DAVE MUSTAINE Talks About His 'Guitar Prodigy' Interactive App

Ranked No. 1 by Joel McIver in "The 100 Greatest Metal Guitarists" book, Dave Mustaine godfathered fast-heavy-metal guitar generations, first as the original lead guitarist for METALLICA, and then as the founder of legendary MEGADETH.

Now, Mustaine has teamed with the creators of Rock Prodigy to give his legions of fans an entirely new way to experience and learn his music. Available today on iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, Dave Mustaine: Guitar Prodigy is an interactive application that teaches fans how to play MEGADETH songs on ANY guitar.

Mustaine and his pro guitar team coach fans through each lesson. The application uses real master tracks and listens to every note played, providing instant feedback on your performance; it's like taking private lessons with Dave.

When asked by AOL's Noisecreep why this was important for him to do now at this stage of his career, Mustaine said, "The first thing was, when I was approached by Rock Prodigy, I knew right away that they were the right people for this. How they approached my music, especially how they took such care to get all the transcriptions right — they totally got it. So that was important. But then there's this thing where, as I get older, it's important to me to put stuff like this out there because physically, I don't know how much longer I can do what I do. Physically, things get tougher. I've had surgeries lately; you just know what's gonna happen so this is a way to preserve what I do for the next generation of players. . . That's really important to me. I first started thinking along these lines watching as my sensei became older. He couldn't move in the same way as he had before, and he told me, when your body can't do what it once did, it's okay, you just have to start relying on your mind more."

Mustaine was also questioned whose app he would have wanted to learn from back when he was a kid. "Angus Young for sure, Jimmy Page and probably Michael Schenker," he replied. "But mostly Jimmy Page. I mean, I always sort of modeled myself as part Jimmy Page, part Robert Plant. I'm not saying I ever close to those guys' levels, but I tried [laughter]. But right now, 'Dave Mustaine: Guitar Prodigy' is really my way of letting fans spend some personal time with me. And I hope a lot of young players — any players, for that matter — get to check it out."

Dave Mustaine: Guitar Prodigy includes several MEGADETH mega-shredding hits like "Tornado of Souls", "Holy Wars… The Punishment Due" and "Public Enemy No. 1" from MEGADETH's new album, "TH1RT3EN". Also included are a number of progressive bite-sized "Micro Lessons" created by Mustaine himself covering areas like rhythm, technique and theory revealing the true genius behind his music.

The app comes with multiple skill levels from beginner to advanced, and even features a leader board to show off top scores. Never before has there been an affordable way for a fan to get a one-on-one connection with the artist, to experience the music — by playing the music.

Download your copy of Dave Mustaine: Guitar Prodigy now at this location.