Hello Mr. Satriani.

I would like to start off by saying thank you for the countless times you have inspired me and my circle of friends with your music. Often times when we feel placid and idle with our guitar playing, we would listen to your CDs and we will immediately become revitalized with energy. May you continue shaping the players and musicians of the future. I and many of my peers have different ways of preparing for a performance and would like to ask what you do to limber up and mentally focus before a show. My regimen consists of chromatic exercises, scales and modes, arpeggios and hexatonic (or other speed runs) about half-hour before the show starts with a metronome. Do you have a similar pattern or do you just turn on the practice amp and maybe improv over some vamps? Many new players have a tough time getting up on stage and zoning out on the performance. I guess there is much internal dialogue of “don’t mess up” going through their heads that they fail to get into the grove of the music. I feel that having a “pre-show ritual” might be good to clear their minds. It might seem to be a moot question for you with a performance list well into the 1000’s but I guess you are the ideal person to ask.