What happens at Vai Academy | 2022- Los Angeles @SteveVaiHimself ​

[@arcane3877]

Man every time I see a new video with Guthrie he looks more and more like a Wizard

[@DanteFrisiello]

He's the man

[@kylejohnson4937]

Cool vids! Happy you got to tech for him and whatnot! If you got any more vids of Steve jamming with Tommy and Guthrie, would you mind posting more footage of it? If that's OK lol cheers!

[@DanteFrisiello]

Good idea for a future vid - yea I have lots

[@karl1949]

🎼Very cool🎶 🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸 🌅80 sleeps till 7.0!🌄

[@RICCARDOREARDON]

I AM MESMERIZED AT THIS VIDEO...THANK YOU FOR UPLOADING THIS VIDEO 📹 ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@DanteFrisiello]

My pleasure. I have more footage of it I’d like to share

[@joezink6659]

Really appreciate that Mr. Vai cares about giving back to the musical community. What a great look into a very positive experience. Thanks for sharing.

[@DanteFrisiello]

Absolutely!!

[@Carlos-v8m1k]

Hi Man, I saw you during the concert in Mexico City, brother you are amazing... (Good idea about your secret weapon hahaha and Steve's words later...haha) without a doubt something I will never forget I promised Steve in the parking lot of the metropolitan theater that I would see you all again... regards Dante we Will see you in Berkley

[@DanteFrisiello]

Thank you so much for all the kind words!! Haha yeah he does love to have some fun on stage and I can't help but do the same... Thanks for the support and see you out there sometime

[@NeilTurnbull007]

Thanks for posting these videos , its really great to get some background insight , it's really interesting to see.

[@DanteFrisiello]

Glad you enjoy!!

[@MrTlucchesi]

Dante thank you great time great memories. Your jam was fantastic too !

[@DanteFrisiello]

Glad you had a great time! Thank you!!

[@hoosierdaddy2308]

Very coo.. That song Steve played with Emmanuel was killer bluesy! Man, I bet tech-ing isn't easy no matter what anyone thinks!

[@DanteFrisiello]

That was an awesome jam to watch! It's definitely not easy!!

[@MegaManX7]

Hey Dante! I met you in Toronto. I'm also Dante haha! You gave me one of your picks and it's the one I use every day (it's got this freaking special Tenacious D pick of destiny vibe) I hope I'll see you at 7.0 I'm literally selling off so many things just to make up the money I'll need for the trip. I'm pumped!!!

[@DanteFrisiello]

Yo Dante! Haha that's awesome!! I will be there at 7.0, it's going to be a fantastic experience, make sure we get to hangout!!

[@MegaManX7]

Hope so man! Teach me a few things 🤘🤘@@DanteFrisiello

[@alfredtuley481]

Great video Dante! Thank you for all of your help during Vai Academy. I'm not sure if you remember me, but I was the guy that couldn't quite get to jam with Steve on the first night due to curfew, and you made sure I had one of the first spots the next day. I really appreciated it! PS somehow the algorithm showed this to me on my front page...I suppose it works in mysterious ways!

[@DanteFrisiello]

Hey Alfred, yeah man I remember you! That's awesome. Really glad you got the opportunity to jam with Steve. Thanks for stopping by!

[@Leftyguitars2a]

Got to meet you at the LA show last night… you let me hold Dave’s guitar and listened to me bitch about being left handed. Amazing experience and show. Thank you!

[@DanteFrisiello]

Ha! Great to meet you man, you’re so welcome!

[@IverJ]

That last song Steve is playing with Billy is "Shy Boy", written in early 1980s by Billy in his old band Talas (I had that on vinyl back in the day).

[@DanteFrisiello]

Indeed it is!

[@Ganbakodon]

Vai revised the guitar parts though which is the better version so props to him on that one.

[@ModernDecay70]

Shy Boy, Shy Boy! LoL, always liked that song!

[@DanteFrisiello]

It’s such a jam!!

[@2002turboz28]

Looks like your having the time of your life man. Great video!

[@DanteFrisiello]

I absolutely am! Much better than the law firm life haha

[@2002turboz28]

@@DanteFrisiello that’s quite a contrast, lol. I’m really looking forward to the Detroit show in November. Have fun with the Hydra😁

[@DanteFrisiello]

It is! Awesome, see you there!

[@jmatthews7228]

Gotta experience this at least once 🤯

[@DanteFrisiello]

It’s really awesome. Even though I was working and running around/distracted a lot, I came away extremely inspired to work on music. It’s a really great experience!!

[@Atnameh-Guitars]

Amazing

[@defectivemonk3884]

Los Angeles? Nice behind the scenes!

[@DanteFrisiello]

Thanks! Vegas, actually!!

[@jeffkelly8624]

Hey Dante, it was nice to meet you and have a short chat about the Steve's gear and the 9:30 Club. Had a pretty good time there.

[@DanteFrisiello]

Yes I remember! Great to meet you Jeff, hope to see you at a show sometime. Glad you had a great time!

[@anomittity]

@5:53, is Steve and Billy playing shy boy? sure sounded like it for the short few seconds it plays. Just curious!

[@bb_lz9790]

Sounded like Shy Boy to me too. Being a Talas song that Billy wrote long before their stint with DLR, Steve had nothing to do with the writing of it, just the perfecting!

[@DanteFrisiello]

Yep that’s what they played!!

[@josevillarreal4897]

Hey that’s me at 4:41! What an amazing experience 🙌🏻 Great meeting you Dante. We gotta jam more next time. Thanks for the upload.

[@DanteFrisiello]

Oh hey man right on!! Hope you got a lot out of the experience, your playing was great. Stay in touch!

[@ziggylayneable]

That was not their early twenties they were playing Shy Boy by David Lee Roth at the end of this video

[@DanteFrisiello]

That’s when they wrote and released the song, no they are no longer in their early 20s lol

[@naufrago7676]

More Guthrie and Steveee plsss

[@zzzzzz69]

Full footage to be released? These jams are better than actual shows

[@nandoholgado3050]

Guthrie's leg @5:41 ??? 😶😶

[@TheErsatzMode]

How does Steve achieve the long, sustained notes? He does it with such ease; is it a pedal, a special guitar feature, his position relative to an amp (for feedback), something else, or a combination? I'm pretty much an absolute beginner at guitar, so this is definitely something I'm interested in.

[@lukesmusic]

He uses a Fernandez Sustainer pickup. It will hold a note as long as you want.

[@TheErsatzMode]

@@lukesmusic, many thanks. I'll look into it.

[@DanteFrisiello]

Yo! Couple ways. First, a healthy amount of high gain/distortion on a tube amp, and maybe a distortion or OD pedal on, and the volume turned up. That’s the foundation and if you’re loud enough and moving enough air through cabinets, you can stand in certain places and it’ll create feedback and harmonics. He also uses sustainer pickups in a few guitars which can sustain forever. But that sound can be made naturally, or also with a feedback pedal (I think digitech makes one). Steve’s other pickups (not sustainer) are also super hot (high output) and playing through his rig feels really unique because the guitar is extremely sensitive. This is part of how he gets so many subtle dynamics and things in his playing - ultimately it all starts in the hands and the mind, and the you just find your way with the gear over time.

[@fernandes5986]

One the ingredients is the Fernandes sustainor pickup. which I believe can only bi found used on Ebay, or you can try a compressor/sustain pedal. The Marhsall Ed the Compressor is a cheap alternative.

[@TheErsatzMode]

@@DanteFrisiello, thanks very much for this. Interesting stuff, for sure! I'll look into the things you mentioned.

[@realnsenpai]

3:03 sounded like george lynch

[@rodrigofalcao8858]

Jesus Christ, Guthrie Govan became an old man !!!

[@DanteFrisiello]

if we're lucky, we all do

[@walterevans2118]

at 0:41....why is someone heckling Steve with this 'DANTE' thing ? ..Leave Steve alone......Just let Steve & Billy play.... Plus Eddie Munson was NOT a Dante bat however 'weird' & eccentric he appeared. He defended the vulnerable from the real ugly bats.

[@DanteFrisiello]

What happened - Philip Bynoe was trying to get my attention to get me to fix something so that Billy’s rig would work, the timing just ended up being hilarious

[@harrisonswift1416]

Never heard Tommy play an acoustic that was even slightly out of tune like this one..