By….Michael Henningsen
In the segment of Walt Disney's Fantasia titled "The Sorcerer's Apprentice,' our hero dons the magic hat of his mentor and proceeds to cast spells on inanimate objects until the Sorcerer's shop is alive with chaos- walking brooms relentlessly fetch water until the mischievous apprentice is nearly drowned. Enter the Sorcerer. who regains control with such command, wisdom and expertise that even the orchestra responds. Crescendo gives way to moderato, and all is well again.
Such was the unique relationship between apprentice and mentor down through history when, in reality, apprenticeships were developed in order to pass along important skills to younger generations in settings that could be described as personalized, one‐on‐one trade schools. Yet, as our world has become more reliant on and bent on furthering society through technology the mentor- and apprentice-have silently begun to vanish.
Tell that to local music store owner Dennis Dillon, though, and heʹs likely to look at you quizzically and then return his father like attention to Zeke Sikelianos, the Albuquerque High School sophomore who sits hunched over an ailing Ovation electric 12‐string guitar, soldering iron in hand. Though far from the dramatic animated scenes that make up Fantasia, Dillon, like a sorcerer in his own modest shop, is weaving very powerful magic none the less. Itʹs the magic that happens between special students and special teachers-or, to put it more accurately-between mentor and apprentice.
And the only thing chaotic about this particular scene is Dillon himself, who speaks much too quickly, answers phones, answers questions, tends to customers and never takes his watchful eyes off of Zeke‐for even a moment-all at the same time. Some would call him scattered, but the reality is that Dennis Dillon is simply 100 percent committed to who he is and what he does. And, for the past two years his wisdom and technical skill to high school students who are eager to learn his trade.
Humble Beginnings
Dillon Is a professional luthier-a maker of stringed Instruments- by trade. He makes guitars he, fixes guitars and, whenever he has a spare moment or a good excuse, he plays guitars. He especially likes the old ones, like the National steel‐bodied instrument he handles so gently before resting it on his lap and making it wail like a runaway train. All of this has been his life and his love, for nearly 30 years. Scouring attics and basements for forgotten banjos and guitars as a teen, Dillon developed an early fascination with the Instruments that was matched only by his natural talent for repairing and restoring them. And when he couldn't afford a good guitar, he made it
himself-a skill he honed over the years and one that led him in 1972 to Juan Roberto Guitar Works in Phoenix, Arizona -one of the first guitar building schools In the country where he was first a student and eventually served as an instructor. By 1974 Dillon was living in Taos, N.M. where he maintained his own shop in back rooms of the houses in which he lived. Working as a musician, the shop was just another part of his own scene. He built and played his own guitars, built and repaired instruments for friends and other musicians that had been referred to him and, miraculously enough, nearly made a living at it.
In January of 1992, Dillon opened what is now a five‐room repair and retail operation on Central Avenue just east of Carlisle. Born strictly as a repair shop, Dills Guitar Service has catered to the needs of musicians whose Instruments were nothing short of extensions of themselves. And that philosophy has remained. A guitar in a state of disrepair in the hands of Dillon becomes a sacred object that receives the most careful attention. Now five short years later, Dills Guitar Shop has become a fixture among musicians who seek personalized attention, professional service for their instruments and expert advice. It has also managed to remain one of the local music communityʹs best kept secrets.
Passing the Torch
The work Dillon does with Zeke and Sandia High School student Ian Vetter is perhaps more important in many ways than anything the students are bound to learn from text books. There is a degree of practical application at work in this environment that is as useful as it is unique. That's certainly not to say that Dillon's students are receiving the bulk of their useful education during the relatively few hours per week they spend learning his craft. But they are getting what few students have been privileged enough to have during their high school careers during the past decade or so: applied art and the opportunity to learn a potentially viable trade-before they graduate. And, like all good stories of sorcerers and apprentices, Dillonʹs students receive the gift of the experience and the tried and true methods of a wise master. It is the sort of knowledge that is invaluable.
Dillon himself benefits from the program as well. With the retail portion of his business growing for and the demand for expert repairs constantly on the rise, there's rarely enough time in any given day to tend to all the various tasks his business presents. Thatʹs where Zeke and Ian come in during the school year‐long program, the students learn Instrument and amplifier repair, how to care for the delicate merchandise, basic instrument design and the ins and outs of running a retail business. Now, more than half way through the school year Dillon feels comfortable letting his
students take on the more basic repairs solo, though heʹs never out of ears reach if they have questions.
This program has really helped me, says Dillon. "because, you know, it's really hard to keep on top of the repairs as the business continues to grow and expandʺ And it is apparent In the manner by which he imparts his knowledge that Dillon enjoys his role and therefore proceeds with fatherly care. It's as important to him as it is to the students. ʺWhat I really like about it is itʹs kind of an Old World thing, of apprentice/mentor that gives me the opportunity to instill not only the craft and skills, but also good business and ethics along with anything that may be related to (the students') interests in guitars.'
Stay in School
With the virtual dissolution of many music and arts programs in Albuquerque Public Schools during the budget crunch of the l980 there was a relative decrease in the leverage administrators had for keeping kids-our kids-from dropping out. Although elementary and middle schools were the most greatly affected, high schools-pivotal institutions in the educational cycle-felt the heat as well. Less funding meant fewer quality teachers for dwindling music and arts courses. And solutions weren't easy to come by.
One such solution though has been in place for roughly 20 years: the Charles R. Spain Career Enrichment Center. This APS satellite facility, located just south of the Albuquerque High School campus on Mountain Road NW, has provided an impressive array of opportunities to select students for learning outside the traditional classroom. Some of them like concentrated chemistry biology and language classes, offer greater depth and better student/teacher ratios than regular high school classes. Other CEC programs‐nursing, construction and various mentorships and internships such the one sponsored by Dillon have added value as students graduate from them with knowledge of a trade and a better idea about what opportunities they might have in the future.
Monia Koash, a Sandia High school teacher involved with the mentorship, apprenticeship and internship programs offered through the Career Enrichment Center, compares CEC to a sort of clearing house for teachers. ʺStudents come to us with specific interests and talents, and then we do our best to match them with mentors and potential mentors in the community. CES representatives contact the mentors and set the programs up according to everyone's needs. And since the mentors deal with a sort of middleperson first and not rash of phone calls from interested students their time isn't wastedʺ Once a student is matched with a mentor, it is made clear to both parties that the program isn't just a glorified babysitting gig.
ʺThe kids are not there to sit around or get in the way, and they know thatʺ says Koash. ʺTheyʹre in these programs to learn, and they have to be willing and able to find their appropriate place in each situation. Most of them are extremely self motivated.
It was Koash who approached Dillon in 1996 about the possibility of establishing a program in which he would trade his knowledge for several hours per week of free labor and the opportunity to enrich the lives of Albuquerque youth. She just came in and talked to me about it,ʺ says Dillon. ʺAnd I was a Little skeptical but we talked, and the result was a program built around a senior named James who worked out real well. This year I have two more students, and they're both doing very wellʺ
Zeke, Taking part in the mentorship program spends six hours every week in the shop. And Ian involved in an apprenticeship, Spends five. They engage mostly in repairs and occasionally assist with customers. In order to obtain credit, they are required to keep track of what they learn day to day in addition to writing several papers regarding what they are doing and gained from and the result of the lessons heʹs being taught. And what better tool for learning than to enable the ingenuity and interest of the student?
Enriched
Through programs like this one, APS via the Career Enrichment Center establishes cooperation between Albuquerque's youth and the community in which they Live. And the education the students receive through involvement In such programs is, In some ways, far more practical than lessons learned through frog dissection and book reports. It is, after all, knowledge gained from life experience that can be applied most swiftly and directly to real life, which-for kids today-can be a difficult prospect deal with.
And by the same token, there is much more to be gained through an apprenticeship than skill and knowledge, there comes also a deep sense of accomplishment and success as students hone their talents and explore their interests under professional and caring tutelage. And while there's much to be said for certain …turn m my mentorship log.
With These Hands
Surprisingly, although Zeke is a fair guitarist with a love of music, his musical interests aren't the main reason heʹs involved in the program. I play guitar and I like architecture so itʹs combination of things, he says. I consider (the program to be) kind of like architecture. When you're working on an acoustic guitar, it's like working with
a depth field and guitar is a hobby (of mine)." He says that working in an architecture firm wouldn't have provided him with much in the way of hands‐on experience. And itʹs obvious from watching him make repairs that his careful attention to detail would have been squandered toting blueprints and memos between cubicles. Butt this work, his young hands among the fragile wood and complex electronic components, affords Zeke the unique opportunity to enjoy his Labors and appreciate the end result-the joy of missions accomplished. The quality of his work is as much the fruit of his own ability to focus and take pride in what heʹs doing as it is Zeke is having trouble with a device known‐perhaps only within the confines of Dills Guitar Shop‐as a third hand it consists of two opposing clamps connected by inns hinged at the center its purpose is to hold steady loose ends of delicate wires destined, provided everything goes well to be soldered together The apprentice has temporarily lost control of the brooms Not to worry though. it isn't long before the Sorcerer steps in and-unlike the scene in Fantasia where the bearded wise master takes control ‐gently guides the hands of his prodigy toward sweet success They are proud of each other. Indeed, there is magic at work here.
