Neoclassical metal is asubgenre ofheavy metal that is heavily influenced byclassical music and usually features very technical playing,^{[1][Note 1]} consisting of elements borrowed from both classical andspeed metal music.Yngwie Malmsteen became one of the most notable musicians in the subgenre, and contributed greatly to the development of the style in the 1980s.^{[1][Note 2][2]} Other notable players in the genre areRandy Rhoads,Luca Turilli,Michael Romeo,Jason Becker,Vinnie Moore,Alexi Laiho,Jani Liimatainen,Kiko Loureiro,Uli Jon Roth,Stéphan Forté,Wolf Hoffmann,^[3]Timo Tolkki,Syu andMarty Friedman.^{[1][Note 3]}

Although the genre is mainly associated with guitarists (especially lead guitarists), keyboardists likeJens Johansson,Michael Pinnella,Alex Staropoli andJanne Wirman are also found playing in this style.

Neoclassical metal takes its name from a broad conception ofclassical music. In this it is a concept distinct from howneoclassicism is understood within the classical music tradition.Neoclassical music usually refers to a movement in musicalmodernism which developed roughly a century after the end of theClassical period and peaked during the years between the two World Wars.

On the other hand, neoclassical metal music does not restrict itself to a return to classical aesthetic ideals, such as equilibrium and formalism. Its influences include both theRomantic musical period and theBaroque period of the seventeenth and first half of the eighteenth centuries. The music of late Baroque composers such asVivaldi,Handel andBach was often highly ornate. Neoclassical metal musicians such asYngwie Malmsteen andJoshua Perahia are inspired by this aspect of Baroque music^{[1][Note 4]} and also by later composers such as the violinistNiccolò Paganini in using runs and other decorative and showy techniques in their performances.Neoclassical metal music thus looks to classical music as broadly understood by the general public and not to the more specialist technical definition used within classical circles.

In the 1960s and 1970s, there were many works that influenced this subgenre,Deep Purple'sConcerto for Group and Orchestra being the most important one. Other bands, likeRainbow, also featured neoclassical influences. Earlyclassical influences withinhard rock and heavy metal are most notably found in the playing ofJon Lord,Keith Emerson,Ritchie Blackmore,Uli Jon Roth andRandy Rhoads. But it was in the 1980s when neoclassical metal became a distinct subgenre.^{[1][Note 5]}

Heavy metal guitar technique developed rapidly from its late-1960s beginnings to its late-1980s peak, but before the 1980s, few metal guitarists displayed the advanced technical proficiency which is a hallmark of the neoclassical metal style. The popularization and growth of neoclassical metal is closely related to the ascension of the guitar "shredding" movement.

The "golden age" of neoclassical metal in the middle to late 1980s revolved around the sizeable roster of flashy electric-guitar soloists who recorded mostly instrumental albums forMike Varney'sShrapnel Records label. Swedish guitaristYngwie Malmsteen, widely regarded as the originator^{[Note 6]} and still-reigning king of neoclassical metal,^[4] was brought to the United States by Varney to sign with Shrapnel Records in 1982.

Many subsequent Shrapnel artists,^{[1][Note 7]} includingTony MacAlpine,^[1]Vinnie Moore,^[1]Joey Tafolla,Michael Angelo Batio,Paul Gilbert,David T. Chastain,Jason Becker,^[1] andMarty Friedman, emerged in the latter 1980s as exemplars of the neoclassical style.

A common feature of neoclassical metal is thediminished seventh chord. It can be a useful tool for modulation, as it's possible to move by minor thirds through the chord, then use the diminished 7th as a leading tone to resolve to the tonic.Pentatonic scales are also prevalent (as in the vast majority of rock and metal styles). A scale often used by neoclassical metal musicians is theharmonic minor scale, which is similar to the natural minor, but has a raised 7th (in the case of E, the D goes to D♯).

Modes are also used on occasion.

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