Established 1914 - Cigar Box Guitars Making a Comeback Native Bamboo luthier Claude Kennedy sells cigar box guitars in Clearwater. "Not everybody can afford a Fender Strat." Mac MacNamara of Punta Gorda agrees. "I keep a cigar box guitar on a stand in my living room next to a set of conga drums. Guests love it. And it looks just great!" Skipper's Smoke House in Tampa recently hosted a cigar box guitar concert featuring the Delta Swamp Rats, a blues oriented ensemble. The fun, relatively inexpensive instrument may soon replace the uke as the hottest fad instrument of Florida. Photograph by Jon Callas [cc-by-2.0___________________________________________________________________________THE WRENCHERS MUSIC STORE!!The Wrenchers, the area's top surfer band, own a music store in St. Petersburg. In the photo above, Steve demonstrates an 1863 Goldklung German Lute. "See, Pipeline sounds great on an antique instrument," he said. "Of course, having a great retro guitar player backing me up doesn't hurt either." "See me for strings, pickups, whatever." You can find store information on line (click here) and hear their band (click here).__________________________________________________________________________________________________Brett McMullenA Fine Voice From Clearwater's First Family Sun: Hi Brett. I passed your cemetery on the way here. [McMullen Cemetery on Coachman Road]Brett: Yep.Sun: Then I passed over your road. [McMullen-Booth Road] Who was Booth anyway?Brett: Family.Sun: Family?Brett: Yep. The McMullens moved here in the late 1840's [around the time of the Alamo]. The Booths came later, in the early 1850's.Sun: Two families close together; not many other people, I guess marrying was natural?Brett: You bet. My family owned farms up and down this part of Tampa Bay. They needed to drive the cattle to the ferry in Safety Harbor. So the McMullens and the Booths cleared the land for the road and the name stuck.Sun: You're well known for your gospel music and local rock performance. Does your website have country music as well?Brett: Yes it does. I recorded three country albums. I sing all styles, including rock and country rock, but my heart's in country. I have original music on the site.Sun: What are you doing next? Brett: All over. Heather's Place sometime, Third Friday Festivals) [519 2d Street South, just off Main Street] for the bonfires and an outdoor party. Click here for Brett's Music. Click here for Heather's Menu. Photographing String Players String players are fun to photograph. The intensity and skill in their playing is reflected in their faces as they perform. Often the look is one of concentration with an edge of emotion resulting from the aesthetics of the moment. The hands and bows move like lightening. This leaves the photographer with the option of using a very fast shutter speed to capture the bow without blur or to use a lower shutter speed allowing the bow and bow hand to create a motion blur that lends a nice texture to the shot. The gentlemen to the right, an advanced student of Professor Eden Vaning, has an excellent tone. He is studying musicality (which will be the subject of Ms. Vaning's next book - her twenty-third volume on string playing. The Violin Book dot com). The background of the photo is the teaching studio, (largely left untouched with only minor adjustments). The background below was completely removed and the player isolated from an entire orchestra. It was shot taken during a pre-concert warm-up. Using PhotoShop, color and smoke were added to match the feelings expressed by Serenity Tedesco, a professional musician. Lighting was the ambient natural light, rendered to match the aesthetics of the surrounding player. Kevin O'Neill Helps Guitar Players Musician Kevin O'Neill works at the Guitar Center at the corner of US 19 and Drew Street across the parking lot from Best buy. He specializes in strings and is skilled in solving problems in getting the right soloist sounds. Kevin can be reached at 727-791-7464. - Gypsy Muse New Production of West Side Story on Broadway The new production of West Side Story uses real Puerto Ricans. Most of the production is in English with bits of Spanish dropped in for flavor. A new approach to costuming blends the best of many eras with the men looking authentic to the times and the women looking hot (nice touch from a later era). It's the best of all worlds! (Be sure to go to a Chinese restaurant while you're there. Which one? Well... Anyone!!!! You'll see what we mean.) Gypsy Rose Reeds Tickets can hook you up for the show. DOUBLE TIME INDUCTED INTO LOCAL HALL OF FAMEThe band, shown here in an older file photo illustration, is scheduled to be inducted into the Legends Country Music Hall of Fame in Dunedin. The band is led by guitar/vocalist Dan Brown, left. The band is noted for playing both kinds of music-country & western!! To find out more about homeschooling or teaching yourself the violin: Violinbook.com Watch the videoVisit Simon fieldhouse

The Clearwater Sun - Smallest of the World's Leading Newspapers

Established 1914
Clearwater's Oldest Newspaper

clearwatersun@yahoo.com

Cigar Box Guitars Making a Comeback

Native Bamboo luthier Claude Kennedy sells cigar box guitars in Clearwater. "Not everybody can afford a Fender Strat."

Mac MacNamara of Punta Gorda agrees. "I keep a cigar box guitar on a stand in my living room next to a set of conga drums. Guests love it. And it looks just great!"

Skipper's Smoke House in Tampa recently hosted a cigar box guitar concert featuring the Delta Swamp Rats, a blues oriented ensemble. The fun, relatively inexpensive instrument may soon replace the uke as the hottest fad instrument of Florida.

Photograph by Jon Callas [cc-by-2.0

___________________________________________________________________________

THE WRENCHERS MUSIC STORE!!
The Wrenchers, the area's top surfer band, own a music store in St. Petersburg.
Groovehaven

In the photo above, Steve demonstrates an 1863 Goldklung German Lute. "See, Pipeline sounds great on an antique instrument," he said. "Of course, having a great retro guitar player backing me up doesn't hurt either."

"See me for strings, pickups, whatever." You can find store information on line (click here) and hear their band (click here).

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

Brett McMullen

A Fine Voice From Clearwater's First Family

Sun: Hi Brett. I passed your cemetery on the way here. [McMullen Cemetery on Coachman Road]

Brett: Yep.

Sun: Then I passed over your road. [McMullen-Booth Road] Who was Booth anyway?

Brett: Family.

Sun: Family?

Brett: Yep. The McMullens moved here in the late 1840's [around the time of the Alamo]. The Booths came later, in the early 1850's.

Sun: Two families close together; not many other people, I guess marrying was natural?

Brett: You bet. My family owned farms up and down this part of Tampa Bay. They needed to drive the cattle to the ferry in Safety Harbor. So the McMullens and the Booths cleared the land for the road and the name stuck.

Sun: You're well known for your gospel music and local rock performance. Does your website have country music as well?

Brett: Yes it does. I recorded three country albums. I sing all styles, including rock and country rock, but my heart's in country. I have original music on the site.

Sun: What are you doing next?

Brett: All over. Heather's Place sometime, Third Friday Festivals) [519 2d Street South, just off Main Street] for the bonfires and an outdoor party. Click here for Brett's Music. Click here for Heather's Menu.

Photographing String Players

String players are fun to photograph. The intensity and skill in their playing is reflected in their faces as they perform. Often the look is one of concentration with an edge of emotion resulting from the aesthetics of the moment.

The hands and bows move like lightening. This leaves the photographer with the option of using a very fast shutter speed to capture the bow without blur or to use a lower shutter speed allowing the bow and bow hand to create a motion blur that lends a nice texture to the shot.

The gentlemen to the right, an advanced student of Professor Eden Vaning, has an excellent tone. He is studying musicality (which will be the subject of Ms. Vaning's next book - her twenty-third volume on string playing. The Violin Book dot com).

The background of the photo is the teaching studio, (largely left untouched with only minor adjustments).

The background below was completely removed and the player isolated from an entire orchestra. It was shot taken during a pre-concert warm-up. Using PhotoShop, color and smoke were added to match the feelings expressed by Serenity Tedesco, a professional musician. Lighting was the ambient natural light, rendered to match the aesthetics of the surrounding player.

Kevin O'Neill Helps Guitar Players

Musician Kevin O'Neill works at the Guitar Center at the corner of US

19 and Drew Street across the parking lot from Best buy. He

specializes in strings and is skilled in solving problems in getting the

right soloist sounds. Kevin can be reached at 727-791-7464.

- Gypsy Muse

New Production of West Side Story on Broadway

The new production of West Side Story uses real Puerto Ricans. Most of the production is in English with bits of Spanish dropped in for flavor. A new approach to costuming blends the best of many eras with the men looking authentic to the times and the women looking hot (nice touch from a later era). It's the best of all worlds!

(Be sure to go to a Chinese restaurant while you're there. Which one? Well... Anyone!!!! You'll see what we mean.)

Gypsy Rose

Reeds Tickets can hook you up for the show.

DOUBLE TIME INDUCTED INTO LOCAL HALL OF FAME

The band, shown here in an older file photo illustration, is scheduled to be inducted into the Legends Country Music Hall of Fame in Dunedin. The band is led by guitar/vocalist Dan Brown, left. The band is noted for playing both kinds of music-country & western!!

To find out more about homeschooling or teaching yourself the violin: Violinbook.com

Watch the video

Visit Simon fieldhouse

Notice - The Tiki Culture Duo is no longer accepting engagements due to the recent death of Flautist - Composer Claude Kennedy (Master of Arts in Composition USF).

His bassist is in the Master of Fine Arts in Music and Sound Design program at San Francisco's Academy of Arts U.

TIKIadEdit

______________________________________________________________________

Ceramic tile mosaics. Custom art to your specifications.

Geometric, pictorial designs on your floors, walls and ceilings.

Call Bill 727-492-8211

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Professional House Cleaning - Call Yulia 727-267-7830

Tutoring Math, English, Social Studies, GED, SAT Prep - $25 per hour - Teens and Adults - Contact John Ruane at 727-267-5666 or send e-mail to jruane2@tampabay.rr.com

______________________________________________________________

Tutoring by Bill Babbit 727-798-8982

High School Level History, mathematics, English,

College Level psychology, biology and ethics.

Experienced with special needs students

$10 - $15 per hour depending on subject

You can email me at bill_babbitt1999@yahoo.com

BRIANWARD

ACTING TEACHER

727-441-4022

BWard0012@gmail.net

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