On Saturday, August 14th of 2010, I attended the Paul McCartney concert at the Wachovia (soon to be Wells Fargo) Center in Philadelphia. This was the first time I had ever seen any of the former Beatles perform live. I was accompanied by my friend Kevin York, who took all of the photos you see here.

Paul rocked, plain and simple, but you expect that from a former Beatle I suppose. By far the greatest concert (yes, the greatest) I’ve ever been to.  McCartney learned how to “Mach Shau” in Hamburg half a century ago. It was ten songs into the show when Paul broke into the Wings hit Let Em In that Kevin looked at me and said with enthusiasm, “He’s still got it.”  I guess that’s what sums it up best…  He does still got it.

The last two concerts I’ve seen of older groups have been  Van Halen and The Eagles “Hell Freezes Over” tour, and in both instances I’d been fairly disappointed.  I feared the same of this in some ways, and I was glad to be dead wrong.  This was no “reunion” tour of a band that hadn’t played together for a decade, this was a performer who has never stopped touring.

McCartney’s rapport with the audience was one of familiarity and intimacy.  The audience was  bantered with, serenaded, and Rock n Rolled.  He jockeyed between the piano, acoustic and electric guitars, his legendary Hoffner bass and even a ukulele.  The set list was chocked full of Beatles and Wings classics, as well as as well as some welcome surprises that were not on the list, like Give Peace A Chance and Hendrix’s Foxy Lady.

Might I add that Kevin York was able to capture these vibrant images with a pocket camera, which proves my point once again that what a real photographer can achieve with a $500.00 camera is far greater than what the amateur (like myself) could accomplish with a professional grade camera.

In the first rough of writing this article, I found myself going on and on about McCartney’s “epicness” referring to him in most cases as a superlative. Then I went droning on and on about the concert itself, filling it with lots of exciting and powerful Rock n Roll appropriate adjectives.  So yeah, Paul McCartney put on an epic show, and it was likely the greatest concert I have ever seen, and the most fun I’d ever had at a concert.  I danced, I sang, and I smiled from start to finish.

To the folks who have already seen Paul McCartney perform live, this is no great revelation, and to those of you who haven’t, McCartney really is a performer you shouldn’t miss.  Did I forget to mention that Paul McCartney is a superlative and epic Rock n Roll God and perhaps one of the greatest performers of all time?  Oh yeah, that too.

Bravo Sir Paul, that was really cool.

-Craig

Photography by Kevin York
www.kevinyorkphotography.com

www.kevinyorkphotographer.com

www.cuttingedgedjs.com

When DJ Foltzy asked me why the younger DJ staff weren’t represented on the Cutting Edge blog or website I didn’t have an answer, so I just decided to correct the oversight. Meet the next generation of Cutting Edge Entertainment.

When the decision was made to do a new photo shoot, I thought it might be a great time to bring in a new photographer… enter David Difuntorum. I was introduced to David’s work by a mutual colleague, and became acquainted with his photography through facebook and twitter. I thought his style was edgy and youthful, and perfect for our younger generation of Disc Jockeys.

The secret to our recipe for molding a DJ isn’t really that secret… We start em young. Most of the senior DJ and MC staff here at Cutting Edge started here when they were young, and in many cases this is their first job. In doing this, by the time they graduate college, they’ve got nearly ten years of experience. Still in touch with the pulse of youth, but with the experience of hundreds of parties and events under their belt. They are our little brothers, and they are the future of our family.  They start out as assistants -or “grunts” as we call them – and learn quickly, moving on to small parties and Sweet Sixteens after two or three years of training with our senior staff.

Steve has been with us the longest, and we are happy he’s chosen to attend Temple University… so he’ll be sticking around.  Steve (a.k.a. DJ Foltzy) is one of our most requested Sweet 16 DJs, and has a broad knowledge of music – from oldies to current stuff.  He’s typically out on his own Sweet 16 party, or assisting as the DJ on a wedding or bar mitzvah party with one of our MCs.  I’ve known Steven since he’s been about five years old, first meeting him as the MC at his sister’s bat mitzvah.

Justin came to us when he was fourteen years old.  He learned fast, and his self assuredness and competitive nature are what make him such a skilled DJ.  Watching Justin grow up and come into his own has been very gratifying to me.  What started out as youthful cockiness has evolved into the deserved confidence of a young man.  Justin makes me very proud, and of all the next-gen guys I’ve got, he’s probably the one I butt heads with most… likely because he reminds me so much of myself at that age.

Jack… the cool, calm and collected one.  Jack might seem quiet at first, but that’s because he’s taking it all in, while maintaining control.  Jack came to us by way of, well, his mom, Maura who does sales and PR for Cutting Edge.  When Maura told me she was taking some time off, she must have seen the worry in my eyes, and quickly added “I’m not going too far, you’ve still got Jack”.  Jack, like the others, is a hard worker and a team player, and his passion and interest for music are part of what give him the D.N.A. of what a Cutting Edge DJ is made of.

Why is Zach wearing a crown?  Because he’s DJ BK (Burger King).  He’s always hungry for a whopper and fries, probably because he’s working all the time.  The crown isn’t the only hat Zach wears at Cutting Edge, as he is a DJ, lighting tech and sound man.  When not at a party with the Cutting Edge staff, Zach can be found saving lives as a junior fire fighter, running his own small landscaping business (quite the entrepreneur), or at the local Burger King grabbing a bite to eat.  No matter what Zach does, he has it his way.



I’m grateful for David’s time and David’s beautiful photographs.  A photographer’s art is an amazing and glorious gift and I am in awe of their craft.  Yet, what touched me even more were the kind words that David posted to facebook shortly after our photo shoot, which I took the liberty to post an excerpt of below.

I watched Craig and his crew interact and here’s where my interest really piqued.  I see Craig sitting on a chair.  He’s was holding court on four teenagers and it was instantly apparent that five things were going on: They were all intelligent. Craig was the boss. They were giving each other LOTS of (HYSTERICAL) crap. Craig was not spared. Everybody liked and respected each other.

The longer I was there the more I recognized that these young guys were well-lead by Craig and they worked as a seamless team.

It was excellent and a joy to behold. It reminded me of the best times I had in the military where we were all young people giving each other crap, respected each other and got a difficult and challenging job done as a selfless team. My God, the laughter was infectious.

I was so happy to be around these guys. They were so good at their work and at giving each other crap I could tell that working for Craig would be one of the highlights of their lives.

Thank you David, for everything.

-Craig

David Difuntorum Photography – www.daviddifuntorum.com

David on twitter – http://twitter.com/TheDif

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Having been in business since 1992, Cutting Edge Entertainment has come in contact with a great many photographers. One of our favorites for many years has been Joel Perlish. Joel has an uncanny knack for capturing our staff in motion, while at the same time never missing a moment of the action on the dance floor.

I recently reconnected with Joel, who was kind enough to provide us with a couple of photos he took a few years back. These photos have been hanging in our office for several years now, but we never had the digital copies of them so as to show them off here on our blog. Joel was happy to provide them, and found the specific photos I requested within moments of my asking for them even though they were taken almost four years ago. Quite impressive.

The first is a photo of C.E.E. dancer Regina (now in her second year of law school), and the second photo is Kelly (now a middle school phys-ed teacher).

Joel Perlish Photography – http://www.joelperlish.com

www.cuttingedgedjs.com

Kelly Ayn McKay of Culinary Concepts was wise to choose photographer Kevin York to do the promotional photography for The Independence Seaport Museum and Events at I.S.M. Likewise, Kevin York chose Cutting Edge Entertainment’s own Shoshana and Tony to pose for the shoot. These breathtaking photos are only a few of the many beautiful views from and around the Seaport Museum – located at Penn’s Landing in Philadelphia – and truly show what a world-class photographer can do with such an amazing and scenic venue.

Tony (MC, DJ and dancer) and Shoshana (MC, dancer and choreographer) have both been with Cutting Edge Entertainment since 2002, and we at C.E.E. were honored to have had been asked to represent Kevin York and Events at I.S.M.

The Independence Seaport Museum is a fresh and exciting new hot-spot for weddings as well as any other type of event you can imagine.

Culinary Concepts

Events at I.S.M.

Kevin York Photography

www.cuttingedgedjs.com

Let’s just say I eat lunch a lot.  In the past two weeks I have done lunch with Gian Carlo, Associate Director of Catering for the Hyatt Regency in Philadelphia, Eli Allen from Majestic Images Photography, Brian Toner from Eventions Productions and lastly, just this afternoon, with Renee Grande of Events by Monroe.  In each instance I always see an opportunity to blog about it and tell the story of each experience, but in this case I’ve just been so ‘on the go’ that this is the first opportunity I’ve had to sit and organize a thought.

The Hyatt Regency Philadelphia

Lunch with Gian Carlo at the Hyatt Regency (at Penn’s Landing) was great.  Over the past year Gian Carlo is someone I’ve become friendly with through N.A.C.E. (The National Association of Catering Executives) and a person whom I’ve wanted to sit down and chat with for a long time now.  When he asked me to lunch I jumped at the opportunity and it was quite the experience.  We ate at the Hyatt, with a beautiful view overlooking the Delaware and, a first hand look at Gian Carlo in action and the tight ship he runs (he is quite impeccable).  As we sat and ate (I had the salmon Caesar) I watched him operate.  A simple look to a waiter and an out of place napkin was put back in place, and he didn’t skip a beat in our conversation.  He kept an eye on everything around us while we chatted, and impressed me as someone who takes great pride in the presentation of his facility.

Majestic Images Photography

Our meeting with Eli (it was actually Pedro and I) from Majestic Images didn’t end up being a lunch, as we all weren’t really that hungry which gave us the opportunity to talk business, as Eli told us all about his E-Photo online, as well as other projects he is currently working on.  One thing I have always been impressed with is Eli’s studio in the Olde City section of Philadelphia.  It is cozy, yet professional, and one of the few conference rooms I have been in that truly impress me.

Eventions Productions

Brian Toner – owner of Eventions – is someone I have known for years as we have always been his resource for dancers for his occasional bar or bat mitzvah, but this was the first time I ever visited his facility.  Let me just say wow… cases upon cases of lighting, trussing and sound equipment, it’s no wonder Eventions is the foremost lighting company in the Philadelphia area.  Our lunch was interesting to say the least, and I look forward to Cutting Edge Entertainment and Eventions Productions working together in the future.  I hope to blog more about Eventions in the future once I get to the photos I took at his impressive facility.

Events by Monroe

My last lunch, with Event Planner Renee Grande was very educational.  Renee is newer to the market and has a lot of fresh and creative ideas for not just weddings but all kinds of events from kids parties to reunions.  Many clients who think a wedding coordinator might be out of their budget might find Renee’s ‘Event’s by Monroe’ to be not just affordable, but of great value.  Using a coordinator can really take the stress out of planning an event, as it is second nature to them and the final product (or party) is typically more polished and runs much more smoothly than a do-it-yourself, especially if you want that ‘wow’ factor.

I have always found that networking and sharing ideas with other event professionals has helped to give Cutting Edge its ‘Edge’ over the competition.  Unlike other companies that try to be a one stop shop, I always appreciate professionals that focus on one thing, as opposed to trying to be a jack of all trades.  I learn ideas, but when it comes down to it I  like to turn to experts like these to do their jobs, so that my staff can do what they do best… entertain.

I am grateful that these good folks took the time to lunch with me so that I might learn more about what they do, and I look forward to working with all of them in the future.

-Craig

www.cuttingedgedjs.com

My first meeting with photographer Jean Valentin was a brief one, and at first glance he had an Antonio Banderas thing going on, accent and all.  Later I would find out he wasn’t Spanish, although he still had that European charm (and sense of style).  My second meeting with him was at an industry event, and as it happens I was looking for a photographer to shoot a few of my staff and had not had very much luck.  Valentin offered his services and to be honest I hadn’t ever seen his work before.  Judging by the photo above, I think it speaks for itself.

As far as the cigar is concerned, again that was all Valentin.  “Long cigars, like Clint Eastwood” were his instructions of what I needed to bring.  I’m not a cigar smoker, but I think I pull it off fairly well with Valentin’s help.  Ironically the second (bottom) cigar photo is my favorite.

-Craig

These and more can be found on Jean Valentin’s blog -
http://www.jean-valentin.com/

www.cuttingedgedjs.com

So as I mentioned in my previous blog, Kevin York came out to Cutting Edge Entertainment’s studio in Huntingdon Valley, PA for an impromptu photo shoot last week, and as expected came through with some amazing shots of a few of our MC/DJs, myself included (that’s me above with the Cutting Edge sign behind me.  Kevin had a natural knack for using the buildings on the lot as backdrops for some creative and fun pictures.  Ironically it’s the first time we had done something so ‘off the cuff’ and I was really pleased at the pictures we got.  I think Kevin took about five hundred pictures all tolled, with these being some of the ones I liked best (I liked them all really, so it wasn’t an easy choice).

Richie (above), a Temple graduate, has been with Cutting Edge since he was about fourteen years old, starting out shlepping equipment and moving his way up through the ranks first to DJ, then to MC.  I liked this picture for so many reasons (besides how it looks like some kind of boy-band shot), but mostly because it really shows how cool Richie is.  Rich is probably the ‘workingest’ DJ at Cutting Edge, spinning at clubs and bars all over Philly when he isn’t doing Weddings and Bar Mitzvahs on the weekends.  Likely (one of) our most requested wedding DJs, Rich has a profound knowledge of music and how to apply it at events that is virtually unparalelled.

The ‘new’ Marc Mednick (above) is literally that, as Marc has ‘reinvented’ himself this year.  Marc – like Richie – has been at Cutting Edge since about 1995.  Also a Temple graduate, Marc works during the week as a teacher in the Neshaminy School District, and hence is a natural with kids.  Marc often kids Rich that although Rich might rule the wedding circuit, Marc is the CEE Mitzvah King, with enough thank you letters to fill a file cabinet.  This picture shows Marc just chilling, but those of us ‘in the know’ realize how hard it was for him to keep a straight face while Rich and I were goofing off in the background. (Yep, that’s me choking Rich… He must have claimed to be the better DJ again!)

Ahhh Pedro (above).  Pedro – a veteran of Cutting Edge for fifteen years and a graduate of Drexel U – also fills his week nights working bars and clubs in the Philadelphia area.  Unlike Rich and Marc, Pedro cannot be defined as either mitzvah or wedding DJ, as he is the ‘jack of all trades.’  Zany, silly and goofy Pedro embodies all that is fun, while his corporate background coupled with his experience as a Disney cast member bring a level of professionalism and attention to detail that makes me rest easy knowing he is representing Cutting Edge Entertainment.  The picture above was Pedro’s idea, but ironically shows his hidden quest for ‘power’ at CEE, as he furthers his plans for world domination.

Unfortunately some of our other MC/DJs like Adam, Jason, Justin, Nate, Shoshana & Tony (as well as Kevin who thinks he’s retired) weren’t able to make it, which is fine by me because it leaves the door open for us to work with more great photographers in the future.  Photo shoots are a good time, and I look forward to doing them more often.

Thanks again to Kevin York for these and all the other great photos.

Kevin York Photography – www.kyorkphoto.com

www.cuttingedgedjs.com

There are only a handful of what I would term ‘really talented’ event photographers in the Philadelphia area, and last Thursday we were lucky enough to have one of them come out and do a little impromptu photo shoot with a few of my top event DJs.  Kevin York – whom I have known for about three years now – is one of a group of ‘edgier’ and more creative photographers that I have come to discover.  In my twenty-plus years of being in the event industry it is only in the past three or four years that I have become ‘enlightened’ you might say.  Prior to that my experience with photographers had always been what I term the ‘pose and shoot’ variety, simply aiming and shooting.  To be honest, the first time I ever even noticed a photographer bothering to change lenses was a great photographer named Dawn Deppe about eight years ago, but at the time I thought to myself that she was working way too hard shlepping all this gear and changing cameras and lenses all the time and that she seemed more like she should be shooting for National Geographic.

Let’s just say I’ve learned a thing or two in the past few years.  A videographer colleague of mine – Dave Williams of D’Videography – once told me that if a client wanted to only spend $1,500.00 on a videographer for their event, they would be better off spending that money on a really good video camera and handing it off to a guest to take the footage, because in the end at least they would own the camera when they found their footage wasn’t very good.  Dave couldn’t be more right.  Photography (and videography) is an art, and a camera in the hands of someone without real skills gets you pictures (or video) you might as well have taken the pictures yourself.

So yeah, Kevin York is an excellent photographer.  Over the next six months, I will be featuring several ‘excellent’ photographers here on the blog, professional photographers that are masters of their craft.

I have been asked in the past why I don’t offer photography as an add-on to my service, essentially offering photography through Cutting Edge Entertainment like many other DJ companies do.  The answer is quite simple, and it’s always the same… because at Cutting Edge Entertainment we focus on what we do best, Event Entertainment.  I know what some of these other companies are doing is making them a lot of money, but the product they are delivering is average at best.  If you want an excellent photographer, hire and excellent photographer, not a DJ Entertainment company that ‘also offers’ photography.

Oh, and if the selling point is “Our photographers have shot hundreds…  even thousands of weddings.”  Who cares?  The amount of events an individual has worked does not ensure quality, it might simply mean that the price is cheap enough to book hundreds and thousands of jobs.  Very much like furniture made of cheap materials; It certainly sells more than the good stuff and it might even look good when it’s new, but it certainly isn’t a family heirloom.

Always remember, quality remains long after price is forgotten.  Better yet, you get what you pay for.

-Craig Sumsky

www.cuttingedgedjs.com

Kevin and Ashley went all out with options adding an extended lighting package,  custom gobos and even a live percussionist to play along with the music.  The event – held at Spring Mill Manor in Bucks County, PA – was a complete success.  Special thanks to Carl our production manager for designing the lighting structure for the event and to the Burstin and Mednick families for inviting us to share this special day with them.

As you can tell by the photos, a great time was had by all.  Gabriel from Deja Vu Studios was kind enough to provide us with these amazing pictures.  Deja Vu did a fantastic job on both photography and Video, and we look forward to posting some of the video footage very soon.  Not only did Deja Vu do a great job, but they were complete professionals and an absolute pleasure to work with.  I would highly recommend them.

Deja Vu Photography & Video – www.DejaVuStudio.com

Kevin and Ashley, we wish you all the luck and love in the world, and congratulations on your marriage!

-Craig

www.cuttingedgedjs.com