In Memoriam

Charlotte Atkinson was an organist extraordinaire! Showing an aptitude for music early on, Charlotte continued with formal education earning Bachelor and Masters degrees in music. At San Diego State University, she first met her husband, William, in Howard Brubeck's theory class. In her junior year at SDSU, she and William (Bill) were married and spent the next several decades touring as the Atkinson Duo with Charlotte on piano, organ and harpsichord and Bill on flute and choir directing. They were organist and music directors of several churches and were actively involved in many

Ray Hennig opened Heart of Texas Music in the early 1960s after years of repairing guitars for friends. He built homes in Texas and was happy with that line of work, but his passion was in music –and so he did both. Over the years, he had been awarded many honors from the city of Austin and from the state for his ethics and good business practices. For a generation of blues and rock fans, Ray is also known for his friendship with the late Stevie Ray Vaughan, who bought his “number one” guitar from Ray in the 1980s.

Zhi Cheng Tong served as the Chairman for Pearl River Pianos in China and was one of its longest-term employees.  The company was established in 1956, and he joined the company just two years later. Mr. Tong made his products among the best known pianos in the world, while maintaining the great responsibility he felt all piano makers should display towards nature for providing the wood to make their instruments. He was a strong supporter of music education and during his 2006 NAMM interview said "Our future is the child we encourage to play today."

Joe Keith felt that the local music teachers needed specialized service when it came to finding the tools they needed.  Along with his wife, Claudia, he opened The Music Mart in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with the goal of doing all that was possible to support music education and lesson programs.  As the store grew so did his personal interest in growing the industry he so deeply cared about, which is why he joined a small group of retailers looking to formalize a new organization.  Together Joe and Claudia became pioneers in the Retail Print Music Dealers Association (RPMDA). For t

Herbert Volkmann like so many of his generation saw the horrors of war while growing up in Germany before and during World War II. Herbert and other musical instrument makers moved to Bubenreuth after the war and focused on the craftsmanship that for Herbert was a family tradition. Amid the sorrow of the era arose beautiful musical instruments that provided the tools for musicians to help express the feelings of the land through music. Herbert focused on making guitars for the Hofner Company before focusing on zithers in his own workshop in Bubenreuth.  

Hiroaki Oh-oka sat on a thin mat in front of a leg-less table in his traditional Japanese home where he outlined the history of the bamboo flutes his five- man company produced. The company, which his father started as a street vendor in Tokyo, holds a patent for the colorful plastic ends on the flute.  Oh-oka was very proud that his son and his grandson who have continued the tradition of making quality flutes the same way his father did, by hand.

Paul Shelden was a Professor Emeritus in Music for Brooklyn College and both studied and taught music at Juilliard, beginning on clarinet and saxophone, but branching into electronic music on which he focused his doctorate. While teaching, Paul was introduced to the idea of improving on the sound of band and orchestral instruments with design and engineering improvements. In 2004, with Amy Mao as his director of manufacturing in China, he formed Diplomatte International Musical Instrument Company. Over the years the company continued to expand its product line, gaining a larger au

Ellis Day was a familiar face to NAMM show attendees for several decades as the front line trombone player on the opening day’s Petiot All-Industry Marching Band performances. Ellis has had a long and successful career in the music industry following his service in World War II and his work for the retail chain Sherman Clay. He later moved to Chicago to work for Lyon & Healy and spent some time on the supplier’s end of the industry, working at Leblanc. In the late 1960s he began his long association with Allegro Music in Fremont, California, where he has served as the store’s

Big George Brock knew all about laying his burden down. The blues musician was running his nightclub in 1970 when someone shot up the place to try and hit George. One of the bullets went through the wall and killed George's wife in the next room. George always said you can't sing the blues if you don't know the blues.  Equally important to that and to understand the man George became is the sentiment echoed in the first song he ever played on harmonica, which is included in this clip from his NAMM interview, "glory glory hallelujah since I laid my burdens down."  

Ed Boyer began working for Yamaha Corporation of America in 1983 with a focus on the band and orchestral products. With a strong background in retail, Ed developed long-lasting partnerships with dealers while working with them to gain relationships with area school directors. Yamaha designed several important music education programs for which Ed proudly introduced to his dealers, most of which were created to improve business by increasing the number of music makers. Sadly, Ed passed away unexpectedly in April 2020 at the age of 63.

Bunny Kacher began volunteering at the NAMM Foundation’s Museum of Making Music in 2002 as part of the second docent training class (the museum opened in 2000). Her love of music is easy to detect when taking one of her tours at the museum and, in fact, that love of music goes back to her days as a radio actress. Back when radio was the king of the house and music programs could be heard all during the day, Bunny lent her voice to Chicago-based radio programs such as soap operas and countless commercials. Bunny appeared on stage and in a few movies before retiring to San Diego, wh

Betty Bennett was inspired to pursue a career in music when she was brought along to gigs by her mother and was allowed to sing with her. After Betty’s first paying gig, making 50 cents for singing a song, she would continue singing throughout her high school and college years, hitting it big when she auditioned for and was accepted in to the Midwest Territory Band led by Royce Stonner. She eventually worked with big names like Claude Thornhill, Alvino Rey, Charlie Barnett, and Benny Goodman.

Ellis Marsalis had a firm idea how to bring out the best music in people, even before his famous sons were born.  His understanding of music theory and notation became the cornerstone of his own career as a musician and that of an unofficial music teacher. Just a few years after Hurricane Katrina flooded the 9th Ward neighborhood that Ellis once called his home, he opened a music center to encourage music making!  With the support of his family as well as Harry Connick Jr. and the local government, the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music began providing lesson programs, computer class

Bucky Pizzarelli was a jazz guitarist who helped bring the sounds of the electric guitar into jazz and into popular music, beginning in the 1940s.  As a stage performer and later a studio musician, Bucky's guitar can be heard on countless recordings both by other artists as well as on his own.  He has played and endorsed several products during his career and has a special place in the history of music products as one of the first well-known performers to play the Danelectro brand of guitars.

Wallace Roney attended the Anaheim NAMM Show in 2018, playing his Kanstul trumpet and taking time to sit down for an Oral History interview. He spoke of his love of the trumpet and some of the players he learned from over the years including Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis, who became a personal friend. Wallace recounted the story of meeting Miles back in 1983, while taking part in a tribute to the jazz giant at the Bottom Line Club in Manhattan. The two remained close until Miles passed away in 1991. During his NAMM interview, Wallace also talked about his connection with Kanstul

Michael Cooney taught music in the public schools in Massachusetts for over 25 years. During the time of his teaching he also established a high-end flute company in the early 1970s called Northeast Winds. Over the years the company built a worldwide reputation for quality of product with a special focus to customer satisfaction. After retiring from teaching he spent more time with the company, which expanded to include Cavallaro cases for a time and added products such as piccolos and clarinets. Michael continued to teach and play the flute and took pride in the products that he

Tom Pick was the prominent studio engineer who was behind the glass inside RCA Studio B, working alongside producer Chet Atkins when hundreds of hit songs were recorded. During his NAMM interview, Tom outlined the equipment in the studio as well as some of the artists he was proud to work with over his long career. He recorded Dolly Parton (“I Will Always Love You” and “Jolene”), Jerry Reed (“Amos Moses”) and Elvis Presley (“Crying in the Chapel”) as well as Waylon Jennings, Dottie West, Floyd Cramer and many others. Tom later worked at Fireside Studio, which Porter Waggoner owned

Barry Zweig played jazz guitar professionally since he was a teenager. His passion for music was as clear as the smile on his face, and the great style he contributed to music has graced recordings and live performances since the 1960s. Among his most noted gigs were recording with Buddy Rich, Herb Alpert, Ray Anthony and Frank Capp, among others. Barry was also the guitarist for Dinah Shore on her television programs from 1976 until the early 1980s.  

Jim Salzer opened his first store in 1966 with a focus on selling records. At the time Jim was a concert promoter in Southern California and really understood what teenagers and young adults were interested in hearing. His concerts involved acts such as The Doors, Led Zeppelin, and The Grateful Dead. He booked shows at the Santa Barbara Showngrounds as well as the Starlight Ballroom in the same town as his store, Oxnard. In 1967, the store carried a new brand of amplifiers, which got the attention of Jimi Hendrix, who Jim was promoting at the time. Jimi came to the store and playe

David Magagna had an incredible career selling guitars for some of the biggest names in the industry.  He worked for the government out of high school and attended college in Georgetown before coming into the music industry by way of the C.F. Martin & Company.  The year was 1962.  David became Martin’s first full time employee in their newly established sales department.  Over the years he worked for most of the other top names in guitar suppliers in the United States including Guild Guitars, Taylor Guitars and in more recent years, PRS Guitars.  

Snooky Flowers was asked to put a band together to go on the road and travel with a young blues singer named Janis Joplin. As her bandleader he helped to prepare her for road performances. As her friend, he joined her on stage to dance during her appearance at Woodstock.  Snooky recorded with his own band as well as with several performers over the years and enjoyed every bit of it along the way.  

Lynn Sheeley Jr.'s father opened a small piano store in east Tennessee in 1908. After serving in D-Day during World War II, Lynn returned home to work in the store, which he later took over. Along the way, the business grew to four locations, two of which are in Knoxville and that Lynn managed for many years. In 1968, Lynn was elected to the NAMM Board and served on the insurance committee working closely with William Gard. The store closed in 1985 and Lynn retired to Florida, where his NAMM Oral History interview was captured in 2017.

John Santuccio was a noted orchestra manager, and also spent time as President of the music publishing company, G. Schirmer. John’s deep passion for classical music was a key factor in his success with the New York Philharmonic as well as the Rochester Symphony. His long association with the Eastman School of Music furthered not only his reputation as a leader in music education, but established him as well respected instructor. Following Ed Murphy’s departure from G. Schirmer, John became President of the noted publishing company and oversaw many projects, including the arduous t

Peter Pulham had a distinct place in the history of the music products industry, in part because he helped preserve it! As publisher and editor of United Kingdom based Music Business magazine (together with Sandie Smith) in the 1980s and 1990s, Peter reported on the news of the day in the pages of his trade magazine. Those editions now stand as a valuable resource documenting the growth and development of the British music industry from the 1980s onward. Peter donated back issues and original photographs from his publishing career to the NAMM Resource Center’s archival Collection

Bob Scheiwiller taught music for three years before landing a job at a music store; the very first store he would later purchase. Bob bought and opened several music stores over the years beginning in the early 1970s, with a strong focus on band instruments. Also beginning in the early 1970s, Bob became active in NASMD for which he later served as President. After several successful decades in the retail industry, Bob sold his stores to Guitar Center in 2001.  

Robert Averwater’s father, M. J. Averwater taught music, wrote a method book and opened up Amro Music in Memphis, TN, with a fellow music teacher. Robert recalled some of the challenges of the store in the early days after World War II.  The inventory needed to be reestablished as instruments and accessories were slowly becoming available again after the war.  He continued to expand the company and hired many dedicated employees who stayed with the store until their retirement.

James McDonald was known simply as Boom Boom to his NAMM family. Following in the footsteps of his father, Boom Boom’s career focused on the trade show industry and early on he became involved with the NAMM Show. Soon, he became a part of the organization’s annual events. Boom Boom was never shy about the importance of customer service and how insisting that rules are followed may be the best way to provide such service to everyone fairly, a trait evident in his vast number of friendships within the music industry.  

George Westjohn was hired by Lowell Samuel to oversee the expansion of Mr. Samuel’s interests in the wholesale music business. Mr. Samuel, a former band director, started a music store in the 1940s and a decade later established Midco Music, a music wholesale business with a focus on band and orchestra instruments. George was hired to direct the company, which made an indelible mark on the industry in the early days of United States imports and exports of musical products.  

Bob Rissi was the founder of Risson Amplifier Company, which produces Made-in-America products based on Bob’s own designs.  He began designing amplifiers in 1960 when he was hired by Leo Fender himself.  He later worked at Rickenbacker before forming his own company in 1971.  In addition to his creative innovations in amplifier design, Bob became friends with several industry leaders, such as Fredrick Hall and Leo Fender, who he viewed as personal and professional mentors. 

John Gronemeyer enjoyed his career in the school band instrument segment of the industry, which included sales positions at CG Conn, King, UMI and Jupiter Band Instruments. John worked for Danny Henkin when many of Henkin’s music companies were sold and became United Musical Instruments in 1985. John worked hard to ensure that the brand names would not suffer in the years that followed the sale of the companies, and in fact it was John who brought a great awareness of the brand to new markets.  

Ron Griggs dreamed of being a band teacher as a child. His career as a teacher was rewarding as he was often stopped in the street by former students who would remark on how much of an important influence he had been as their band director.  His teaching background proved helpful when he was hired by Selmer as the sales and marketing manager because he had gained an understanding of the players’ needs. Ron later worked with many of the industry’s best known band instrument companies, including Leblanc (VP of Sales) and applied his knowledge and passion to increase awareness of pro

Evelyn Brue-Roeder opened her music store in 1940! Her main focus in the early days was music lessons, however she soon added sheet music, accessories and musical instruments. She developed a passion for steel guitars as she witnessed their development over her career. When the pedal steel guitar was introduced she had to have one and had been playing and giving lessons on the instrument ever since. Evelyn and her husband George became active in various musical clubs including the Pedal Steel Guitar Hall of Fame.