Oral History - all
Randal Clark is the Media Director and Education Specialist for Cannonball Musical Instruments in Sandy, Utah. He began working at Cannonball in 2000, focusing on addressing the needs of band directors and other music educators by gaining their views on how the instrument line could be improved.... more
Matthew McBeth applied for a job at Cannonball Musical Instruments in Sandy, Utah, right after he graduated from high school in 2011. At first Matthew was given the tasks of mowing the grass and other yardwork. He later helped install the shelving in the warehouse, which led to more and more... more
Massiel Gregory grew up surrounded by music in Guatemala before moving to the United States and settling in the Salt Lake City area. In the early 2000’s she began working at Cannonball Musical Instruments where she was one of the first employees to learn hand engraving. Like so many employees at... more
Ryan Lillywhite absolutely loves seeing the joy on the faces of young students as they make music! He recognizes that joy and passion and the effort it takes, which harkens back to his preteen years when he began playing tenor saxophone. That passion for music was later fueled when he met Tevis... more
Leesa McBeth played flute since she was a child and remembers the day her sister, Sheryl Laukat, was given a saxophone which their parents purchased from Sears, where her father was employed. Music was all around them growing up and Leesa pursued her passion by teaching music. She taught for 30... more
Joshua Baldi wasn’t quite sure what to expect when he answered an ad for an artist at a musical instrument company. With a background and deep seated passion for art and music, Joshua was pleasantly surprised to learn the job involved creating designs for engraving onto musical instruments such as... more
Joan Fox was just 15 years old when she met her future husband, Maurice. His parents started a music store in South Carolina, Fox Muisc House, in which Joan would work for many years. She married Maurice in 1953 and become passionate about their employees and customers, treating both as members of... more
Joel Silverman, the sales and marketing guy behind several innovative pro audio products and the founder of Silverfish Audio, has had quite a musical journey! As a kid he played clarinet, drums and guitar in school and looks back fondly on his high school band director and the day the Beatles... more
Sharell Del Fiorentino remembers as a little girl pretending the back of her daddy’s car seat was a piano keyboard. As long as she can recall, she has always wanted to be a pianist. When she was ten her parents purchased a piano for her, although they could hardly afford the expense. As a result... more
Ken Donnell is often regarded as the foremost authority on close-mic applications for stringed instruments. While he has an extensive background across the music products industry, first watching his father work in a music store, Ken eventually honed his skills as a luthier, alongside his good... more
The NAMM Oral History Collection is unique, unlike any other collection in the world. The heart of the Collection is the depth of its narratives that cover innovative creations, the evolution of musical instruments, the ever-changing world of music retail, as well as our collective quest to improve... more
Brockett Parsons is proud of the musical education he received in grade school, which was furthered by participating in the school band program at his high school. He went on to graduate from Berklee College of Music. He cut his teeth on classical and jazz while having a strong interest in R&B... more
Michael Aguilar played instruments both in and out of his school music programs growing up, which proved to be a wonderful background later in his career. After nearly five years in the retail end of consumer electronics, Michael became National Sales Manager for the tape recorder division at... more
Jamey Aebersold’s name is synonymous with the play-a-long style music books, which have aided and inspired thousands upon thousands of musicians! Jamey does not refer to his publications as method books, but rather as a tool to have musicians tap into their creativity and use their imagination... more
Peggy Powell is near and dear to the NAMM family having participated in many events, especially those with her husband, Specs Powell. Specs was a studio drummer who helped Marty Cohen launch the Latin Percussion company based on his needs for percussive related hardware. Peggy played a vital role... more
Ryoichi Totsuka began his notable career in the music industry right after college as a salesman for Kawai Pianos in Japan. The experience inspired Ryoichi-san as he sought other opportunities to contribute to the piano side of the industry. In 1980 he helped establish the European office for Kawai... more
Bill Crow had a long and successful career as a jazz bassist for such Bebop pioneers as Stan Getz and Gerry Mulligan. In later years he joined the board for the New York chapter of the Musicians Union, which led to his second career as a writer. He was asked to write a regular column for the union’... more
Robert Leininger worked for Crown International for 21 years both as purchasing manager and production manager. The Elkhart, Indiana based manufacturing plant produced a string of innovative and successful products including reel to reel machines, microphones, loudspeakers, and amplifiers. Bob was... more
Jason Lollar loves playing the guitar and even at an early age he had an eye for creating his own sounds. As he developed his skills and gigged with his friends, he realized some of the classic guitar pickups were no longer being made. He set out develop what is now a world renown line of products... more
Stephanie Lollar has passionately but quietly been in the background of the pickup company she and her husband Jason formed back in 1987. Since the beginning of the company, Stephanie supported the business in every way, including running the books, hiring employees and building the brand name. She... more