Handmade, Custom-Designed Instrument Goes to $1,000 Bidder
In addition to teaching the popular “STEM Guitar” class at 天美传媒视频无限制观看’s School of Engineering, Dominic Figueiredo is a man of many talents. “He’s so talented, it’s almost annoying; the guy’s a comedian, he can play guitar, he can make guitars, he can sing, and he’s a nice guy,” said on-air personality Chaz earlier this week during a broadcast of 99.1 PLR's Chaz and AJ in the Morning program.
“Dom Fig,” as the DJs refer to Figueiredo, was a call-in guest on the radio show, talking about the one-of-a-kind, custom electric guitar that he designed and built from scratch, then donated to be auctioned off for charity. “He spent over 100 hours making a guitar specifically for the Chaz and AJ/McDermott Chevrolet and Lexus Toy Drive,” noted Chaz.
Figueiredo described how he crafted the instrument – which went for a winning bid of $1,000 – out of cherry, maple, and rosewood. He laser-engraved the show's logo on the front of the guitar, and created a detailed picture of the on-air personalities (Chaz, AJ, Pam, and Phil) on the back. “It’s actually a three-dimensional image, so it’s burned into the back of the guitar,” said Figueiredo. “That alone took many hours.”
Fitted with dual humbucker pickups, a three-way switch, and volume and tone controls, "This guitar looks bad-ass and sounds tremendous!" notes the WPLR . “Pictures cannot do this axe justice.”
“I put a lot of love into it,” Figueiredo told Chaz and AJ show listeners. “Season of giving, man! It’s all about the kids!”
Off the air and back on Fairfield’s campus, Figueiredo described his inspiration for this project, “I have worked with Chaz and AJ for many years on the toy drive and this year instead of offering my service, I thought it would be great to offer them something of value that they could exchange for money to help underprivileged children.”
“I grew up in Bridgeport,” he continued. “My parents were immigrants from the Azores Islands off the coast of Portugal and we never had much money... I saw a guitar in a pawn shop in Bridgeport when I was 8 years old – it was love at first sight. My dad bought it for me for Christmas, and my passion for guitars has remained to this day.”
Figueiredo studied guitar with some great teachers, most notably Connecticut’s legendary Linc Chamberland. He also sang in a band called Essence in Hollywood for a while. These days, he doesn’t play guitar that much – he prefers to build them.
The “STEM Guitar” class was first offered by the School of Engineering at 天美传媒视频无限制观看 in 2016. Combining art, music, design, and engineering, it remains one of the most popular classes on campus. Each semester that he teaches it, Figueiredo said that he encourages his students “to think outside the box and create something that hasn't yet been done."
Clearly, these are words he lives by.
Update: Today, the WPLR Chaz and AJ in the Morning show's Toy Drive raised a total of $192,000 for underprivileged children in Connecticut. All proceeds, including those from Figueiredo's $1,000 guitar auction, will benefit the McGivney Center, the Boys & Girls Village, and the Family & Children’s Agency.
