Yngwie J. Malmsteen

Yngwie J. Malmsteen (born Lars Yngve Johann Lannerbäck, June 30, 1963) is a guitarist from Sweden who achieved widespread acclaim in the 1980s due to his technical proficiency and fusion of classical music elements with heavy rock guitar. The Americanized pronunciation of his first name is ING-vay.

Related Topics:
June 30 - 1963 - Guitarist - Sweden - 1980s - Classical music - Rock - Guitar

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Born into a musical family in Stockholm, Yngwie was the youngest child in the family. At an early age, he showed little interest in music. It wasn't until September 18, 1970 at age seven when he saw a TV special on the death of Jimi Hendrix. Malmsteen became obsessed with the guitar. To quote his official website (www.yngwie.org) "The day Jimi Hendrix died, the guitar-playing Yngwie was born."

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Malmsteen was in his teens when he first encountered the music of the 19th-century violin virtuoso Niccolo Paganini, whom he cites as his biggest classical influence. Through his emulation of these pieces on guitar, Malmsteen developed a prodigious technical fluency. Malmsteen also cites Jimi Hendrix, Genesis, Uli Jon Roth, and Deep Purple as influences.

Related Topics:
19th-century - Violin - Niccolo Paganini - Jimi Hendrix - Genesis - Uli Jon Roth - Deep Purple

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Malmsteen's contributions to the evolution of modern rock guitar, particularly his embracing of modal progressions and classically-influenced techniques not widely used in rock music, were unique. Thus, neoclassical rock was born.

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