A Badass Cover of Eddie Van Halen’s Eruption Solo on a Custom 7-String Fretted Electric Violin

Musician Nina DiGregorio of Femmes of Rock performed an incredibly badass cover of the iconic Eddie Van Halen solo from “Eruption” on a custom 7-string fretted electric violin. DiGregorio said that she tried this on a 5-string fretless, but it didn’t sound the way she wanted, so she held out until she could make it sound like Eddie.

My journey to learn Eruption began a few years ago, when I only had access to a 5-string fretless violin….I wanted to sound like Eddie. Thus began my journey with the 7-string fretted violin. Pretty much the entire reason for having this instrument custom-made (thanks Wood Violins crew!) was to see if I could play Eruption.

DiGregorio expressed her admiration for Eddie Van Halen, noting that he inspired her to do better.

Eddie Van Halen was in a class all of his own. His sound, technique, rhythm, and musicality changed the game for all guitarists (and this electric violinist) that followed. I am a far better performer, a far better violinist, with a much larger range of abilities, thanks to the months (or years) I put into dissecting his style and taking the time to do this on a violin as close to how he did it (so effortlessly) on a guitar as possible.

Thanks Chip Beale!