We sat down with Dr. Ellen Winner to talk about the science behind musical learning and prodigy.

Dr. Ellen Winner is Director of the Arts and Mind Lab at Boston College, and author of the book Gifted Children: Myths And Realities. She studies cognition and psychology in the arts, with a special focus on the development of creative talent in gifted children.

This wide-ranging discussion touches on prodigy learning, creative cognition, brain development, and music education, and a host of other fascinating topics.

We sat down with Dr. Pietro Mazzoni, director of the Motor Performance Laboratory at Columbia University, for a fascinating discussion of the science behind motor learning.

Nashville studio ace and bluegrass flatpicking champion Carl Miner tackles scalar and arpeggiated phrases with startling ease in this revealing discussion of his flawless crosspicking fluidity.

For our second interview, in 2015, we came armed with specific questions about Carl’s unique crosspicking movement. Thanks to Carl’s quick mind for mechanical concepts, we had one of the most specific and revealing technical conversations with a player we’ve ever done.

Cracking the Code seminars are in-depth, multi-chapter lessons on specific topics in music, mechanics, and learning.  They include investigations of the techniques of specific players, as well as tutorials for using cutting-edge mechanics to improve your efficiency and enhance your creativity in different musical styles.

The original Cracking the Code series is a nostalgic trip through ’80s rock history, and a technical adventure culminating in the discovery of pickslanting.

It’s filled with original animation and soundtrack, and is basically a very long feature film — twelve narrative episodes, over 3 hours total. Along the way, we take a both detailed and entertaining look at the techniques of legendary players like Yngwie, Eric Johnson, Michael Angelo Batio, and more.

A pioneer of virtuoso guitar, Michael Angelo Batio’s impossible chops are a gift to players everywhere. From his groundbreaking Star Licks instructional video, to his blazing follow-up Speed Kills, Mike’s remarkable right hand steals the show. Quite simply, Mike is the owner of one of the most mechanically efficient alternate picking techniques on the planet.

Mike’s landmark 2007 interview was one of our earliest experiences interviewing true virtuosos in the wild. Mike’s unguarded attitude and world famous preparedness helped us kick the door open to the world of two-way pickslanting and swiping. See the original footage that changed our conception of guitar technique forever. The interview includes over forty slow-motion examples, with accurate tablature, including picking instructions for every note.

A pioneer of virtuoso guitar, Michael Angelo Batio’s impossible chops are a gift to players everywhere. From his groundbreaking Star Licks instructional video, to his blazing follow-up Speed Kills, Mike’s remarkable right hand steals the show. Quite simply, Mike is the owner of one of the most mechanically efficient alternate picking techniques on the planet.

In March 2017, Mike stopped by the Cracking the Code studio for a live broadcast. In this wide ranging conversation, we discuss Mike’s history in bands like Holland and Nitro, his career as a solo artist, and of course his inimitable technique. Heading into his incredible fifth decade of terrorizing the frets, Mike’s technique has lost none of its trademark fire and precision, and seeing it live and in such detail is as ever a source of wonder and inspiration.