Originally Posted by: heartbeatnumber I like this approach, because once you figure out what harmony and composition is about, your music does not sound like scale/speed excercises. In addition, there's less propability of your song sounding like a cliché that other ten thousand bands play.

You are absolutily right. Understading music in its esense will help a guitarrist to break up from cliches.
I`m a huge Petrucci`s fan, because He has a solid knowladge of harmony, theory, and classical music.
I have a book where he shows you how to play Chopin`s Piano Concerto in A minor, Opus No. 2; arrenged for guitar. Lots of chromatic passages there.