Crystal Morris started in the music industry as a child working with her dad at his booth at the NAMM show. In 2000, Gator Cases was launched at a NAMM Show when they saw a need for cases...
Summer Pittman began taking piano and voice lessons at Contemporary Music Center when she was seven years old. After studying with many teachers, Summer also started playing guitar. She h...
Menzie Pittman is the founder and owner of Contemporary Music Center located in Virginia. Menzie was inspired to to pursue music after he saw The Beatles perform live on Ed Sullivan. Afte...
Susan Carson opened her first music store, Taylor Guitar Shop, at just 18 years old in Johnson, Tennessee. Taylor Guitar Shop became the local hangout spot for bluegrass pickers and those...
Andy Allen established the custom shop within the Maton Guitar Company in Melbourne, Australia. The company was created by Bill May back in 1946 along with the help of his brother Reg. Si...
Tommy Emmanuel played bass to his brother's lead guitar as a kid and knew playing music was his calling. Tommy has become a world renown player and songwriter who realized early on the im...
Laura Whitmore’s passion for music began at a young age, learning to play guitar and writing songs as a teenager. She attended Hofstra University where she earned a B.S. in Music Merchand...
Clint Strait was born in Austin, TX and is the 3rd generation to work for the Strait Music Company. Clint is carrying on his family’s tradition of great customer service and selection to ...
Artie Kornfeld was originally a trumpet player in symphonic orchestras. As a Rock and Roll fan, Artie eventually switched to guitar and performed with several groups before landing a job ...
Neal Pomerantz developed a passion for music at a young age. He started on the guitar and had aspirations to become a rockstar. In 1988, Neil took a job at a local music store to make som...
Evan Skopp is the president of Inside Track International, which is a boutique sales & marketing firm that works with luthiers and guitar manufacturers. He started out in music at an ...
Jim Phiffer accepted a position at Pearl Drums which would lead him to a 20 plus year career in the music business. While at Pearl, Jim was the Vice President of Sales and Marketing, even...
The piano sticker represents a NAMM program of the early 1900’s until World War I and again briefly in the 1950s. The sticker program was an effort to authenticate dealers and pianos in a...
Robert Christie grew up listening to classical music at home and naturally gravitated towards percussion instruments. When he was five years old he began to play drums in church, and late...
Terry Bissette began playing drums as a kid in South Florida, where he lived through the heyday of live music in the 1970’s and 80’s, performing six nights a week at various clubs. He too...
Mark Gooday is the founder/owner of Ashdown Engineering. As a young bass player in England, Mark idolized the tone and style of John Entwistle of The Who and wanted more sound from the ba...
Dale Wentworth put himself through college by teaching music lessons in the back of his father’s lighting store Kelowna, British Columbia. After finishing college, Dale realized that his ...
James Hall saw his sister’s flute and wondered if he could make one out of glass. He bought a glass tube from his university’s science supply and used his brother’s blow torch to make fin...
This audio only interview was conducted by Bruce Duffie and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Vladimir Ussachevsky was a classically trained composer who worked in the field of el...
Brad Townsend always had a love for music and remembers growing up with music all around him. He opened a retail music store/lesson studio and also had an extensive career at Fender Music...
Howie Mendelson played the recorder and trombone in school but, like so many of his generation, picked up the guitar when he heard the Beatles. Unlike most, Howie didn't just see the Fab ...
Barry Horowitz first joined the team at Sam Ash in 1971! The small retail store was just expanding under the direction of the founder's two sons, Jerry and Paul. Jerry became like a secon...
DeDe Heid met her husband Todd while selling his music store, Heid Music, their newspaper advertising. After attending numerous NAMM Shows with Todd, as well as other business meetings, D...
Todd Heid of Heid Music grew up watching the shop operate and found his passion for the business during his high school years. In the early years of Heid Music, the store had a large prod...
This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Bea Wain was a singer with the big bands during the great s...
DJ Spindarella, from the Bronx New York, grew up in love with the Disney character Cinderella. She was wearing a Cinderella watch while spinning records in her local park, the day she got...
DJ Hollywood always had the showbiz bug, even at six years old he would perform at his mother's parties. As he saw crowds gather to hear music in the Harlem parks, Hollywood brought out h...
Kool DJ Red Alert, from Harlem New York, grew up listening to the Caribbean music of his grandparents as well as his brother's record collection. He was greatly inspired the day he first ...
DJ Scratch is a legendary Hip Hop DJ and producer from Brooklyn New York. He has worked with many great Hip Hop artists such as Jam Master Jay, EPMD, Jay-Z and A Tribe Called Quest! Durin...
DJ Mean Gene (L Brothers) from the Bronx, was not only a legendary DJ but an early Hip Hop promoter and organizer of jams and shows. Gene was Grandmaster Flash's first DJ partner. His you...
