Irving Berlin

Hawley Ades was hired by Irving Berlin in 1932 to assist the legendary American songwriter with musical arrangements.  Hawley stayed with Berlin for five years before being hired by choir master and bandleader Fred Waring.  He joined Mr. Waring at the time the bandleader hoped to launch his own music publishing company, which became Shawnee Press.  Hawley wrote a noted method book on choral conducting and thousands of published arrangements for Shawnee.  In Fact, he worked for Shawnee Press until Mr.

Mary Ellin Barrett was the oldest of Irving Berlin’s three daughters and the author of the 1994 book, Irving Berlin: A Daughters Memoir. During her NAMM interview she and her sister Linda Emmet spoke of their father’s business side including his publishing and role as a founder of ASCAP. Mrs. Barrett also provided some interesting insight into her father’s career as one of the most beloved songwriters in American popular music history.

Larry Blank was greatly influenced by attending Broadway musicals with his parents as a kid. As a result he studied drama yet realized he wanted to be a musician. Larry played piano growing up and as a teenager had opportunities to perform for small musical shows. Word soon spread of his abilities resulting in Larry becoming one of the youngest conductors on Broadway when he worked with Joel Grey in the show Goodtime Charley. He went on the road with A Chorus Line and served as conductor for Marvin Hamlisch’s They’re Playing Our Song on Broadway, which Larry always thought was a w

Ted Chapin has many stories about the music industry, making his June 2010 interview fascinating. As president of Rodgers & Hammerstein Music since 1985 he spoke of the growth and development of Broadway publishing. As the son of a Steinway (his mother was a Steinway and her famous brothers included John, Ted and Henry Z) Ted discussed his own experience working in the Steinway factory along with his twin brother. Ted’s love of musicals also makes him a wonderful source for the history of Broadway and related music publishing.

Ed Cramer was the long time music attorney who played a vital role in ensuring the performance and composing rights of musicians and songwriters. His list of clients reads like a who’s who of American Popular Music and his dedication to ASCAP and other organizations has helped many performers gather the royalties they earned with their writing and recordings.

Linda Emmet enjoyed talking about the often over-looked business side of her father’s remarkable career in music publishing. Her father was Irving Berlin! Mrs. Emmett and her older sister, Mrs. Mary Ellin Barrett, gathered together for their NAMM Oral History program at the Irving Berlin Publishing Company on West 28th Street in New York, just a few blocks from the famed Tin Pan Alley that was the setting of their father’s early days as a songwriter. Mrs. Emmett is the co-editor of the 2001 publication The Complete Lyrics of Irving Berlin, a hefty volume that first brought togethe

Jeff Greenberg is the owner and CEO of The Village, a World famous recording studio located in West Los Angeles. Hundreds of bestselling albums have been recorded in the studio, many of which became standards and pop hits!  Jeff had an opportunity to purchase the studio in 2007, after running it since 1995. When the landmark studio fell on hard times, Jeff built it back up, with respect for the past, and a focus on what was possible for the next generation of music makers in the space!  Jeff's work has certainly paid off as the studio has once again become an iconic recording venu

Irwin Rabinowitz was personally hired by Irving Berlin to create the lead plates for the famed songwriter's sheet music. Irwin's craft was hand chiseling each note, each slur, and coda into metal plates that would then allow copies to be published. Although Mr. Rabinowitz's career would extend into the music typewriter and even the computer, he always preferred the old way of hand craftsmanship engraving.  Irwin worked for a time for the Elvis Presley Music Group and several other publishers before his retirement.  For many years he and his wife traveled to Israel to volunteer at

Smokey Robinson!  The man changed popular music!  He brought a common, streetwise approach to his lyrics, which were embraced by millions of people the world over who related to his messages of longing, love and second chances.  Smokey conveyed in words and music what many of us felt and wanted to say in his same compelling and heartfelt ways.  Like many beloved artists, Smokey let all of us in on his own emotions and by doing so gave us the chance to love, cry and cheer in a new and powerful way.  And his humble and sincere manner in which he receives the praise of so many proves