In Memoriam

Haruhiko Ikebe developed a novel way of approaching music retailing, creating Super Pro Shops that stock vintage and new instruments along with accessories and knowledgeable sales staff for a very specific item. In other words, Mr. Ikebe created a saxophone store, a guitar store, a flute store and several others that market and sell to all musicians that play that given instrument. His passion for music included his involvement with music education programs, which were close to his heart.  

Ernie Kenaga was hired by Charlie Bickel at the Selmer Company following the end of his military service during World War II. At the time, 1946, Selmer had 80 employees including factory and office workers. Ernie began his career in the purchasing department and filled several positions before becoming the manager of the customer service department. He retired after serving the company for over 40 years.

Ernie Borr was a band director from Mandan, North Dakota who was an early supporter of the Eckroth Music store.  Ernie was on hand for the Eckroth Music Center's 40th anniversary party in July 2012 and recalled the early days of calling on the store to help him with his school band instruments and supplies.  Ernie began teaching band in 1953 and even after retiring he continued to lead community bands with a great love of his role in bringing music to others.

Dale Probst and his wife, Elizabeth Ward, formed Ward & Probst Piano & Organ Service Piano Tuning Service in Wichita Falls, Texas. They both have followed their life's dream to provide working instruments to assist their customers to make music!  Dale was particularly active in the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG), serving whenever and wherever he could.  His passion was in training and as a result, he provided countless sessions for the regional and annual PTG programs. In 2015 at the annual conference, Dale was given the organization's highest honor, the Golden Hammer Award

Richard Myrland was a wizard, just as his name suggested! As a product designer for Wurlitzer, Dick created the famed 1050 juke box. With his devotion to the “Wurlitzer Way” credo, he, as much as anyone at the Wurlitzer Company, cultivated the warm sense of family within the company and along the way (1953-1981) became one of the company’s best loved employees. His NAMM Oral History interview was completed on August 7, 2003 on the occasion of the Wurlitzer reunion outside of Chicago. 

Ivan Mogull had a special connection with the Brill Building in New York City, the long time hub of music publishing for decades.  Ivan was born the same year the famed building was built and his father, a foot doctor, was the first tenant.  As a boy Ivan ran the halls and got to know many of the other tenants in the Brill Building, including music publishers and musicians.  He recalled meeting Tommy Dorsey, Harry James and Frank Sinatra.  Ivan was hired as a counter boy to assist with the stock of the publishers and grew up in the business.  He created his own firm and helped pro

Buddy Greco was classically trained on the piano and found himself arranging for Benny Goodman as a teenager. With his love of singing and the encouragement of mentors such as Nat “King” Cole and Frank Sinatra, Buddy launched into his own singing career. Over the years he recorded a string of hit songs and over sixty albums. His understanding of the musical form and the element of both jazz and pop complimented his songwriting and arranging, making Buddy a true musician’s musician.  He passed away on January 10, 2017 at the age of 90. Image used for 1995 interview courtesy of the

John Edmondson and Anne McGinty worked together at Charles Hansen Publishing, where they met.  Together they freelanced as composers and arrangers until they decided to form their own firm, which they called Queenwood Publications.  They built a solid catalog within the company, which was well-known for educational materials for band as well as individual instruments.  After Queenwood was sold to the Neil A. Kjos Company, John continued to compose and arrange for a number of important projects including the “Discovery Band” series and “Jazz Warm-Ups” both published by Hal Leonard.

Sam Eisenman grew up in New York during the heyday of the Big Bands and BeBop.  As an ardent music fan he saw many of the great Big Bands, including Benny Goodman's Orchestra in 1938 at Carnegie Hall!  In retirement, Sam spent over 15 years teaching children to read in the Carlsbad School District. It was during that time that he heard about the docent volunteer program at the NAMM Foundation’s Museum of Making Music. As a volunteer he assiduously studied to prepare himself for any and every question a visitor might ask.  His vast musical background prior to his arrival gave him a

Francois Leduc was the President of the French music publishing company Editions Alphonse Leduc, which has been in his family since it was first established in 1841. The family musical origins began in Arnay-le-Duc in Burgundy and its first musician, Antoine Girard. Alphonse Leduc, teacher, composer, flute, guitar and bassoon virtuoso and student of Anton Reicha in Paris, was born in Nantes in 1804. He transferred his publishing house from Nantes to Paris in 1841. His son, Alphonse-Charles Leduc (Paris 1844-1892), created the important instrumental teaching collections, which beca

Larry Seaver spent decades designing, engineering and producing parts, instruments and tools for band and orchestras. The key to his success was simple, Larry was an engineer’s engineer! He was always thinking about ways to better a process or improve an instrument.  Over his career in the music industry he worked with Getzen, Allied and West Side Machines in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, along with the Schilke Music Products in Chicago, Illinois. 

Victor Tibaldeo Sr. loved to talk about the accordion boom of the 1950s, an element that helped establish his music store. The Miami-based store also was one of the country’s most successful organ retailers when that instrument hit its boom in the 1970s. Victor always said it helps to be in business at the right time, but “what is most critical is having employees who understand customer service.” In 2008, after 60 years in the business, Victor retired. Victor Piano and Organs Inc. is still going strong and is now run by his daughter, Lisa Tibaldeo.  

Pauline Oliveros pioneered composing music using electronic instruments. She recorded both with the Moog and Buchla synthesizers as well as the Expanded Instrument System, an electronic signal processing unit she designed. She was a founding member of the San Francisco Tape Music Center in the 1960s, and served as its director, which is where she first began working with Don Buchla.

John McCrea was born and raised in Billings, Montana, where he first discovered his passion for music. He played the clarinet and was inspired by his band director to teach music in public schools, which John did for 35 years. By the time he retired from teaching, he and his family were living in La Mesa, California where he and his wife opened McCrea Music. One of John’s sources of pride was the fact that he brought music to the lives of so many students and customers over the years. Another source of pride came from the fact that his son Gentry is following in his footsteps

Earl Dummer played his flattop Martin guitar during the folk music boom of the 1960s as part of the Shenandoah Trio. The group toured with Jimmy Rodgers among others and recorded for Billy Vaughan at DOT Records. Earl was greatly influenced by jazz great Barney Kessel who provided lessons for Earl and some sound advice. Earl was encouraged to listen closely to other players and add his own personal style to form a unique approach to his playing. Barney also suggested that Earl form his own group, which resulted in the Shenandoah Trio and several long playing albums for DOT.  

Milt Okun was the founder of Cherry Lane Music Publishing. His career in music, outside of his own playing, began as a record producer. He had success during the folk movement of the 1950s and 60s with performers such as Peter, Paul and Mary. While he continued to produce, he established Cherry Lane and soon worked with singer/songwriter, John Denver, whose successes put Cherry Lane on the map. Mr. Okun’s grasp of the music industry allowed him to be creative and innovative, while growing his business as well as the industry in general. His knowledge of the industry also made for

Leon Russell was the noted musician and songwriter who contributed greatly to popular and rock music during his long career.  As a studio musician, Leon was active in the development of the Linn Drum Machine having provided Roger Linn with several ideas to create new sounds, such as the hand clap and longer loops.  He recorded extensively with other artists and on his own as a solo performer.  He was also an award-winning songwriter who penned classic hits for himself as well as many other artists. 

Charles Traeger had an impressive reputation in the world of bass making and bass restoration.  His long career began when he was a musician in the big band era looking for someone who could help with his own instrument.  He learned all he could and noticed there was a real need for literature for repairing and restoring double basses.  He created the Traeger Principal that says that all elements of the bass vibrate and thus play a role, however large or small, in the sound of the instrument.  Chuck dedicated his entire career to improving that sound! He passed away in the Fall of

James Glanville was part of the team that relocated the Conn instrument manufacturing operations from Elkhart, IN to Nogales, Mexico, back in 1972. The result was a heavy blow to Elkhart, which had once been the Band Instrument Capital of the World. However, it was a needed move in order to keep the company viable in the changing world of manufacturing. James worked hard to produce quality instruments in the Nogales factory, which remained open until the early 1980s.

Richard Bridgeman was the Director of Product Management of Hammond beginning in the mid 1960s. Dick came to the company as the original B-3 organ production was coming to an end. He oversaw the introduction of the new semi-conductor organs. With his warm personality and detailed understanding of the inner workings of the products; Dick became a well respected member of the Hammond team. During our interview, his insight proved to be rather intriguing as he described products, such as the Hammond Condor Product Line, which did not become as successful.   

This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Kay Starr enjoyed a long and successful career as a pop singer bringing in the Big Band Era and continuing into the Sing Era of the 1950s. Among the big bands she recorded and toured with were Bob Crosby, Charlie Barnes, and Glenn Miller. She even scored a big hit during the early Rock Era with "Rock and Roll Waltz." Her biggest hit in the early 50s was "Wheel of Fortune." She continued to embrace her jazz roots with the 1968 album with Count Basie entitl

Ziggy Kanstul knew more about brass instruments than most people. As an important part of the manufacturing end of the FE Olds Company, Ziggy became an expert on model designs, the specifications for each and every product, and the measurements of the horns made by their competitors. He later formed the Kanstul Musical Instrument Company in Anaheim, CA, and soon established a respected product line that includes trombones, trumpets, and tubas. Ziggy also brought together some of the biggest names in instrument design to work on the task of improving his products.

Stanley Schireson’s father opened up a small music store in 1902 that would eventually branch out into manufacturing and distribution of musical instruments. The company began making ukuleles and acoustic guitars under the Hollywood brand name before developing the Volutone name. Stanley took to the road selling the company’s solid body Hawaiian guitars before World War II. After the war and thanks to Stanley’s leadership, a separate distribution company, called Volutone was created that expanded the product line around the world.

Bobby Wellins was surprised to learn that Charlie Watts, the drummer for the Rolling Stones, listed Bobby as an influence on his playing.  After all, the jazzman played tenor saxophone.  However, it was Bobby’s delivery that gained the ear of the young Mr.

Mo Meloy-Palmateer purchased the Fullerton Music Center in Southern California in the early 70s. She soon expanded the store’s services to include greater attention to the sheet music department and lessons. During the 1980s, she added a well-respected boutique element to the store, selling music related gift items and jewelry. Her ideas and passion made a real difference in music retailing as she shared her thoughts with other store owners over the years. Mo was proud of her staff and the friendships she made with her customers.

Saul Walker’s career in the field of electronics went back to the early sound designs before World War II. As an engineer he was trained in the United States Navy and worked on several important projects including early sound recordings and the use of what would become transistor technology. Saul helped create a series of products designed to assist children in the classroom setting, including hearing equipment and sound reinforcement products. In the mid 1960s he teamed with a neighbor to create the pro-audio company API.

Bob Casey enjoyed a long career in pro audio and radio. It all began when he was four years old when he saw the large sound cones on his father’s truck. His father formed Edward P. Casey’s Sound System Company and became one of the early inventors of PA (Public Address) systems in New York. Over the years Bob’s father created the sound systems for many of the Catholic churches in the city as well as for Yankee Stadium. Bob formed his own company creating sound systems for night clubs and studios in New York and on occasion would work with his father on larger projects such as when

Dr. Leo Beranek is considered by many to be the father of concert hall acoustics. His amazing career has not only traced the growth of acoustic measurement but has documented it in a series of articles and books. His first book, Acoustics, was published in 1954 and is considered the bible for the field. Much of his later research was based on projects he led within the company he co-created: Bolt, Beranek and Newman. Among the most noted projects he was involved with for BBN was designing the general assembly room for the UN buildings in New York. Dr. Beranek was then interested i

Toby Capalbo formed La Habra Music in Southern California back in 1960. Over the years he built up strong relations with local band directors and created a popular lesson program. When Toby started, the big craze was accordions and he worked hard to bring his customers the high quality products they requested. Throughout the years he focused on customer service and insisted that all of his employees take the time to listen to the customer’s needs before rushing for a sale. Today this approach to business is being carried on by his son and his grandson, both of whom work in the

Dan Smith was inducted into Fender’s Hall of Fame for good reason. Dan designed the re-launching of the famous guitar company after it was sold by CBS. Dan’s vision was to bring the product back to the early concepts that originally made the Fender name famous. His success led to a long career with Fender including his role with artist relations and marketing. All of this is but one of many sides to Dan Smith, who was a true industry innovator! 

Richie Pidanick was the Vice President of Culture and Values at Guitar Center.  It was Richie’s job to train the company’s employees on the philosophy of what is most important to the corporate culture, namely customer service.  Richie knew the culture and Guitar Center’s values as he lived them for 30 years.  During his employment at Guitar Center, Richie witnessed the development of the small retail operation as it grew into the largest music store chain in the world.  Yet, at the very heart of his passion for the industry was his desire to play drums and make people smile.  He

Sylvia Perry and her late husband, Mack, teamed up in 1945 to establish Peripole, Inc. Mr. and Mrs. Perry taught music and worked to innovate and manufacture instruments for the growth and development of music education from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. In 1986, the Music Industry Council of the Music Educators National Conference honored Mack Perry with a posthumous award for outstanding achievement and service. Peripole was among the first to import ORFF Instruments in the United States. In 1975, Peripole joined forces with the Bergerault Company of France in their man