In Memoriam

Tom Ostrander was the founder of Colonial Music in Mt. Vernon, Ohio. Now a string of stores, the retail company began with the simple idea of providing top quality instruments to the area school programs. He was born in Phoneton, Ohio, which is in Miami County, and was encouraged to play music by his parents. He played in the school bands and sought to become a music director. Along the way, he developed an understanding of what school directors needed and what they didn’t need. Tom thought he could put that knowledge to work while still being close to music education.

Bernie Kalban was one of the great veterans of the music publishing industry. Having worked in the era right after Tin Pan Alley, in the Brill Building and with many of the top firms, Bernie witnessed many of the most important changes to the music industry during the 20th century. He began working for Mills Music in 1939 and was there until he was drafted for World War II. He rejoined the company in 1946 and stayed until 1950, when he worked with Charlie Hansen for a decade. He returned to Mills Music for six years when he was hired by Edward B. Marks Music Company in 1966. Berni

Jack Linton followed in the footsteps of his father who formed the famed Linton oboes brand of musical instruments. The instruments have been handcrafted in Elkhart, Indiana, since the 1930s. The company gained a well-respected reputation for their professional series, which have been played by the symphonic soloists in Russia, Europe, Asia and the United States. When Jack took over the company he worked on the marketing of student models and expanded the market within a few years.  Jack passed away after a long illness, which never took from him his positive attitude and passion

Ralph MacDonald grew up in Harlem, where he was exposed to many musical traditions. As a drummer, he focused on his African roots and as a songwriter he relied on his soulful understanding of the blues. Ralph wrote "Where Is the Love", the Grammy winning song made popular by Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway. Ralph also wrote "Just the Two of Us" for Bill Withers and "Jam on the Groove". Ralph was just 67 when he passed away in 2011 of lung cancer.

John Majeski Jr. was appropriately given the AMC Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005 for a long career as editor of the Music Trades Magazine. During John’s era, the Beatles came to America and forever changed the industry. John wrote of the growth of the accordion in the 1950s and the home organ in the 1960s. John's father had preceded him as editor and in 1982, Majeski stepped down as The Music Trades’ editor to give increasing responsibilities to his sons, Brian and Paul. “They have proved themselves up to the job, and the best thing I can do is get out of their way,” he said at

This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Bob Brookmeyer played trombone for several name big bands during the great swing era including Tex Beneke, Claude Thornhill, and Ray McKinley. Bob began focusing on Cool Jazz and West Coast Jazz, playing with the likes of Stan Getz and Gerry Mulligan. In the late 1960s, Bob moved to Los Angeles and began a second career as a studio musician.

Ed Roman opened a guitar store in Las Vegas after a successful career in the motorcycle industry. What he learned about that business and the customer base he found, he could easily apply to his guitar store. He soon expanded his store to a company which also manufactured instruments. Ed pioneered Internet guitar selling and was one of the first to offer complete custom guitar building. Even after several decades in the music industry, Ed remained passionate about guitars.  

Harold Moseley was hired by Charles Hansen in the 1960s at the height of the legendary music publisher’s innovative career. Harold was on hand when Hansen developed several now standard practices in print music and went to work for Capital Music a wholesaler and distributor of Hansen’s music in Seattle, Washington. Harold later worked with the Big 3 Music Publishers group and stayed with the company through several changes in ownership, including United Artists and EMI. He expressed the thrill of going to the NAMM trade shows and the opportunity the show provided him in getting to

Budd Johnson was a key member of the TEAC team that oversaw the development of the American branch of the company known as TASCAM. As a result Budd was there in the late 1960s through the early 70s to witness first hand, the remarkable and somewhat unexpected success of the home recording market. His product spec sheets and ads later proved to have been a key role in the popularity of TASCAM's reel and mixing units. He also played an early and important part in the success of Fostex and served as that pioneering company's president in the early years.  Within all of his fascinatin

William Tapia stood up in front of United States solders playing his ukulele and singing at the tender age of eight years old. He was entertaining the troops for World War I and did not stop playing until the year of his passing at the age of 103!  His life in music was almost as fasinating as his interest in sharing the gift of music to all those he met.  Over the years he created a unique sound on the uke and tenor uke, which he recorded and can be heard on many movie sound tracks.

Lillian Siegh played a vital role in the inner workings of NAMM for over 35 years! William Gard hired Lillian as a secretary in 1949 and for a time she was the office manager before becoming Mr. Gard’s executive secretary. She helped plan many of NAMM’s events and was instrumental in the parties during the NAMM show including the memorable finale evening banquet. After Mr. Gard’s retirement in 1981, she became Larry Linkin’s assistant. She retired when NAMM’s headquarters was moved from Chicago to Carlsbad, CA, in 1984.  

Himie Voxman was a band director nearly all his life. He studied chemistry in college but fell into music because jobs were hard for chemists to find in the days of the Great Depression. Since he had studied clarinet beginning when he was eight, he felt he could teach. Over his extensive musical career, Himie earned a doctorate in music, was given countless awards and taught thousands of people to play music. His impact reached beyond those he taught in his classrooms. He wrote several method books because he felt more teaching materials were needed.

This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Memo Bernabei led a popular society orchestra during the great Big Band Era. As a saxophonist, Memo cut his teeth within such bands as those lead by Jan Garber and Ray Pearl. He remained popular even as the musical styles changed in the 1940s and 50s. His band was the top attraction at the Chateau Ballroom in Los Angeles as well as the Golden West Ballroom in Norwalk, California. Even into his 90s, Memo continued to perform the music he loved including on

Roger Williams was known throughout the world for his countless albums and top ten hits as a solo pianist. He had a remarkable career in bridging rock and roll and in incorporating jazz and American popular music along with classical into his performances and recordings. Roger may have also been the world's greatest fan of the Steinway piano, having been a player and close friend of the company for over 50 years. “They are part of my family. I mean that, they have always treated me as one of theirs and that is such a wonderful feeling. I have known and respected the people and the

Frank Nelson played trumpet and cornet during the swing era, touring with Alvino Rey’s Orchestra among others. He arranged music for the bands, both small groups and the larger outfits and worked on a wide range of materials during his long career. In later years he worked in recording studios, television and the movies. Frank was a product consultant for Yamaha, where he worked with his long time friend and fellow musician, Karl Bruhn. Frank’s passion for music was apparent in all that he did.  Even into his 90s Frank continued arranging for trumpet groups and orchestras.  

John McDermott could sure sell pianos! His knowledge of the products and his strong relationship with music retailers made him an ideal and successful sales rep. John worked for the Gulbransen Piano Company during the company’s innovative era of the mid 1960s through the 1970s. After his retirement he stayed active in the industry and can still often be found at the National Piano Travelers Association’s annual meeting lending his support and hearty hand shake to new comers.  

Russell Kephart enjoyed his years as a band director but found great satisfaction when he opened his own music store and could provide the service he felt band directors were missing. The Iowa-based store expanded over the decades but always remained focused on customer service. Russ served on the NAMM Board of Directors as well as helping form a local band directors’ organization. Even after retirement, Russ could be found helping his children who now carry on the family tradition.

Johnny Wright was among the most popular of the traveling country bandleaders during the big band era. Blending his country music roots with a slight bluegrass feel, Johnny’s band was the perfect backdrop for singers such as his beloved wife, Kitty Wells. Teaming with Jack Anglin in the 1950s and 60s, Johnnie and Jack had a string of hit recordings, among them “Poison Love” and “Stop the World (and Let Me Off)”, all the while touring with Kitty.  He manged her career and in 1983 worked together to build the Family Country Junction Museum and Studio in their hometown of Madison, TN

Lothar Meisel was the ninth generation of violinmakers in his family, going back to 1660 in Klingenthal, Germany. He recalled with a smile the days as a young boy hiding under his grandfather's work bench and even in later years Lothar could recall the lay out of his grandfather's workshop. His grandfather was the designer of the Meisel violin, a model Lothar proudly made throughout his long career as craftsmen. In 1957, Lothar and his father started a business in America where they worked side by side until his father's passing in 1995.

Kurt Lutz was a well-regarded German luthier who, along with many other instrument makers, settled in Bubenreuth, Germany following World War II. Mr. Lutz provided a first-hand account of the era by explaining that the city council created a poster seeking to find instrument makers displaced by the war who were looking for a new place to live. The town even created special housing for instrument makers, including Mr. Lutz, who lived in the buildings with his family for several years until his business was established and he was able to buy his own house.  

Jerry Leiber was one half of Leiber and Stoller, one of the most influential and successful songwriting teams of the 1950s R&B movement. They played a critical role in the early days of Rock and Roll penning songs for rocks biggest and earliest stars such as Elvis Presley, the Drifters, the Coasters and Big Joe Turner. Their song for blues singer Big Mama Thornton entitled “Hound Dog” became a rock anthem when Elvis recorded it in 1956. Leiber and Stoller’s partnership and friendship, which was originally formed on their love of music, spanned over 50 years.

Tony Schmidt was the very first volunteer of the NAMM Foundation’s Museum of Making Music (located in the NAMM building) to provide 1,000 hours of service. As a kid, he saw Duke Ellington perform in his hometown of Chicago and was hooked, not only on Ellington (for which he was a noted expert), but on all things jazz. Tony played a significant role in the NAMM Resource Center, providing research, camera work, and conducting several interviews himself. His contributions to this program are innumerable.

Billy Grammer formed his own guitar company after years of playing country music in and around Nashville. Billy recorded several hit records on his own as well as playing behind some of the biggest names in country music. In 1958 he recorded “Done Laid Around” and the chart topper “Gotta Travel On.” Along the way, Billy was seeking to create a guitar that would combine the sounds of his two favorite instruments, Martin and Gibson. By 1964 he teamed with his fishing buddy, Clyde Reid, who operated a music store, and with J. W. Gower to create the Grammer Guitar Company.

Bart Wascom was the electrical engineer who sought to improve the pro-audio speakers by improving the distribution of sound. After several tests, he concluded that large wooden cabinets compress many of the mid range tones. By creating a plastic case for his speakers, which sits on the ground like a floor monitor, Bart was able to detect mid range tones that he could not hear in other speaker cabinets. To celebrate the launch of the speakers as well as NAMM’s centennial in 2000, Bart created a one of a kind speaker and donated it to the NAMM Foundation’s Museum of Making Music.

Dale Beacock grew up with a love of band music. After college he was hired as a band director and he felt as if his dreams had come true. He worked hard to design methods of teaching that brought out the best in his students, and he always sought ways of improving his bands. Over the years he felt a need for stronger service from his local music stores and thought that other band directors would also benefit from such support. Along with his wife, he opened Beacock Music, which sold musical products, but focused on providing service to their customers. Today, the store is run by h

H. C. McMurtry sure knew a lot about the Wurlitzer Company!   Not only did he work for the company for nearly 20 years, he traveled throughout the country, selling the company’s product line to hundreds of music dealers. H. C., known by his nickname, Harmon, served as the national sales rep for the Wurlitzer Company from 1965 until his retirement in 1979. Along the way Harmon witnessed many changes in the industry during his years on the road including the home organ boom of the 1970s and the onset of synthesizers.

Jess Oliver was the inventor of the Ampeg Baby Bass, the first electronic upright bass instrument. The fiberglass body and unique design was key to projecting the sound of a double bass into an electric amplifier. His idea was one of the many used by the Ampeg Company. When the Baby Bass was introduced in the early 1960s it was endorsed by jazzman, Chubby Jackson, in a series of well-received advertisements. Jess also designed and assembled a series of innovative amplifiers including the famed B-15 Porterflex for Ampeg.  

William McNamara reported to Mr. Alfred LaMotte, a true legend in the music products industry when Bill was first hired by Thearle’s Music stores in San Diego in the 1930s. Mr. LaMotte was known for his clever sales campaigns and dedication to the growth of the industry. In fact, it was while serving as NAMM President 1935-1936 that he appointed Bill the manager of the music store. This dedication to the industry inspired Bill, who later served on the AMC board as well as the NAMM board twice (1959 and 1964).  Bill was very passionate about the music industry and proudly supported

Joe Campana returned from serving in World War II to his native Oakland, California, with a dream-–and the GI Bill. While taking business classes, Joe established Campana Music in nearby Lafayette in 1947.

Pete Valentino noticed that band instrument repairmen often had a difficult task in replacing worn pads on flutes and saxophones. He had burned his hands on many occasions and thought that there must be a better way. He soon made and marketed the Valentino Pad, a replacement product that later became factory added to a number of leading manufacturer’s instruments. Among his other successes was the Pad Repair Kit, designed to make identifying and replacing worn pads faster and less costly. After his retirement from the industry, he continued to design and improve his product statin

Dr. Ruth Lion’s late husband, Alfred Lion, was the founder of Blue Note Records. Together they played a colossal role in the documentation of jazz throughout most of the 20th century. The long and impressive list of artists they recorded and promoted reads like a Who’s Who of Jazz including Monk and Gillespie to Rollins and Silver. Her charming personality and warm demeanor resulted in the close friendship with many of the recording artists in jazz. Dr. Lion provided wonderful insight into this era as well as stories behind many of those classic recordings.  Dear Ruth passed away

Don Broman worked long and hard in the music products industry, striving to create quality products and dependable customer service to dealers around the world. When he joined the Lyon & Healy company in 1937 the country was in the midst of the Great Depression, yet Don worked hard with the staff to keep the company above water. As he had said, “we stayed until the job was done.” He stayed 38 years until Baldwin Piano Company offered him a job as Vice President in 1975. Don remained at Baldwin until his retirement in 1984.