Yngwie Malmsteen

Yngwie Johann Malmsteen is a Swedish guitarist and composer, born June 30, 1963 in Stockholm. His real name is Lars Johan Yngve Lannerbäck. Malmsteen is a renowned heavy metal guitarist who has actively participated in groups such as Steeler or Alcatrazz, and is credited with being the greatest influence on the creation of the subgenre known as neoclassical metal, being one of the great exponents of the shred techniques on the electric guitar during the 1970s - 1980s.

Biography

Childhood and beginnings

Yngwie Malmsteen was born on June 30, 1963, the youngest child in a family consisting of his mother, Rigmor, his sister Ann Louise, and his brother Björn. Yngwie initially had no interest in music; However, on September 18, 1970, he watched a television special about the death of guitarist Jimi Hendrix. At the age of seven, Yngwie watched in amazement as he set his guitar on fire.

The application of his intense curiosity and tenacity to his first guitar, an vintage Mosrite, and then a cheap Stratocaster, soon paid off. Yngwie immersed himself in the classical music of Bach, Vivaldi, Beethoven, and Mozart. As Yngwie absorbs the classic structures of the masters, his prodigious style begins to take shape. At the age of 10, he began to focus all his energies on music, putting aside his studies, in which he excelled, above all, in English. His mother and his sister, a gifted flutist, recognized his unique musical gifts and gave him support and encouragement. In this way, his mastery of the instrument progressed rapidly. In his early teens, Yngwie watched a Russian television show, featuring violinist Gidon Kremer, performing the very difficult "24 Whims" 3. 4; by virtuoso violinist Niccolo Paganini.The effect was profound, and Yngwie finally understood how to combine his love of classical music with his growing skills on the guitar, and his charisma on stage.

By the age of 15, Malmsteen's style was pretty much defined: strangely, without any Hendrix influences, this mix of Ritchie Blackmore songs and the classic material he had listened to obsessively gave the talented musician a clearly defined style.. He worked for a time as a luthier in a guitar repair shop, where he first encountered a scalloped neck, when a 19th century lute XVII entered the store. Intrigued, Yngwie scalloped the neck of an old guitar similar to how he had seen it on the lute, and was so impressed with the musical results that he decided to try it on his own guitars. The scalloped neck is a bit more difficult to play than a regular neck, because the frets force a firmer, more precise touch, but his control over the strings improved so much that Yngwie immediately adopted it as a permanent alteration on his guitar team.

Steeler and Alcatraz

At this time, while working in the luthier's shop, Malmsteen began playing in various bands built around his explosive, chromatic, fast-paced guitar style with long instrumental explorations. Around the age of 18, Yngwie and several friends recorded a three-song demo for Swedish CBS, but to no avail. Frustrated, he began sending demos to music record companies and contacts abroad. One of those tapes fell into the hands of guitarist and producer Mike Varney. Malmsteen was invited to record with a new band of talented young people called Steeler, along with vocalist Ron Keel, bassist Rik Fox, and drummer Mark Edwards.

From Steeler, Yngwie moved to Alcatrazz, a Rainbow-style band, as its lead singer, Graham Bonnet had been Rainbow's lead singer until he was fired, but it became apparent that to fully develop his talent, Yngwie would have to go In solitary. The concerts became strange, with the public invoking the guitarist more than Bonnet himself, who already had a name made in the heavy metal scene.

Solo Race

Yngwie Malmsteen in 2008.

Malmsteen's first solo album, Rising Force, peaked at #60 on the Billboard charts, quite an achievement for a mostly instrumental guitar record with little commercial airplay. The album also earned the guitarist a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. Rising Force blazed a trail on the Californian concert circuit, establishing Malmsteen as one of heavy metal's brightest new stars, adding a new genre to the metal lexicon: neoclassical metal. .

With a place in heavy metal guitar history firmly established, his compositions fueled the ears of fans and the ambitions of aspiring guitarists the world over, with albums like Rising Force, Marching Out, Trilogy, Odyssey or Trial by Fire: Live in Leningrad.

In 1997, Yngwie proved that he was much more than a heavy metal phenomenon: after months of intense work he produced his first fully classical work, Concerto Suite for Electric Guitar and Orchestra. This innovative album was recorded in Prague with the prestigious Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, led by renowned symphony conductor Yoel Levi. Several years later, in 2001, Malmsteen found his first opportunity to perform this creation with the New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, in Tokyo. The DVD, CD and VHS package of this groundbreaking performance became Yngwie's first release of the year, in January 2002.

In 2003, Malmsteen joined the famous "G3" tour, with Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. Once the "G3" tour ended, Yngwie hit the road again, in support of his album Attack!!. Taking most of 2004 to rest and work in his studio in his spare time, the guitarist produced a new album titled Unleash the Fury , released in 2005. The album received rave reviews from part of fans and critics alike. In the summer of 2005 the tour in support of the album began in Ireland, and extended to all of Europe and the United States.

In 2008 Perpetual Flame was published, released by his own company, Rising Force Records. The album marked the debut of his new singer, ex-Judas Priest Tim & # 34;Ripper & # 34; owens. In 2009 Malmsteen played a series of concerts in Japan with one of his great influences: Deep Purple, and released Angels of Love, an album made up of acoustic instrumental versions of some of the old songs. of the. In 2010 he released his eighteenth solo album, Relentless , once again released by his own label, and with Tim Owens on vocals. On December 5, 2012 he publishes Spellbound , an album in which he himself played all the instruments. On June 12, 2014, he embarked on a tour titled "Guitar Gods 2014 Tour"; Together with guitarists Bumblefoot and Gary Hoey, in 2016 he released the album World on Fire .

Personal life

Malmsteen was married to Swedish singer Erika Norberg (1991-1992) and later to Amberdawn Landin (1993-1998). Since 1999 he has been married to April Malmsteen, with whom he had a son named Antonio, named after the musician Antonio Vivaldi. The family currently resides in Miami, Florida.

In a 2005 issue of Guitar Player magazine, Malmsteen discussed his often-ridiculed personality, saying, "I've probably made more mistakes than anyone, but I don't dwell on that. they. I don't expect people to understand me, because I'm quite complex... I've always taken the hard way. Of course, people have their opinions, but I can't get too involved in that, because I know what I can do and I know what kind of person I am, and I don't have any control over what anyone says about me... Maybe inside After ten years people can go back and say 'he really wasn't a bad person'.

Musicians of his band

Former members

Yngwie Malmsteen in 2012.

• Tim Owens - voice (2008-2011).
• Jeff Scott Soto - Voice (1984-1985).
• Mark Boals - Voice (1986-1996-1999-2001).
• Joe Lynn Turner - Voice (1988-1989).
• Göran Edman - Voice (1990-1992).
• Michael Vescera - voice (1994-1995).
• Mats Levén - voice (1997-1998).
• Doogie White - voice (2001-2008).
• Anders Johansson - Battery (1985-1989).
• Mike Terrana - Battery (1994).
• Shane Gaalaas - Battery (1995).
• Jens Johansson - keyboards (1984-1989).
• Mats Olausson - keyboards (1990-2001).
• Derek Sherinian - keyboards (2001-2003-2004; 2007).
• Michael Troy - keyboards (2007-2009).
• John Levén - bass (1981-1982).
• Marcel Jacob - bass (1985).
• Svante Henrysson - bass (1990-1992).
• Barry Sparks - bass (1994-1995).
• Mick Cervino - low (1998-2008).
• Ralph Ciavolino - low (2012-2018)
• Mark Ellis - Battery (2013-2018)

Current members

• Yngwie Malmsteen - guitars (1978-present), voice (2012-present).
• Emilio Martínez - bass, choirs (2018-presente)
• Brian Wilson - battery (2018-present)
• Nick Marino - keyboards (2010-present)

Timeline

Team

Guitarist

Yngwie Malmsteen Stratocaster guitar. The guitarist mentions, first of all, his Fender Stratocaster and its single-coil pickups, as a characteristic of his peculiar tone. He formerly used a custom DiMarzio design, which consisted of a & # 34;humbucker & # 34; in a single coil housing. Yngwie used to ask to combine the tone of a single coil with the reduced noise of a humbucker. In fact, the Fender custom model named after him uses that combination. He prefers vintage Fender Stratocasters from 1968 to 1972. He was previously an endorser of the Schecter brand.

He currently uses Seymour Duncan pickups of which he has his own model. All Malmsteen guitars have brass nuts and are 're-fretted'. According to Fender, Malmsteen has one of the most impressive collections of vintage Stratocasters known. On the order of 200, including an original signed by Leo Fender.

Scalloped Necks

The guitars he uses are recognizable by their scalloped neck (scalloped neck in English), similar to a normal fingerboard but with the wood lowered to form a concave silhouette between the frets. This allows more aggressive vibrato and bending techniques to be used as the friction of the fingers against the fingerboard is eliminated. He briefly used Schecter guitars in the 1980s, when they made & # 34;Strat & # 34; similar to his Fender.

Direct

Yngwie Malmsteen has remained loyal to his team for years. He continues to strictly use vintage 1971 Marshall amps for his live performances. He can usually use a wall of up to 27 Marshall boxes, with 4 Celestion G12T-75 (75W.) speakers each. All the headends of these booths carry 50W Marshall Vintage 1971 Mark II amplifiers. All wireless units are Samson.

Pedals are a Boss CS-3 Compression Sustainer, Roland analog echo DC-10, Wah Cry-Baby Dunlop, Roland PK-5 MIDI, Boss OC-2 Octave, Overdrive Pre-Amp DOD250, Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor and a floor switch for his Bob Bradshaw effects rack.

His live guitars are strictly Stratocasters from 1968 to 1972. He argues that guitars from this era have the ribbed neck and large headstock design, which give the instrument a richer, fuller tone than & #34;Stratos" from other times. Fender abandoned the big headstock in the 1970s, and later produced a reissue of it.

For his acoustic performances he uses an electro-acoustic Ovation Viper, black or white and nylon strings. These are connected to the Boss CS-3 pedal and directly to the mixer, and from there to the PA system and from there to the monitoring system. Before the Ovation, he used Aria, Álvarez and Gibson guitars. Uses Shure SM57 microphones.

Ropes and spikes

Over the years, Malmsteen has used various brands of strings, from Ernie Ball, to Fender. Gauges vary but he typically uses a light type ranging from 0.08 to 0.46, which is considered by some players to be excessively thin. The tines are usually Jim Dunlop 1.5mm. with his signature on them.

Discography

Steeler

Alcatrazz

Study

Live

G3

Live

Soloist

Study

Live

Compilation albums