Once she saw the movie ‘Air Guitar Nation,’ Sydney Hutchinson was hooked. Since then, she has attended multiple air guitar competitions. She recalled two particular performances, a rock version of Celine Dion’s ‘My Heart Will Go On’ and Dreamcatcher’s rendition of The Eagles’ ‘Witchy Woman.’ Hutchinson, an assistant professor of ethnomusicology, saidshe was instantly fascinated by the clever, quirky remakes of the genres’ most popular songs.

‘An air guitar competition is kind of an ironic appreciation of rock music,’ said Hutchinson, the organizer of the event. ‘It’s for people who love music and love to perform and who have a sense of humor about the whole thing.’

Syracuse University’s first air guitar extravaganza will take place Thursday and Friday, starting with a free screening of the film ‘Air Guitar Nation’ on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in Gifford Auditorium. The competition will be in The Red House Arts Center in downtown Syracuse. The winner will earn a spot in the U.S. Air Guitar Regional Championship in Boston.

Five judges will declare the winner at Friday’s competition: Mark Bialczak, music critic for The Post-Standard; Emmett Van Slyke, a local rock guitarist who runs the rock camp at The Red House; Daniel Hege, former conductor of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra; Ulf Oesterle, an assistant professor in the Bandier Program for Music and the Entertainment Industries and ‘K-Rock’ DJ;and Theodore Philip Cateforis, an assistant professor of music history and cultures. Cateforis teaches a class on rock, and during his research on rock music, he has seen people play guitars, both real and imaginary.

‘I guess in that respect I have some sort of qualifications to see if they’re rocking out properly,’ said Cateforis, who judged Hutchinson’s informal class competition last semester.

Song choices range from classic to glam to hard rock. According to the U.S. National Air Guitar Championships website, the official rules are as follows:Each performance is played to one minute of a song; the instrument must be invisible and must be a guitar; backup bands, air or real, are not allowed; and air guitar roadies are allowed but must leave the stage before the performance.

Among Friday’s competitors is Paul ‘Math Romancer’ Martino, a professional air guitarist of three years.

‘I have an extreme passion for the genre as a whole, every aspect of it. And I showcase it through massive amounts of head banging and air guitaring,’ said Martino, who placed in the Top 10 for the New York City regionals last year,eventually making it to the U.S. finals. He placed secondand earned a spot at the world championship in Finland.

The host of the competition is an author, musician and professional air guitarist Bjorn Turoque, whose real name is Dan Crane.

Having retired in 2005, Turoque has traveled throughout the country and the world emceeing air guitar championships. Known as the’Ryan Seacrest of air guitar,’ Turoque has hosted the World Air Guitar Championship in Finland and will host again this year.

‘Air Guitar Nation’ is a documentary highlightingthe rivalry between Turoque and David ‘C-Diddy’ Jung during the 2003 U.S. Air Guitar Championship.

While this may be Syracuse’s first run at a competition of this caliber, the idea is nothing new. According to usairguitar.com, the first U.S. competition wasn’t held until 2003.But the World Air Guitar Championships have been held annually in Oulu, Finland, since 1996, according to Air Guitar World Championship website. Hutchinson said air guitar performancesare now considered to be a kind of performance art.

‘The best performers in air guitars very cleverly take the conventions of rock guitar performance that are pretty over-the-top and turn them around in a clever way,’ Hutchinson said.  ‘They kind of make fun of them, but appreciate them at the same time.’

Thelevel of performance the guitarists bringat the competition makes them all the more excitingto watch, she said.

‘It’s just so bizarre,’ she said.’It’s a fun time.’

letousig@syr.edu

Published on April 20, 2011 at 12:00 pm