend man for created this riff.....
After doing those 12 hour workouts in the 80's I am disabled now . My body hurts just hearing technical music. I guess it's because the neurons are still firing in my head creating patterns. weird . lol ..I will have to take some meds before I try this. hehe..love it !
@MU2GTR you're absolutely correct , thanks. if you look at the video you can see him wrap his ring and pinkey finger around the neck which keeps his left palm down.
@MuseManMike Same song as the riff he's teaching. It was the live version of "Building The Church" from Minneanapolis. It's from the DVD "Where The Wild Things Are".
dude seems like a really cool guy as far as being a person goes -- as far as guitar ... awesome!
At first when I watch this video and he talked about his shoulder burning I laughed, after about 20 minutes of practicing I realize he was not kidding. Also the biggest challenge of the song so far is playing the notes without hitting other strings and getting a whole bunch of noise.
I swear I play this riff like every day. It's so fun :D
My favorite Vai song !
@WoxHax Thats's right... His FLO III (The guitar he is using in this vid) is fully scalooped. From 24 - 21 the frets is really scalooped and from 20 - 1 the frets is lightly scalooped.
Thank you so much for this great lesson Stevie!!!
wow thats awesome
and i really love the guitarhe uses on the stage in the nd with the blue light up dots
Steve, you are the man!
@progate23 It's all one riff. That "second part" is just the end of the riff. If you pay attention to when he first plays the whole thing, that part is in it.
great lesson steve, great vision to come up with the riff in the first place :)
Steve Vai is so awesome
@IbanezMS1995 I know, but in this guitar it looks like it's been fully scalloped, and it is. Like AdamHaga said, from 1 to 20th fret it's a light scallop, but from 21 to 24 its a full scallop.
Thank you Steve Vai for being Steve Vai :-)
Steve Vai you are the BEST musician in the life¡¡ and my most important influence
i dont really know if you reading this but had to say it...
or at least try
Pd: sorry for the bad english
simply ...... AWESOME!!
Stevie's guitar lessons on youtube??
This must be a dream...
hats off to you man !!!
man is steve vai unbelievable...
I believe you, but its interesting how people talk how they fast they learn certain technique or riffs, but on stage probably FREEZE (definitely with this riff). You must be prepared 120% like Steve is, I respect his effortless performance and his psychology of music, concentration and slow playing. And from other side is how U play not just what U play and how fast U learned. :)
Wow... just wow...! And this riff - he said - is quite hard to play... not to mention - I think - the second take, the one beginning at 3'26" in the entire track...!
Akira Takasaki of Loudness did the same technique too on the 'Soldier of Fortune' and 'In The Mirror' solos...he's one of the best tappers out there till today..anyone agree?
LOOVVVVEEE THAT GUITAR!!!!!
Thought of learning this song, think I'll do it!
@Krauser1226 On the Ibanez website, it says just the 21-24th frets are scalloped. He may have had the rest scalloped on this guitar, though. It really is quite hard to tell from the video
¡Muchas gracias por esto Steve! Te queremos!
Hey 2020 here! We need this in at least 1080p!!!
Bravo Steve
Explaining that you had to rest your arm was very good.
Claude
@sigzor Hell yea. I saw Stanley at a concert he put on back in college in the early 90's. He's awesome with this two handed technique.
thank you God Vai for the lesson. 777
@AciDXRaiN27 they are used in drums, but the band animals as leaders uses them A LOT! they use odd time signatures on guitar and layer that over a 4/4 drum beat and that is what i meant buy the polyrythm. What steve is doing is different.
Every song Steve has ever written is badass...
REAL ILLUSIONS REFLECTIONS BUILDING THE CHURCH AMAZING
excellent, steve!
@INKASANT Building The Church, as he played it in the DVD "Live In Minneapolis - Where The WIld Things Are". What you hear in the beginning is how it ends.
I am not sure, but I thing I've heard this start tune long before the record was released. This melody was in the computer game warcraft 2. When you play the human campaign and you order a peasant to build the church, during this process, when you click on that church, you can hear this pretty cool sound, as it on the Steve's track. After the building is complete, the sound changes, when you click on that church. So i think Steve steels the main idea from computer game sound. And that is why the name of track - Building the Church
Just learnt it. COOLEST. TAPPING. EVER :) (my opinion, if anyone has suggestions of songs with outstanding tapping, please message me!)
Amazing!!! Vai you are a god!!!
@fretmaestro13 ..think about how your fingers (on your left hand) would be positioned doing this phrase both ways ..it would be more comfortable to do it the way he does it....the way he does it...fingers parrellel to the strings (hand over neck) versus perpindicular to the strings w/ (nand under the neck) and yes i very much see where his arm would hurt where he mentions..but i have had the same thing happen..but repetition works the muscles out and eventually it stops hurting.....
beautiful vid! love u vai boo
Just TOO awesome!
@kelmaur sure okay, that makes sense. it's just weird because most of the time in his songs (e.g., bad horsie) he plays the other way. I guess it comes down to figuring out the best combination of comfort and efficiency for the riff being played
... I complaint how long it is taking to master fast picking (going on a year and a half) to where it is perfect and when I'm practicing I'm thinking that Vai, Satriani, don't struggle with anything. This is very encouraging, to know that he has to still practice certain techniques, he is a guitar Yedi!
such an inspiration!
O cara ta cada dia mais louco.
Are you crazy man?
steve, when will u come to brazil???
just tried this on my bass.. sounds cool..
When i heard steve vai say that it was difficult, i almost gave up rite then
he said the tapping was from a song that was never released from a long time ago. Was probably longer than 20 years earlier.
You're like a wizard steve vai...especially in that sweet robe you're wearing on stage
philosophy is a very interesting thing and it also shows his character a lot better and I would rather find out his personality and his method, as well as how to play it, rather than just how to play it
The most difficult thing is not playing it, it is actually creating the lick , the melody and the harmony (chords) that go with it. I think many players can play lots of licks but how many can compose interesting music like he does? Not many!
So I figured out the tapping thing Ina few days, I figured it out faster than vai. That makes me feel good about myself :)
@TheSLK66 I'd like to know what Paul Gilbert, Nuno Bettencourt and John Petrucci are.
Highly recommend you try this standing, helps with the arm thing
I used to get frustrated at the lack of progress in my own playing. I quit being frustrated when I realized that the players who’s music I wanted to learn LIVED the guitar, not played. When your entire life is devoted to something, your progress and mastery is at a whole different level than someone who works a job and has maybe 30 minutes a day or every other day to devote to the instrument.
@TheSchneemann88
do you mean this to Michael Angelo Batio right?
@ICEMANdrake214 He has a sustainer pickup which allows him to play a note and basically have it sustain forever. Then he just hits the tremolo bar. probably muting other strings with his other hands too
Upanishads is a really cool song and I’m kinda sad that that intro riff wasn’t in that song after he did modern primitive. But I understand why it’s not.
What is the name of that song in the beginning it's awesome
Thanks Steve. I'll give that a bash and i'm gonna tell my brother that i had a lesson with Steve Vai......if it realy is you of course.
YOU THE DADDY!!!
You make it look easy, but being married to an amazing guitar player, I know it is not. it is hard work. Great job! :) Liz
please teach how to play the introduction of tender surrender?
Thanks so much for the lesson sir, we really2 appreciate this. Thanks again = ))