Chad Huval puts a whole lot of Creole heritage into his playing. Born in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, he received his first accordion from his father as a child. As he grew and developed his...
Steve Halpern is an esteemed docent volunteer at NAMM’s Museum of Making Music, which provides an opportunity for him to blend his love of music with his background as an educator. As a y...
Tracy Vignati and her husband Fabrice formed a band together using a style they call Gypsybilly! They debuted their band, The Vignatis, in 2009. Tracy describes their style as a blend of ...
Isaac Sadigursky credited much of his understanding and passion for music to the school he attended in his native Russia. He began attending music school at the age of five and developed ...
Sylvia Tyson wrote songs that a generation sang, and she also recorded songs by other songwriters which helped define the Folk Music revival of the 1960s. In 1962 she wrote “You Were On M...
Gary Galanti comes from a well-known and well-respected music products family. His great grandfather began building accordions in Italy in 1890 and later his uncle and father sold them in...
Ilse Fischer delivered orders for Kirschnek on her scooter to the luthiers of the music town of Schönbach/Luby. Her father, Franz Kirschnek, established the company which specializes in e...
C.J. Chenier is the son of Clifton Chenier, known as The King of Zydeco. C.J. was always encouraged to play music and fondly remembers his father purchasing a guitar for him at a very you...
Al Slivinski was in the third grade when a salesman visited his school with the pitch “you too can be an accordion player!” Al developed great techniques on the accordion that served him ...
Giuseppe Vecchietti, known throughout his career as Beppe, primarily worked for three companies over his long career. All three were located in the same Italian Marche region by the Adria...
Luigi Bruti was an accordion champion as a teenager and was asked by the Siel Musical Instrument Company to demonstrate their latest products. It was the beginning of his life long career...
Palmi Snorrasen grew up in Iceland and was formally trained on the trombone, vibraphones, and accordion as a teenager. By his eighteenth birthday, Palmi was playing professionally and he ...
Peggy Falcetti and her husband, Sam, opened Falcetti Music in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1957. Since that time, Peggy and Sam have been very active in many community music programs. Pe...
Tony Santorella opened his own music publishing company just north of Boston after learning the trade from the iconic publisher Charles Hansen. Tony was an All State trumpet player who st...
Michael Doucet has become an important link to the roots of Cajun music, not only because he has written and performed the musical style since he was 6 years old, but because of the month...
Frank Charles is perhaps best known for playing the organ during most hockey, baseball, and basketball games during the 1980s in Milwaukee. His riffs for the Brewers influenced many other...
Tony Lovello began playing accordion when he was five years old, thanks to the fact that his father was a professional musician. Tony performed on stage, television, radio and in the mov...
Weird Al Yankovic built his career upon creating parodies of hit songs, with a special focus on incorporating his beloved accordion. Al began recording his silly songs on tape and mailin...
Lane Zastrow was playing professionally and even teaching music as a teenager. His main instrument was the accordion! After years on the road, Lane made his way into the print world. I...
Skip Buss played trumpet for several big bands on the road and in local hotel ballrooms during the great Swing Era of the 1940s. He decided to leave the road when his son was born at whi...
Jim Trimper, Sr. is the president of Denton, Cottier & Daniels, a chain of piano and organ stores in the upstate New York area. The company was formed in 1827 and thus has a long his...
Art Kubera began taking accordion lessons when he was eight years old growing up in Buffalo, New York. His love of music continued to develop and within a few years he was playing in sch...
Abbott Buegeleisen and his late brother ran the music wholesaling business that his father formed in New York City. Abbott’s father and a friend, who soon after passed away, combined thei...
Jon Hammond has successfully created a career based on his musical talents and his passion for the music industry! As a musician Jon has performed with many legendary players and as a cli...
Michael Diehl opened a small store in Freehold, New Jersey after serving in the United States Navy during World War II. He attended college on the GI Bill and found that he could run the ...
Jim Lo Duca’s father and uncle were the original Lo Duca Brothers, who formed a small music store in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that opened for business on December 1, 1941. Seven days later A...
Frank Green opened his first music retail store in Southern California in 1959 and called it Music For Everyone. He began working in the music industry some 12 years earlier as student en...
Peter Bartkus grew up in Rockford, Illinois and was proud to establish a music shop there in the early 1950s. Tru Tone Music became a hub for musicians and was known throughout the area f...
Bonnie G. Rowe did not seem to mind much when people thought he was a woman because his given name was Bonnie. For 87 years he corrected people and never gave much thought to using his mi...
Kees van Willigen opened a music shop in Holland in 1968. As an accordion player he specialized in the instrument and soon gained a world-wide reputation for his product line and customer...
Yasuharu Mano’s grandfather opened a toy business in 1902 in Japan and by 1917 expanded to include a small line of harmonicas. Soon, the harmonica became in high demand and the company ch...
