By Lyndsie Kiebert
Reader Staff
The Tonedevil Brothers — David and Anthony Powell — don’t just play their instruments. In a lot of cases, they’ve been familiar with their guitar’s wood grain since it could be seen in the tree. They know where each and every piece came from because they’re not only musicians, they’re craftsmen.
From left to right: Anthony and David Powell play live. Courtesy photo.
The Powells own and operate Sandpoint-based Tonedevil Guitars, “producing the most affordable, hand-crafted, all-solid-wood, USA-made harp guitars” full-time since 2011, David said.
More and more guitarists are becoming acquainted with the harp guitar, which features two necks and upwards of 18 strings.
“It’s been a whirlwind,” David said. “So many new players are cropping up.”
Harp guitar music is deeply layered, as the lower notes that a guitarist on a six-string would need to tune to are already at the musician’s fingertips.
“Put simply, the added bass notes makes the guitar chords sound so much richer,” David said. “The color it adds to the guitar is addicting.”
The Tonedevil Brothers will bring the sounds of bluegrass, blues, singer-songwriter and Americana to the Pend d’Oreille Winery on Sept. 14, during the winery’s monthly art reception. David plays the harp guitar while Anthony accompanies on mandolin.
“We incorporate swing and gypsy jazz also,” David said. “The harp guitar seems to work with those styles very well.”
The September artist reception welcomes the work of photographer L. Halcro to the winery walls. Halcro’s pieces center on capturing North Idaho’s scenery from her unique perspective, with a particular love for capturing the aurora borealis. Her vibrant work has been featured in Pend Oreille Arts Council’s ArtWalk, as well as in magazines and calendars.
“Really my end goal is to end up with that one shot where someone asks, ‘Wow, what place was that photo taken?’ and the reply would be, ‘Here!’” she said.
Art receptions are held every second Saturday at the Pend d’Oreille Winery.
“The winery intends to continue to support local artists and we welcome varied media, including painting, stained glass, photography, sculpture and encaustic,” said winery co-owner Kylie Presta. “The reception provides a casual and fun space to celebrate the artist, learn about the pieces and enjoy a glass of wine with our artistic community.”
Tonedevil Brothers at the Pend d’Oreille Winery art reception • Saturday, Sept. 14; 5-8 p.m.; FREE. 301 Cedar St. Ste. No. 101, 208-265-8545, powine.com. Listen at tonedevilharpguitars.com.
