In this thesis I studied and analysed two instrumental songs by guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen. The songs under examination were Far Beyond The Sun from the album Rising Force, as well as Trilogy Suite Op. 5, found on the album Trilogy. In order to gain a more detailed analysis, I made guitar transcriptions of both songs. I also added tablatures to the score so that the material could be easily used in teaching. Due to Yngwie Malmsteen's fast playing style, I had to use a transcription software to slow the songs down. I picked up the actual notes by using the guitar and the piano. Fingerings were extracted from Malmsteen's instructional videos and by experimenting on the guitar.

While analysing Malmsteen's playing, I wanted to find the ideas behind his guitar solos. Despite the abundance of songbooks published on Malmsteen’s production and the fact that the internet contains a great deal of instructional videos on his techniques, I wanted to perform a deeper analysis, as well as provide practical exercises, which would be directly based on his soloing ideas. I also considered the impact of his idols on his playing style.

The analysis revealed that Malmsteen plays scales in a very linear fashion and that he uses the whole neck of the guitar. Most of his soloing ideas are based on the Phrygian dominant and harmonic minor scales and diminished arpeggios. Malmsteen's vibrato is also very wide, ranging up to a minor third. Malmsteen also uses economy and sweep-picking techniques. The process of writing this thesis sig-nificantly improved my ability to make transcriptions, and it also made me more critical towards material found on the internet.