In October, he set up a digital metronome — music's equivalent of a traffic cop's radar gun — in the bedroom of his Modesto home and had a friend videotape him playing riffs at various speeds.Playing along at six notes per beat, he kept cranking up the metronome until he reached 23.5 notes per second.
He submitted the video to the Guinness World Records folks, who posted it on their Web site, even though they haven't certified him as the world's fastest guitarist. That title, for now, belongs to Tiago Della Vega of Brazil at 21.3 notes per second, playing four notes per beat.
Before they certify Padilla's claim, he'll send them another video of him playing even faster. Padilla broke his pending record when he played 24 notes per second during a videotaped interview with The Bee this week.
Next month, he'll invite musicians from the Modesto Symphony, California State University, Stanislaus, and Modesto Junior College to watch him try for 26 notes per second. He'll use the metronome, along with a computer playing at that speed. "If I'm not keeping up, you'll be able to tell," he said.
Then, Padilla said, he'll start training for 30 notes per second. "Nobody would touch that for a long, long time," he said.
Better have a crew of paramedics on hand. He plays so fast you worry one of his digits could blow out like a tire and crash at any time.
Despite his obvious skills -- Padilla plays all kinds of music, writes his own and is recording his first album -- he is just beginning to make a name for himself on the music scene. His agent, for all practical purposes, is the Internet through his MySpace page, YouTube videos and the Guinness site.
He makes his living teaching guitar students at Langlois Music in that rock-n-roll hotbed also
known as McHenry Village. He's videotaping a guitar instruction video. He plays for veterans and other groups to help them raise money, and on Sundays plays at his nondenominational church, The Well, on Claus Road.
He has long, bushy hair that he often pulls back into a pony tail when he plays.
He claims his heroes are flat-topped Modesto Mayor Jim Ridenour and clean-cut Councilman Joe Muratore because they are trying hard to make the city a better place to live.
Although he's played at events such as the giant North American Music Merchants convention, Padilla never caught the road tour bug. He's married with a 13-year-old stepson. Modesto has been his home since he moved here in 2004.
Padilla grew up the youngest of seven children in a dysfunctional family in Sacramento. His mom was an alcoholic.
"I never met my dad," he said. "Child Protective Services took us when I was 3½. I grew up in foster homes and group homes."
He took his first music classes in junior high and at Foothill High School.
"I wanted to be the cool guy in school," Padilla said. "The hip cat. So I signed up for music and they said, 'Your violin is over there.' "
OK, so he didn't become big man on campus. But he did learn how to read music and gained an appreciation for the value of understanding its structure, both of which serve him well now.
After high school, Padilla did odd jobs, delivered pizza and worked in other food-related businesses over the years.
Randall Padilla - World Fastest Guitar Player 2010 Set World Record Video
He has long, bushy hair that he often pulls back into a pony tail when he plays.
He claims his heroes are flat-topped Modesto Mayor Jim Ridenour and clean-cut Councilman Joe Muratore because they are trying hard to make the city a better place to live.
Although he's played at events such as the giant North American Music Merchants convention, Padilla never caught the road tour bug. He's married with a 13-year-old stepson. Modesto has been his home since he moved here in 2004.
Padilla grew up the youngest of seven children in a dysfunctional family in Sacramento. His mom was an alcoholic.
"I never met my dad," he said. "Child Protective Services took us when I was 3½. I grew up in foster homes and group homes."
He took his first music classes in junior high and at Foothill High School.
"I wanted to be the cool guy in school," Padilla said. "The hip cat. So I signed up for music and they said, 'Your violin is over there.' "
OK, so he didn't become big man on campus. But he did learn how to read music and gained an appreciation for the value of understanding its structure, both of which serve him well now.
After high school, Padilla did odd jobs, delivered pizza and worked in other food-related businesses over the years.
Randall Padilla - World Fastest Guitar Player 2010 Set World Record Video