About NAMM
What does the acronym NAMM stand for?
How do I join NAMM?
How can I get industry statistics from NAMM?
Can I purchase mailing labels or mailing lists from NAMM?
How do I attend NAMM's trade shows?
I have a piano that has a NAMM sticker under the tuning bridge; can this number help me understand the maker, year and value of the piano?
I thought I remember the NAMM headquarters in Chicago, is this correct?
About Instrument Sterilization
Is instrument sterilization necessary?
Aren't most rental instruments sanitized by the dealer?
Will sterilization get rid of germs?
Q: What does the acronym NAMM stand for?
A: Over its more-than-one-hundred-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.
Q: How do I join NAMM?
A: First, review our Membership criteria and if your company meets them, then determine which type of NAMM Membership you qualify for and download and submit the appropriate application.
Q: How can I get industry statistics from NAMM?
A: 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.
Q: Can I purchase mailing labels or mailing lists from NAMM?
A: 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 5 weeks prior to the show.
Q: How do I attend NAMM’s trade shows?
A: Attendance at NAMM trade shows is restricted to companies who make, buy, and/or sell musical instruments and products. If your company meets this requirement, you may start the process of becoming a member of NAMM by clicking here.
Q: I have a piano that has a NAMM sticker under the tuning bridge; can this number help me understand the maker, year and value of the piano?
A: 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 prior to World War 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.
Q: I thought I remember the NAMM headquarters in Chicago, is this correct?
A: NAMM was formed in 1901 in New York. After several difficult years during the Great Depression, NAMM closed its New York doors and reopened in Chicago. While in Chicago, the industry enjoyed great growth and NAMM's many music programs, such as AMC, flourished. In 1984, the NAMM headquarters was relocated in Southern California, where the current building was established in Carlsbad in 1997.
About Instrument Sterilization
You may have seen or read media reports recently about germs living in rental band instruments. The following section is designed to answer common questions about these reports and provide you with additional resources to alleviate any confusion.
Q: Is instrument sterilization necessary?
A: The world is filled with germs, and it's possible these germs can be spread any number of ways such as through school books, sporting equipment, eating utensils and drinking fountains, etc. However, NAMM believes the many benefits of band students playing musical instruments, including improved academic performance and self-esteem, far supercede the possibility of contracting a disease in this manner. The traditional practice of cleaning the mouthpiece with soap and water and/or alcohol has been deemed sufficient for years, just as eating utensils are cleaned with soap and water in the cafeteria. We have, and continue to recommend that musical instruments be sanitized with soap and water and/or alcohol on a regular basis or between users.
Dr. Michael Wessels, the head of infection control at Boston Children's Hospital, says, "just swabbing the instrument's mouthpiece with alcohol should kill most of the germs." TheBostonChannel.com, Sept. 14, 2006
As to whether unsterilized rental musical instruments pose a public health risk, The Washington Post reports, "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention knows of no disease outbreak tied to wind instruments."
John Bradley, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases, says that "even if disease-causing bacteria could survive the usual summer gap between student rentals (which he considers unlikely), the pathogens associated with such illnesses as staph and strep infections, meningitis and tuberculosis aren't likely to do harm if encountered through a wind instrument.” The Washington Post, Sept. 5, 2006 "Tune Into a New Worry"
Throughout NAMM's 105-year-history, we are not aware that there has been any significant outbreak of disease from playing musical instruments.
Finally, Brian Majeski, editor of The Music Trades magazine, the industry's oldest trade publication, says, "we have covered the school band and orchestra market for more than 60 years without a printed mention of a single instance of disease spread through rental instruments."
Q: Aren't most rental instruments sanitized by the dealer?
A: In our experience and to the best of our knowledge, wind musical instruments are sanitized with soap and water or alcohol before they are rented. All reputable instrument dealers should do the same. In addition, many music educators instruct their band students to re-wash the wind instruments themselves prior to playing.
Q: Will sterilization get rid of germs?
A: Dr. James L. Greenwald, associate professor of family medicine at SUNY Upstate Medical University and an active amateur trombonist, was recently quoted on the issue. ("Germs Live on Musical Instruments and Everywhere." Syracuse Post-Standard, Sept. 19, 2006) When asked whether sterilizing an instrument would get rid of germs, he replied, "It would kill all the germs, but so what? They would come back as soon as you brought the instrument back into the world." Download the article (PDF).
