Shutter On The Street

I’m off to Boston next week (8/1-??) for a few days and I’ll be looking for street performers to photograph and interview.  If you know of someone, or an area where you’ve seen a really good performer, please send me an email at shawn [@] shutteronthestreet [dot] com.

Jerry Rowan is a bit of a street performing celebrity. He’s spent time with the world famous Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey, made a tv appearance on CBS’ Late Show with David Letterman, and has been banned from performing at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor (the ban has since been lifted).

His act delivers rapid one liners throughout his show that will make you laugh, as long as you aren’t on the wrong end of the punch line. Don’t let the quick quips fool you though, Jerry possesses a great deal of skills when it comes to juggling, riding a unicycle and balancing things on his head. The picture below is Jerry’s finale move which earned him a spot on David Letterman’s show.

I walk down the dimly lit steps into the gritty subway tunnels.  The sounds of passing trains fill the air and the air turns stale and humid.  Sliding my metro card and walking through the turnstyle, I hear a faint sound of elegance in the air.  Not knowing exactly where I’m going, I make my way through the underground labyrinth following the pleasantly pitched sounds.  As I get closer, the angelic music gets louder and I finally come upon the source of these heavenly tunes.

Natalia, The Saw Lady, plays a very unique instrument, a carpenter’s saw.  Though the teeth have been filed down and a handle placed on the end for better control of its shape, its form is unmistakable and shocking.   She bends the saw into an “S” shape and strokes a violin bow down it’s edge to produce stunning sounds.  A visit to her web page is highly recommended to hear some samples of the beautiful music she produces.

Two weeks without a post, how sad. It certainly wasn’t for a lack of material but rather a lack of available time and a friend needing help. Things seems to have settled down and I’m going to do my best to have these ready to go a few weeks in advance so that I can miss a week here or there.

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Through the air, thick with the smell of salt water and carnival foods, comes the rhythmic sounds of wooden drum sticks banging on plastic buckets. On the side of the Boardwalk in Ocean City, MD, behind a crowd of 10 or 15 people sits a young man atop a long board skateboard with a mix of plastic and metal buckets of varying sizes turned upside down. Fourteen year old Ryan Nash takes time out of his vacation to the beach to come down to the boardwalk and earn a few bucks playing the bucket drums for the town’s tourists. In an effort to earn some pocket change and money to put towards his college expenses, he spends about an hour a day creating possessive rhythmic beats that will have your foot stomping. Every year Ryan takes approximately $500 of the money he’s earned throughout the summer and deposits it to put towards his upcoming college expenses.

Ryan is in his fourth year performing on the boardwalk but has been invovled in music for much longer. He plays in a number of musical groups including the Paul Green School of Rock. He started busking when another bucket drummer on the boardwalk told him, “you can make a lot of money doing this.” Seizing an opportunity to put his talents to work for himself, Ryan applied for a permit from the city and now performs when his family comes down for vacation.