Jack Kanstul and his brother, Mark, joined forces with their father Ziggy in 1981 when Kanstul Musical Instruments was established in Anaheim, California. Like his father, Jack had worke...
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...
Les McCann began his musical career playing the Sousaphone in school. He later played drums before discovering the piano, which became the vehicle that launched him into the jazz world. H...
Women’s role in the music industry has progressively grown and developed over the years. When the NAMM Oral History program began, many of the women interviewed kept the books of their r...
William Gard (1915-1987) served as the NAMM Executive President for over 35 years, beginning right after World War II. In fact it was Mr. Gard who helped re-open NAMM’s offices, which ha...
Having a very long history, the trumpet dates all the way back to at least 1500 BC. Trumpets were used in the early days as a way to signal battle or hunting. Today they are used in seve...
Danny White is the owner of the famed Sound Techniques Recording Studio, located in the United Kingdom, which began in 1964. The studio had its own sound (based largely on the custom mad...
Charles Mallett is the audio engineer for Jim Gamble and Associates in Lake Tahoe. Since working with Jim, Charles has worked on the DCX products and mixes Front Of House on a Gamble boa...
Sandy DeVito began teaching himself guitar when he was 11 years old. He developed and learned how to play by gigging in the New Jersey and New York metropolitan area. Sandy performed and ...
Peter Kowalczyk found an old Silver Tone Guitar in his attic as a kid that belonged to his father, who encouraged Peter to play. He surrounded himself with music and found a position yea...
Doug LaLonde was a professional musician before being drafted to serve in the US Army during the Korean War. He played percussion in the army and while stationed in San Francisco began h...
Orrin Foslien grew up around music. He started out playing the ukulele, then moved to the banjo and guitar. In high school he began singing in the choir and playing the trombone. Around 1...
Jim Gamble envisioned a console that would give an engineer ultimate control of the audio being mixed. He started by working for one of the original sound reinforcement companies and hel...
Michael Paul, known as MP, always had an interest in the visual arts, especially those that could involve multiple formats. When he had the chance to create light and color programs for ...
This vignette highlighting the Krell Piano Company is representative of the many “gems” of history from the Music Products Industry throughout the collections gathered in the NAMM Library...
One of the most archaic yet essential instruments in the music and percussion industry is the cymbal. With its origins dating back as far as 3,000 B.C., the cymbal has been used in vario...
For many musicians, obtaining an instrument for the very first time is a special experience unlike any other. Strumming your first guitar or beating your first drum can spark an extraord...
Ruth Zeiner has been an active and passionate member of the piano technicians industry! Her guidance and advice has helped encourage and foster the careers of members of the Piano Techni...
Bob Wray remembers the day he was sitting in the Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama when Clarence Carter outlined the next song he was ready to cut. Bob was to play guitar on the son...
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...
Ryan West shared many of his memories of traveling abroad with his father, Steve, to understand and appreciate how the business great and diversified including their early distribution of...
Archie “Hubby” Turner served in the US Army during the Vietnam War and always felt the experience taught him, among other things, to appreciate the opportunity you have to add beauty and ...
Steve Taylor was raised on music! His parents owned a large Baldwin retail store and both were piano technicians. While being taught to complete simple tasks as a teenager for the store...
Joe Swenson played trumpet in grade school and was influenced by his mother who played the piano and gave lessons. While earning his degree in trumpet performance in college, Joe worked ...
Andy Strayer began his career in the music industry working for a music store, which he joined right after earning his music business degree at Wingate University in North Carolina. After...
Milton Sledge is the studio musician best known for a string of sessions in Muscle Shoals, Alabama as well as several albums with country super-star Garth Brooks. With Garth, Milton wrot...
Larry Messerly likes to tell his customers who remark on how great a pianist he is that he is a “first page player.” After the first page all bets are off. It is a good line but perhaps...
Alan Merriam grew up in a home filled with music. His mother was a piano teacher and his father was a fan of the big bands. Alan took piano lessons and studied music in college before b...
Rick Jefferies was focused on pre-med when he attended college in Jackson, Tennessee, but had a change of direction when he took a part time job at a local music store. The store sold St...
Joerg Hermsen began his passion for music playing classical guitar in grade school. He later picked up the bass and realized he wanted to have a career in music. While in college he sta...
