Magical bus tour

Some Beatles biographies conclude that there were two John Lennons. One was the rebel, the young man from Liverpool with a quick wit and a quicker temper; the other was the cultural crusader, the activist who rallied millions for nonviolence and equality.

When the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus stopped at South Coast Plaza on Tuesday, though, it seemed that the world has taken the second image more to heart.

The Lennon bus, a nonprofit mobile recording and video studio, has toured America since 1998, giving tours and holding workshops for aspiring musicians. Since Tuesday was a school day, the bus didn’t hold a workshop, but it still allowed visitors to see a modern recording studio up close -- even if it was only big enough to fit over the rear axles.

“The bottom line behind the bus is education,” said Jesse Jensema, one of the three engineers who lives on the bus and makes up to seven stops a week.

The Apple store, one of the Lennon bus’ top sponsors, invited it to its South Coast Plaza site for the first time Tuesday. The bus parked outside the store from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., as Jensema and the other engineers showed off their mixing desk, video equipment and instruments. All of the computers in the Lennon bus are Apple products

According to Jensema, the two great functions of the Lennon bus are introducing young people to state-of-the-art technology and infusing them with the power of music. During the youth workshops, six to eight children spend the day writing and recording a song, then filming a music video in the bus and its surrounding area.

“They not only write and create music, they also know this is a job they might pursue,” Jensema said.

Tuesday may have brought a smaller crowd -- at least during the school day -- but a steady stream of visitors still boarded the bus. Grant Schweppe, a junior at Calvary Chapel High School in Santa Ana, was in the midst of final exams and took a break to visit the vehicle.

“I think it’s a really good idea for them to go to schools and teach music,” said Grant, who said that he is a sound engineer for his church and that he plans to film a documentary about his sister’s upcoming wedding.

DOUGLAS ZIMMERMAN / DAILY PILOTThe John Lennon tour bus, which travels across the country teaching children about the technology of the music industry, stopped outside South Coast Plaza on Tuesday. 20060125itmn4vncDOUGLAS ZIMMERMAN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Steve Miller, a staffer on the John Lennon tour bus, works on a video while parked outside the Apple store at South Coast Plaza on Tuesday. 20060125itmn49ncNo Caption20060125itmn4kncPHOTOS BY DOUGLAS ZIMMERMAN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Steven Tiritilli, 11, third from left, spins vinyl records into digital format on the John Lennon tour bus. Andrew Tiritilli, 9; their mother, Gina Tiritilli; and Cristina Tiritilli, 15, look on.