Musical collection keeps area man in sync with the world around him
LAUREL — Everyday throughout the world, people face hardships, disasters, and heartache.
Each person handles adversity in their own way. Tim Wichman is one of those people, that has faced extensive adversity and chose to rise above the difficulty of daily life, thanks to his love of music.
Wichman, a 1983 graduate of Laurel-Concord School, enlisted in the army in 1984 and served his country for 14 years.
He served in combat in Kuwait, and Iraq during Desert Storm. He said music helped him get through it especially when he listened to classical music.
Twenty-one years later, music in many different aspects has become Wichman’s life.
Wichman and his wife Kendra moved to Concord from Colorado Springs, Colorado two years ago.
They bought a house and decided to build a garage to house their vehicles. Wichman had always wanted to build a pub shed. These have become popular in Europe and they are starting to replace the man cave.
After deciding to build the garage, he thought he should just build up and have his pub above the garage.
Just recently the pub was finished. Not even his wife had seen the final product. He took his time in planning the pub exactly how he wanted it. It took him over seven months to decide on the color of the walls.
Wichman volunteers at the Laurel Recycling Center. Lathan Asbra and Wichman have been friends since childhood. Asbra had a huge positive impact on Wichman in high school and that has never changed.
During the time Wichman was trying to figure out what he would do with the center wall, he was working at the recycling center emptying a big cart of loose paper and old sheet music came out. As it hit the floor, an idea hit him like a ton of bricks.
He would use the sheet music as wallpaper for the wall.
When walking into the garage as the outside door opens into a breathtaking view, the effect on visitors is just like what happened to the children when they walked into Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory in the movie in 1971.
The staircase is lighted, and the walls are covered with old music collectibles. As the top of the stairwell, there is a large picture of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
To the right of the painting is a 19th Century Jacobus Stainer Violin copy dating back to the late 19th century, which Wichman picked up at an auction.
He always collected old radios and when he was in Colorado, he started collecting old 78 records. They fascinated him. He would buy them, ve records for one dollar. Today on the south wall of the pub stands a huge collection of over 4,000 vinyl records. He has every type of music you can ask for. One of his favorite vinyl he owns are V-Discs, known as Victory Disc.
V-Discs were sent to soldiers during WWII and were made only for them. The government produced and distributed them. The records were to be destroyed but some survived.
Wichman loves to collect Victrola’s. All of his collection came from Colorado except for one he picked up in Norfolk. He also loves to repair them. Everything he does with them is self-taught. Wichman owns
ve Victrola’s and 12 radios with the oldest dating back to 1926.
The word Victrola is not a brand name. It can be compared to a car and there are different brands. Victor-Victrola is the first Victrola ever produced in the early 1900s. Originally the phonograph from the Victor Talking Machine Company came out of Camden, New Jersey. Today Victrola is more of a generic term.
Wichman owns a Hrenola and it is the only documented one in the United States. He paid $60 for it. Wichman has done a lot of research on the Hrenolas and found many copies. It was made in 1916 and still works today. He has not done anything to x it.
Victrola’s do not require electricity. They have a crank on the side which moves the turntable. When they are wound, the Victrola will play for 15 continuous minutes.
Unlike today, there isn’t any electronic amplification. The grooves of the record cause the phonograph needle to vibrate. This causes a metal diaphragm which the needle is attached to vibrate also.
The sound from the vibrating metal disk is turned into acoustical energy. The air molecule vibration is routed through the tonearm and into the horn or today called a speaker and out into the listening environment.
After visiting Wichman’s pub and music collections, the 1953 original vending machine catches the eye of a visitor or even the 1800’s Meerschaum handmade pipes made out of clay are worth the time spent to listen to the history or even the newly built live performance stage with stools, speakers and microphones.
Wichman’s pub was built to share all of his passions that have helped him get through a difficult life.
He was a single dad for 10- 12 years of two girls. He did what was necessary to keep a roof over their head and raise them right. During that era, he worked as a Bounty Hunter. He experienced being stabbed, shot at and chasing criminals. The job was good but also destructive. He chose to stop that line of work and entered Culinary school and become a chef and cake designer. He is known for his German and Moroccan Foods.
Wichman met his first grandson and only grandchild on Feb. 8, weighing in at four pounds 11 ounces named Jamison Alan. With a smile on his face, Wichman said, “This little man calms my heart.”
Today in his kitchen a sign hangs with the words “Thankful and Blessed.” Wichman says he has been homeless, paralyzed on his right side for a few months and went through extreme trauma through his 54 years. He said people don’t take the time to enjoy life, to pursue their passions in life, whatever it may be.
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