Alan Schulman was a freelance recording engineer who worked in many of the top studios in Muscle Shoals and Nashville. Bassist Norbert Putnam called Alan, "Mr. Golden Ears" for his skillf...
Howie Schwartz has had a passion for music and sound since he as a kid, which landed him in the Eastman School of Music playing bassoon. After his time in school, Howie worked as a DJ at ...
Scott McDowell has always enjoyed the social element of making music. As a student, he played trumpet and sang in the choir. He also fell into computer design at an early age and was des...
Lij Shaw created the famed Backstage Studio at Bonnaroo, which has been the setting for countless hit recordings. The success of the studio has allowed Lij to do just what he loves to do...
Jim Shaw formed his own country band in Fresno, earning a nice living when he heard Buck Owens opened a recording studio down the road in Bakersfield. Jim thought he could go down and mak...
Lisa Silver likes to joke that in country bands she plays the fiddle, and in classical music performances she plays the violin. Yet she is talking about her one instrument! Her father was...
Arthur Sloatman was working at Valley Sound in Los Angeles when he was called to the Record Plant to repair a synthesizer that required attention during a session with Frank Zappa. Later ...
Glenn Snoddy was working in the recording studio in Nashville, when a short on the control board caused Grady Martin's guitar to take on a new sound. The engineers and producer looked at...
Joe Spivey is a much-in-demand fiddle player in Nashville who has recorded and toured with Shania Twain, The Blackhawks, Dolly Parton and John Anderson, among others. He grew up in Shreve...
Ed Stasium, the producer and engineer, started out his career in the music industry performing with the Band Brandywine in the early 70’s. He engineered and produced records for The Ramo...
David Stewart remembers making a choice to go from playing music professionally to the technological side of touring and working as a sound engineer. He toured during the 1980s, working l...
Chris Stone was one of the original founders of the famous Record Plant recording studios. With his background in finance, Chris was able to secure the funding that launched one of the mo...
Gloria Stone was the book-keeper and the office manager for the Record Plant. Her husband, Chris, and Gary Kellgren opened the recording studio in 1968 in New York City. The company exp...
Syndenn Sweet was the first woman hired as a luthier at Bookmans Entertainment Exchange in Tucson, Arizona. This distinction is one she makes with pride, especially considering her father...
Steve Sykes found it easy to answer one of the biggest questions in a NAMM Oral History interview; “Did you have music in your house growing up?”. Steve’s mom was a booking agent in the 1...
Bill Szymczyk built a small crystal radio set as a kid and soon discovered a world of music and sound that would forever change his life. As a recording engineer and producer, Bill develo...
Keith Taylor strongly believes that every recording engineer should have a foundation in music. Understanding the elements and structure of music has proven to be key to his success as an...
Ivor Taylor took part in one of the great developments of the music industry when he established a pro audio retail store in London. Turnkey was just that, an easy solution for its custom...
Akil Thompson has been an active music maker since he was a kid playing guitar. Over his career he has toured with LeAnn Rimes and Kelly Clarkson, as well as built his own recording stud...
Fred Vail was making announcements on a local radio station in Sacramento, California when he was just 12 years old. While in high school, he led the committee that brought bands to the s...
Lucas Van Der Mee, Principal Design Engineer for Apogee Electronics, has a fascinating background in Live Sound and studio engineering. He spent ten years on the road as an audio engineer...
Rudy Van Gelder was the recording engineer for countless jazz records beginning in the 1940s. To say he was a pioneer seems like an understatement when you take into consideration not onl...
CJ Vanston was thrilled to have the opportunity to produce for Toto, one of his all-time favorite bands. The project was a symbolic full circle experience having been a studio musician, ...
Eddie Veale is the studio designer who worked hand in hand with some of music’s greatest artists to create their own home studios. Eddie designed the home studio John Lennon used to recor...
This audio only interview was conducted by David Schwartz and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Narada Walden formed Tarpan Studios in San Rafael, California in 1985. Over the yea...
Frank Wells has served as a radio and audio technician, installing, maintaining and modifying audio gear for broadcast and recording facilities, as a professional audio journalist, and as...
This audio only interview was conducted by David Schwartz and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Jerry Wexler became a major contributor to the record business in the 1950s and 60s...
Michael Whalen, a two-time Emmy® Award-winning American composer, producer, and recording artist, has left an indelible mark on contemporary instrumental and television music.
Marc Whitmore is an award-winning recording engineer, renowned for his mastery of both analog and digital sound. Nestled in the picturesque foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of ...
Stephen Wick's father Denis is a well-regarded classical musician. The passion for music growing up remains with Stephen to this very day. Together father and son work in the company Den...
Mac Wilson grew up in a musical home as both of his parents were singers. In middle school he learned the guitar and even earned a little money playing around town. Mac continued to pla...
Terry Woodford would often sing along as a child while his grandfather played the Steel Guitar. In addition to his early connection with music, Terry was fascinated by the process of reco...