An auction being hosted in downtown Buffalo on Thursday evening will benefit an organization that promotes music's role in society and culture and hosts programs to make it more accessible for many within the community. The guitars to be auctioned off feature signatures of some of the biggest names in music entertainment.
The benefit, to be held at Chef's Restaurant, will support Music Is Art, the foundation formed by Buffalo resident and Goo Goo Dolls co-founder Robby Takac. Established in 2003, the not-for-profit holds numerous programs throughout the year to make music more accessible to many within the community.
"We hand out instruments, we have instrument drives, we support lessons, we support performance opportunities," said Music Is Art board chairman Phil Aguglia. "Our mission is to ignite, excite and expose kids to new opportunities they wouldn't otherwise have."
The guitars to be auctioned during Thursday's "preview party" for the upcoming Music Is Art Festival were assembled on Monday at the Guitar Center music store in the Town of Tonawanda. The store donated a dozen guitars on which signed pick guards were installed.
The signatures on the guitars come from artists including: The Goo Goo Dolls, Dierks Bentley, Blink 182, actor Kevin Bacon, actor/comedian Tommy Chong, Billy Ray Cyrus, Snoop Dogg, Ray Davies (of the Kinks), Willie Nelson, John Rich (Big & Rich), James Taylor, Rob Thomas (Matchbox Twenty), the original members of Guns N' Roses, the full original lineup of Prince and the Revolution, the late Michael Jackson and the Rolling Stones.
Those autographs were collected over the years by Ryan Casullo, the longtime Music Is Art board chairman who died in a motorcycle accident earlier this year.
"He was never a musician but was a fan of music," said Music Is Art board member Don Raiser. "A normal person goes to four or five concerts a year. He'd go to about 50 a year. It was his mission, and he collected autographs for years, he bought a bunch at a few auctions... with the vision of having them put together for the auction for Music Is Art."
Takac was not present for Monday's presentation at the Guitar Center. He and the Goo Goo Dolls, according to Music Is Art officials, were in Denver for a scheduled gig. They will be in Buffalo to play at the Music Is Art Festival on September 12 at Hoyt Lake in Delaware Park.
