Mike Soldano says he was late to game, picking up the guitar when he was 20, but soon made up for lost time by jumping in with both feet! He studied the instrument and listened to live an...
Andy Marshall has had a deep and rich musical education both in the classroom and on stage. In 1986 he established THD Electronics to focus on manufacturing guitar amplifiers.
Del Rey lives and breathes musical passion! Since she was a child she had the skills and desire to communicate through music and soon realized her playing brought happiness to others. The...
Glen Kersten and his wife were just married when they rented a small house that turned out to be owned by Frank Lohnes. Mr. Lohnes also owned a music store called Dearborn Piano & Org...
Deanie Sigafoos began working for Prosser Piano when it was located on 6th Avenue in Tacoma, Washington. She recalls meeting the owners, Laurie and Duane Prosser, and how a close friendsh...
Kerry Prosser can trace his passion for the piano business directly to his parents who formed the family business. Prosser Pianos has served the Tacoma music community since 1955, and ove...
Laurie Prosser and her husband Duane worked together at a small piano store in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, before moving to Washington state in 1955. There the couple opened the first Pros...
Earnie Bailey was mesmerized as a kid, sitting in the front row of an Earth, Wind & Fire concert and seeing all the instruments up close! This experience inspired him to go to the lib...
Deb Olsen provided her views on just how the Guild of American Luthiers began during her NAMM Oral History interview. Her insight offered a wonderful background into the early idea by JR ...
Tim Olsen set out to build his own guitar out of a cigar box and other items found around the house. He was in the fifth grade at the time! He learned that the luthier Harvey Thomas lived...
Leanne Trevalyan was just twelve years old when she taught herself how to play the guitar using the Mel Bay method book on a no-name instrument her mother picked up at Montgomery Wards. L...
Billy Stoops has always been a Fender Telecaster player! He pursued his musical career while having a day job for years hanging wallpaper. Billy took a leap of faith by quitting his day j...
Chris Arent is the instrument repair technician for Ted Brown Music in Tacoma, Washington, a position that is near and dear to him. Chris has always been closely associated with band and ...
Pastor Dave Brown developed a rich and meaningful appreciation for music when he began playing cornet in his high school band. He attended many concerts as a teen (namely at Cafe Au Go Go...
Ellie Stevens has a smile that lights up the room. And when that room is the lobby of Ted Brown Music in Tacoma, people seem to feel right at home right when they walk in the door! As a k...
Hedges Capers rose to fame in the late 1960s as half of the folk rock duo Hedges & Donns. He and his singing partner, Donna Carson (who was later his wife for several years) began sin...
Pam Aalbers is a wonderful example of the notion that it take a team to accomplish great things. Always working behind the scenes, Pam has been a steady support to the staff at Ted Brown ...
Jeffrey Pellegrini was mentored as a General Manager for Ted Brown Music by Kent Isenberg, who had been with the company for over 50 years. Jeffery paid close attention to the way Kent ap...
Stephanie Howe and her sister Whitney run the chain of music stores their grandfather established in 1931, Ted Brown Music. Stephanie followed in his footsteps to run a business that supp...
Jerry Miller was a founding member of the innovative and influential ‘60s rock band Moby Grape. His roots in music go back to his grandfather, who was a famous violin maker in Sweden. Whe...
Keith Dwiggins and his wife Michelle both work for Beacock Music in Vancouver, Washington. The store has always had that family feeling, being established by the husband and wife team of ...
Gary Hobbs is a third generation professional drummer. His grandfather Harry led several big bands during the Great Depression era and his father, who later became a strong leader within ...
Mel Brown didn’t have the money growing up to afford drum sticks so he used rolled up newspapers to bang out a beat nearly everywhere he went. At the age of 17, young Mel was playing in a...
Bob Hardy was greatly influenced by the American rock and roll artists he heard on the radio as a kid growing up in 1950's Liverpool, during which time he was a pupil at the Liverpool Ins...
Margaret Woods receives great satisfaction bringing joy to others as an entertainer! Even as a small child dancing on tables, Margaret realized she could make others smile. When her fathe...
Dan Miller has always felt a great sense of pride by providing the music people have worshiped to in the many churches he has performed in over the years. He took piano lessons as a child...
Wayne Thompson has always felt lucky that he had a musical mentor in high school and attributes that leadership and inspiration for his long career in the music industry. Dee Wiggins was ...
Philip Hodapp holds the unique position of providing hands-on support to dozens of school band directors as the director of school services for Beacock Music! As a lifelong musician, he s...
Ryan Smith remembers with pride the day in the 5th grade when he joined the school band playing drums. That special feeling of making music and being a part of something bigger than himse...
Kieran Downes played piano as a child, but switched to bass in high school to play in a friend's band, and later discover his true musical passion when he picked up his brother’s guitar. ...
