Frequently Asked Questions

Find musical instruments, products, or lessons in your neighborhood by visiting the NAMM Member Dealer Locator.

NAMM was formed in 1901 in New York. After several difficult years during the Great Depression, NAMM closed its New York doors and re-opened in Chicago. While in Chicago, the industry enjoyed great growth and NAMM's many music programs, such as AMC, flourished. NAMM's headquarters were relocated to Southern California in 1984, where the current building was established in Carlsbad (in San Diego County) in 1997.

Our office is frequently contacted by the owners of older pianos asking about a sticker they found on the back or underside of their piano. The sticker relates to a program that occurred just before World War I called "For the Advancement of Music." In the early 1900s, there was a significant increase in the number of misleading "stencil" pianos in the marketplace, which led to the establishment of this program.

Stencil pianos often had deliberately misspelled names on the fallboard that looked or sounded similar to well-known manufacturers. For example, "Steinbay" in place of "Steinway," "Baltman" to represent "Baldwin," "Chichester" instead of "Chickering" and "Bush & Gaerts" in place of "Bush & Gerts." These pianos were often of lesser quality, and the piano industry was very concerned that consumers were being misled into buying a potentially inferior product when they thought they were getting a piano from a name manufacturer.

"For the Advancement of Music" was a cooperative effort between the National Piano Manufacturers Association (NPMA)—now known as the Piano Manufacturers Association International (PMAI)—and the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM). The goal was to identify for the consumer those pianos made by legitimate manufactures. Stickers were placed on every piano built for several years in the early 1900s with a serial number that was logged into a record book at the NPMA headquarters. Unfortunately, those records have been misplaced or destroyed over the ensuing years, with the result being the loss of a significant historical record.

Often those contacting our office about the stickers are hoping we can date their piano using the serial number on the sticker. Unfortunately, without the record book, that is not possible. In some cases, however, piano owners may be able to date their pianos with the brand name and serial number by referring to the Pierce Piano Atlas, which lists serial numbers for several of the older piano brands.

NAMM's privacy policy forbids the association from providing any mailing lists or mailing labels containing the contact information of NAMM Members to non-Members and non-exhibiting companies or other third parties for marketing purposes. This also includes mailing lists of trade show attendees or attendance rosters from NAMM University seminars. Exhibiting companies can receive buyer lists by completing the form in the exhibitor manual. The Pre-show lists are available to exhibiting companies only after the deadline for early registration, approximately five weeks before the show.

NAMM publishes Music USA: the Statistical Review of the Music Products Industry on an annual basis. The hard copy publication is available to NAMM Members for $25 and non-Members for $75 plus shipping and handling. To order, send an e-mail to info@namm.org or call 760.438.8001.

First, review our Membership criteria and if your company meets them, then determine which type of NAMM Membership you qualify for. Once you have determined your Membership category, download, complete and submit the appropriate application.

Over its more-than-100-year history, the association has evolved from a national entity representing the interests of music products retailers to an international association including both commercial and retail Members. The International Music Products Association’s name, NAMM, comes from the acronym “National Association of Music Merchants,” but the long form of the name is no longer used. Today, we simply say that NAMM stands for the interests of the global music products industry.

The use of cameras and video cameras are permitted only after obtaining the Exhibitor’s permission to photo/film their product or booth.

Minors must pick up their badges at the main registration area, located on level two of the Anaheim Convention Center. For more information, please refer to the minor policy listed on the Web site.

You will automatically receive an e-mail confirmation once you complete your registration, and a second reminder confirmation containing your bar code and show information will be sent two weeks prior to the show.

One week before the show, a final reminder confirmation will be sent which contains your bar code and show information.

You can also contact NAMM at any time to request that an additional confirmation be sent to your e-mail address.

• First login to the NAMM Web site
• Click on the Online Registration tab
• Locate the name of the person whose name you wish to correct
• Click on the pencil icon and type in the correct spelling

In order to delete a previously requested badge, you must be the main contact or the owner.

• First login to the NAMM Web site
• Click on the Online Registration tab
• Locate the name of the person whose badge you wish to delete
• Click on the scissors located to the left of the name
• The name is now deleted.

All badge registration requests received after the December 4th deadline may incur a $25 fee, and all badges can be picked up onsite at any of the following Will Call locations:

• Platinum Ballroom in Marriott
• Main lobby of the Hilton across from Starbucks
• Hall E, Hall A and Arena lobbies of the Anaheim Convention Center.

The cost of parking is $12.

Attendance at NAMM trade shows is restricted to companies that make, buy and/or sell musical instruments and products. If your company meets this requirement, visit our Membership page to start the process of becoming a Member of NAMM.

It’s important you book a room at an available hotel and then fax or e-mail a copy of your acknowledgement number and details of your first choice to the housing bureau (see contact info below), noting your request to be waitlisted at the hotel of your choice. If rooms become available, the bureau will go through the waiting list in priority order and inform you when the change has been made.

NAMM Show:
Anaheim/Orange County Visitor & Convention Bureau
Phone: 714-765-8888
Fax: 714-991-8963
e-mail: visitorinfo@anaheimoc.org
Located at: 800 West Katella Ave., Anaheim, CA 92802
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 4270, Anaheim, CA 92803
 

A listing of hotels in the NAMM block, complete with pricing and a map that shows the specific locations, is available on this site at www.namm.org/thenammshow

Badge registration is open to all active NAMM Member companies and staff beginning March 18 at http://www.namm.org/summer/badges.

Exhibiting companies can begin registering for badges on May 8 once initial booth assignments and allotments are confirmed. If we haven’t answered your question, please call NAMM at 800-767-NAMM (760-438-8001) or e-mail info@namm.org.
 

You can contact the Nashville Housing Bureau directly for assistance:

Nashville Housing Bureau
Phone: 615-259-4700 / 877-259-4716
Fax: 615-259-4126
Email: ncvbhousing@visitmusiccity.com
Mailing Address: CVB Housing Bureau
150 4th Avenue, North, Suite G-250, Nashville, TN 37219

It’s important that you first book your room(s) at an available hotel. Once you have booked a room, you can still fax or e-mail a copy of your acknowledgment number and details of your first choice to the Nashville Housing Bureau (see contact info below), noting your request to be “Waitlisted” at the hotel of your choice. If rooms become available, the Bureau will go through the waiting list in priority order and inform you if a change has been made.

Nashville Housing Bureau
Phone: 615-259-4700 / 877-259-4716
Fax: 615-259-4126
Email: ncvbhousing@visitmusiccity.com
Mailing Address: CVB Housing Bureau
150 4th Avenue, North, Suite G-250, Nashville, TN 37219
 

The hotel reservations booking system (Passkey) for 2009 Summer NAMM opens March 18 at 8 a.m. (PDT). To reserve your room, you must use the personalized link NAMM e-mailed to you on March 17.  If you did not receive an e-mail and are an active Member, please visit http://www.namm.org/summer/hotels. You must be logged into the NAMM Web site to access the housing site. Once you are logged in to the correct page, you will see a link asking you to “click here” in the paragraph titled “attention NAMM Members” above the map. Upon clicking, you will soon receive an e-mail with an exclusive link to visit our housing site, where you can quickly and easily make your hotel reservations.

Once your reservations are complete, you’ll receive an immediate acknowledgment number from the Passkey booking system, operated by the Nashville Housing Bureau. It’s important to note you only have until April 29 to confirm your rooms; after that, a processing fee of $50 will be charged for any rooms cancelled.
 

A listing of hotels in the NAMM block, complete with pricing and locations, is currently listed on http://www.namm.org/summer/hotels

2009 Summer NAMM will take place July 17–19 in Nashville, Tenn.

The dates will move back to June 18–20 in 2010 and will remain in late June for the foreseeable future, making sure not to overlap with InfoComm, another industry event.

Find musical instruments, products, or lessons in your neighborhood by visiting the NAMM Member Dealer Locator.