2003 interview

Kim: Who would you say is your biggest musical influence that is not a guitarist?

Joe Well, probably my high school music theory teacher. He was the one that was able to reach me as a teenager and show me that there were mysteries out there that could be explained about music. That every musician that walked the planet before me started out equally ignorant and was taught by somebody, or a few people, about what all the musicians before them had done. I learned not only music history, but music theory and was enlightened by biographies of great musicians from the classical world, the pop world and the jazz world. All those things put together really help you sort things out. When you're a young kid and you've got music in your head, you really want to try to get it out, but you don't know how it fits together. So he was a big influence on me that way. He sort of helped me figure out what it was to be a musician. How you're supposed to go about your life. It can be very difficult. The way that all of the humans have progressed in civilization is to label things. You know, not only objects but feelings, inclinations, ideas. In the case of music, they call it music theory and make it sound more important than it really is. Basically, when you get a sound in your head, and you want to remember it, you've got to call it something. If you get a sound in your head, and you want someone else in the room to understand what it is, you've got to call it something. Whatever you call it, if that other person is familiar with that lexicon or that language, then they'll know what that sound in your head is. Imagine before there was measurement and somebody had to describe length to somebody. In music it's the same way. I can look at a musician and say "I need a minor 6th there and I need it in a triplet eighth note" and that's the language that we use and then I can communicate the sound in my head to that musician so they understand it. There's just this huge vocabulary that you have to learn in order to interpret what's going on inside of you and can understand and translate all the music coming at you from other musicians. A lot of starting out as a musician is learning that language. You learn a lot about the music that's in your head when you get that language together. It's a great experience.

Dear Mr Satriani,

My name is Vicente and I live in Malaga (southern Spain). My family and I are great fans of your music. Specially my two cousins, FJ and JA, who have a rock band called “Remember Rock” and always play some songs from your repertoire in each concert.They both went to see the last two concerts you offered to the Spanish public. FJ (46, computer engeneer) has been struggling against leucemia for six years. Last summer he underwent a marrow transplant. He enjoys playing the guitar so much that when he had to stay in hospital for long periods asked to be sent his musical gear -he has tried hard not to waste a minute of joy in his life- and recorded some of your songs. Unfortunately, he is at present in very bad condition, and we think that he's going to pass away in very few days. And this is the reason why I'm writing; I'd like to ask you to write some encouraging words to him. He doesn't know that he's dying; we haven't told him the whole truth as we want him to go peacefully. He would go crazy with appreciation if he received a short message from his idol! I hope that your agenda will enable you to do this little favour for us.

OK Michelle since you put out the 2003 interview.....That makes sense.

JOE--You are so right on about there being a language to music, similar to a math language and various computer languages......that made no sense to me, but must make sense to Jon Luini. Anyway, I gave a listen to "You Saved My Life" yet again for the zillionth time and really felt the overlays of guitar--acoustic rhythm, and 3 electric guitar voices speaking so clearly of a life-sustaining love that is so huge it reaches beyond the moments and stays with me beyond the minutes of the song. Prior to listening to "You Saved ....", I was listening to "Standchen" by Schubert/Liszt and was thinking it was written about the time pianos were the great musical instruments many people either had or wanted in their homes. I think now the guitar is the more desirable home musical instrument because of its size and portability and it's so important in today's popular music.

Anyway, music definitely has a language that young musicians learn and I am so grateful for teachers like Bill Westcott who reached out to open minds like yours, Joe. I'm glad you were receptive.

but did she ruin her shoes?

'Deadliest Catch' episode a lesson in strokes

onnonsrv, I have seen that clip a few times...but truly that is an awesome song...I will favorite that one for sure...

R.I.P. Maury Chaykin....very funny guy.

mr.satriani : i am from chile .i am 15 years old .....plis come here i want to listen your music ...i am a guitar player ...my inglish is so bad ...

Al--You've gotten too good at copying and pasting messages! What's this "madman" thing? I hope Michelle's gender bending hasn't affected you! And yes, I'm still your favorite LUNI!!!!!!!

Maybe Enya can introduce you to some chicks that are more to your liking. Then, again you are always welcome to San Fran. When you are in the neighborhood I could take you to the Monterey Bay Aquarium and you can see all the great creatures living in our ocean universe......if you want to.

Gad, I love this stuff! It's genius!!

GG2, What gender bending stuff? I'd give my left nut to have 24 hours in Al's world. LOL! I know... you'd give both yer left nuts!

C'maaan wit it! That's a friggin band!

Kind of a lax Sunday for me. Not much was done except the slaying of NAZI ZOMBIES!!!!

Anyway......., I watched the "Out Of The Sunrise" podcast a couple of months back and I said to myself, "I'm gonna stay up all night and record the sunrise when I go down to the beach". Just a little video for all of us Satch fans. I'll give shout-outs to people, only if you want me to, and I'll put the video on Youtube.

I'll put a link to it, as I always do, and we can all watch it. It should be up by the end of the month. Hopefully by August 30th.

If you want to be part of the Shout Outs, put in bold letters, "I WANT TO BE PART OF THE SHOUT OUTS".

P.S.-Saw the Sorcerer's Apprentice. EXCELLENT MOVIE!! I highly recommend you see it. It is well worth the overly-inflated 10 dollars charge.

Watched Star wars 1 2 & 3 at the weekend...they are such great films ...4 5 & 6 in the week me thinks!