“I can't believe I have to write this, but my father, Edward Lodewijk van Halen, lost a long and difficult battle with cancer this morning,” the message says.
The guitarist had a special playing technique - tapping.
In 1972, together with his brother Alex, he founded the group Van Halen.
Van Halen was ranked in Rolling Stone's Top 10 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.
In 2007, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.