Died On This Date (June 30, 2008) Angel Tavira / Beloved Mexican One-Handed Violinist
themusicsover Angel Tavira
July 3, 1924 – June 30, 2008
Angel Tavira was a beloved Mexican violinist who lost his right hand to an exploding firecracker when he as a child. But he had been playing the saxophone, guitar, bass and violin, learning by ear. Even after the accident, Tavira continued on with the violin. He was also an acclaimed composer of son calentano, a traditional form of music from the state of Guerrero. When Tavira was 81, was cast as a farmer musician in the Felix Salgado Mendocino film, El Violin. A year later, he won the Best Actor award at Cannes even though he had never had any formal training. Angel Tavira died of kidney problems in 2008.
Thanks to Craig over at Number1Albums for the assist.
What You Should Own
Red Shea was a much respected Canadian guitarist who was closely associated with Gordon Lightfoot. Known for his superb picking style, Shea is often credit for giving Lightfoot his unique sound. Beginning his career in television, Shea was part of the house band on Music Hop, Canada’s answer to American Bandstand. Alex Trebeck was the show’s announcer at the time. In 1965, Shea moved on to work with Lightfoot, with whom he stayed for the next ten years. Shea later went back to Canadian television where he hosted his own variety show. Red Shea died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 70.
David Carradine was an internationally known actor most famous for his leading role in the ’70s television series, Kung Fu and for his role as Bill in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill movies. Carradine was also a singer-songwriter who released at least one album entitled As Is. In fact, he always fancied himself a musician first who just happened to fall into acting when he took a class in college. Throughout his film career, it wasn’t unusual to find Carradine’s characters playing music. He was also an occasional performer and local clubs. David Carradine was 72 when he was found dead in a Bangkok hotel on June 9, 2009. Cause of death was attributed to accidental asphyxiation.
