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Stairway to guitar Heaven
Stairway to guitar Heaven
Also covered in the Fall River Spirit and inSkillsUSA Champions Magazine
Diman student Daniel Bowman has big rock-and-roll dreams, but not the typical version ... he wants to MAKE guitars for a living with his own company.
One of his first steps towards that goal looked to the past for inspiration. He used legendary rock guitarist Jimmy Paige of Led Zepplin's first guitar as a model for a fully functional Telecaster electric guitar that he built in the Carpentry-Cabinetmaking shop at Diman Regional Voc-Tech High School.
"It's not the same color, but otherwise it's the same as Jimmy's first guitar," enthused the junior from Fall River.
Bowman's guitar won a gold medal at the SkillsUSA State Competition's "Techspo", where students present a finished project. The guitar will also be submitted to the Ninth Annual New England Student Woodworking Design Competition in June in Marlboro
"It was a great project for him because it has meaning for him," said his instructor, Emanuel Botelho. "How many kids can say the built a guitar? He'll look back 20 years from now and be proud of it."
Milled from a solid piece of wood, the guitar is a finely-honed piece of work. Bowman built it from scratch after school over the course of four weeks. It bears what he hopes will become a brand name - Bowman - on the headstock.
The guitar is a surprisingly complicated musical instrument. "The neck is the hardest thing," said Bowman. "Everything has to be perfect. If the frets are off, the whole thing is messed up and you won't get the right notes."
"He applies himself to every project," said Botelho, who pointed out that "Whatever work I give him, he pushes me because he wants to make it more complicated and challenging."
That "can-do" attitude helped Bowman start down the path to rock stardom. Maybe someday, the best guitarists in the world will be playing a Bowman instead of a Gibson, Fender, or Les Paul.
Diman student Daniel Bowman has big rock-and-roll dreams, but not the typical version ... he wants to MAKE guitars for a living with his own company.
One of his first steps towards that goal looked to the past for inspiration. He used legendary rock guitarist Jimmy Paige of Led Zepplin's first guitar as a model for a fully functional Telecaster electric guitar that he built in the Carpentry-Cabinetmaking shop at Diman Regional Voc-Tech High School.
"It's not the same color, but otherwise it's the same as Jimmy's first guitar," enthused the junior from Fall River.
Bowman's guitar won a gold medal at the SkillsUSA State Competition's "Techspo", where students present a finished project. The guitar will also be submitted to the Ninth Annual New England Student Woodworking Design Competition in June in Marlboro
"It was a great project for him because it has meaning for him," said his instructor, Emanuel Botelho. "How many kids can say the built a guitar? He'll look back 20 years from now and be proud of it."
Milled from a solid piece of wood, the guitar is a finely-honed piece of work. Bowman built it from scratch after school over the course of four weeks. It bears what he hopes will become a brand name - Bowman - on the headstock.
The guitar is a surprisingly complicated musical instrument. "The neck is the hardest thing," said Bowman. "Everything has to be perfect. If the frets are off, the whole thing is messed up and you won't get the right notes."
"He applies himself to every project," said Botelho, who pointed out that "Whatever work I give him, he pushes me because he wants to make it more complicated and challenging."
That "can-do" attitude helped Bowman start down the path to rock stardom. Maybe someday, the best guitarists in the world will be playing a Bowman instead of a Gibson, Fender, or Les Paul.