By Kim Wilmath, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Rock school teacher Lee Ahlin shows a chord to Jacob Fleming, 11, during his auditions Saturday afternoon at the Straz Center in Tampa. Amateur rockers Grade 5 through adult, regardless of experience, come together and jam while receiving tips from Ahlin.
TAMPA — Tapping his feet, the teacher pointed feverishly around the room.
"D, D, C, D," he hollered to a motley crew of musicians. "Now we're going up to G. Tenth fret!"
It wasn't long until the random plucks and chords became Cream's Sunshine of Your Love. Lee Ahlin's mop of gray hair bounced to the pa-da-da, pa-da-da of the drum as he wailed out the lyrics.
Ahlin, who leads a "rock school" course at Tampa's Patel Conservatory, conducted the Saturday afternoon jam before auditions for the course's next session, which begins in January ...