At the end of the 60’s and the beginning of the 70’s a young boy is charmed by the guitar mastery of leading rock musicians like Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page. He also likes classical music, jazz and funk and for his luck, he is gifted with talent and long fingers. His name is Steve Vai. He starts to rehearse seriously and barely 18 years old begins to take classes with Joe Satriani. A year later, the talented youngster is noticed by the genius Frank Zappa who takes him in his band. From this moment his way is up and ahead through bands and artists like Alcatrazz, David Lee Roth, Whitesnake, the collaboration G3 and many more. The solo records of Steve Vai are in constant progress, too. From his early attempts, seriously influenced by the vanguard Zappa, through the later varied releases, to his brilliant latest albums, he keeps developing his music and gives full freedom to his talent. In contrast to many rock guitarists, Vai’s touch does not rely on demonstrations of technique or on unnecessary swagger. His compositions are harmonic and always in progress, based mostly on beauty and melody. And, like every artist of his rank, Steve Vai always looks at two of the highest styles of music-making - jazz and classical music. Thus, this June the joint product between Steve Vai and the Dutch orchestra Metropol appeared. Don’t expect to hear some standard rock or metal riffs with crafted orchestral passages within them. Everything recorded in these over 100 minutes of music is based on the harmony and dialogue between a rock guitarist and a symphonic orchestra. Even the opening track “Kill the Guy with the Ball” off the marvelous “Alien Love Secrets” shows the excellent cooperation between the musicians on stage. The cues are thrown from the guitar to the violins and back, while the other instruments complement the drawing with their parts. And until the end of the first disc (with the general favourite “For the Love of God”) it remains this way - a fantastic journey in the miracle land of the works of Vai, but with the rollercoaster called Metropol. The second CD is a special gift for the guitar player’s fans, presenting a few of Vai’s compositions, but rearranged as classical music. The wealth of the tracks in this reading is obligatory for every melo-maniac and is a true musical feast. Vai himself comments that still as a child he has dreamt of composing for a symphonic orchestra, and while for him this album is a reason for pride, for us, his admirers, it is a pleasure to listen to.