Capture The Art Blog's

Twelve brightly colored electric guitars hang silently on a wall, drawing the eye to an illuminated showcase where Rocky Chirchiglia’s first guitar — a Regal he bought for $12 in 1942 — rests on a shelf. The guitar’s strings are missing, the paint has been rubbed off and the wood is cracked. The showcase is mounted above stacks of old record albums, scores of amplifiers and groups of music stands in a room that emanates nostalgia at Chirchiglia’s House of Music, 5450 Mahoning Ave.

Between renditions of his favorite Italian songs he plays on a six-string acoustic guitar, Chirchiglia recounts how he became a musician. At 11 years old, he began guitar lessons. After eight years of lessons, he had learned to play a variety of guitars — flamenco, lap steel, four and five-string banjo, ukulele and mandolin. Today, the 77-year-old Youngstown resident passes on his extensive knowledge of music to people of all ages by teaching music lessons at his business, which he founded in 1979. He says he started the business to make a living from his passion and to teach people how to play instruments correctly. He teaches music lessons for the guitar, and another music instructor teaches lessons for clarinet, saxophone, flute and drums. People taking lessons may bring their own instruments or buy them from the House of Music.

After decades of owning and operating the business, Chirchiglia hopes to continue doing what makes him the happiest — indulging his passion for music. “I’m going to keep on going here as much as I can,” he said. “But if someone comes along and says ‘I want to take over your music store,’ for the right price, we may be able to work out a deal.” His wife of 53 years, Virginia, helps run the business by doing the bookkeeping. “She keeps me in line with everything, and that keeps me successful,” he said. He feeds his passion for music by playing in The Rocky Chirchiglia Band, which formed in 1946. The band mainly plays Italian music at festivals and functions throughout Ohio, western Pennsylvania and West Virginia. ..

(From Rocky Chirchiglia@MySpace)


Note : In the early sixties (or late fifties) Rocky Chirchiglia and his orchestra backed Tony Chick (aka Tony Chirchiglia, a brother? a cousin?) on the Hy-Joy label, on "A Car" b/w "Oh: By The Way". Rockin' Country Style rockabilly discography have no information about the date or the location of the label, but Youngstown, Ohio was likely home of the Hy-Joy label. ["A Car" was published by Jimbo, a BMI publisher name found on various other Youngstown labels.