Tosin Abasi is the founder and lead guitarist of the group Animals as Leaders and has a style of playing that is often unmatched. Tosin grew up in Washington, D.C and has memories of tryi...
David Abell formed his piano retail store in Beverly Hills back in the late 1950s. Since that time he has established one of the finest reputations in our industry. Noted musicians, in...
Cliff Acred began playing music in junior high school and later majored in music in college. He played in the 3rd Army Band out of Atlanta while in the service and once out returned home...
Henry Adler helped define the percussion industry with his music publishing company, drum shop and method books. His amazing life in music began as a drummer during the big band era. Hi...
Bruce Adolph is the energetic advocate of worship music and musicians who in 1998 established Christian Musician Magazine. As president of the Adolph Agency, Bruce oversees several public...
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 ...
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 r...
Toshio Akiyama is an internationally renowned figure widely known for his contribution as the "father of the Japanese wind bands." Having received his education at the famous Eastman Scho...
Emily Achieng Akuno became the first music professor from Kenya to be elected president of the International Music Council (IMC). This took place in 2018. The position allowed her the opp...
Walt Aldridge attended the University of Alabama, majoring in business when he switched over to the University of North Alabama, enrolling in their music business program because they had...
John Aldridge has become one of the leading experts on the history of drums, percussion companies, and their products. As a publisher and editor, John established the magazine “Not So M...
Will Alexander worked for Oberheim in the heyday of the synthesizer boom of the 1970s. He helped engineer the Oberheim Four Voice System as well as the popular OB-X units. He soon realize...
James Alexander reformed his band, the Bar-Kays following the plane crash that took the lives of three members, and singer Otis Redding. The new band was created in tribute to those kil...
John Allegrezza began working in the piano business in 1957 and soon discovered he had a real passion for the business and the people. In 1981 he opened his store, Allegrezza Pianos, in R...
This is the full length NAMM Oral History interview with Richard Allen, which was captured on May 17, 2003. For his biography and web clip, please follow the link: https://ww1.namm.org/l...
R.C. Allen was a guitar luthier that used the style of his many friends of the era in the early 1950s in Southern California when guitar innovators were reshaping the instrument and groom...
Marco Alpert has had a fascinating career in the music industry and lucky for the NAMM Oral History collection he shared many of his stories with us. Marco was an electronic music compose...
Mark Altekruse, like so many passionate members of the music industry, specifically remembers the lessons he learned from one of his earliest and most influential music instructors. Tromb...
Billy Amendola is the Editor At Large for Modern Drummer magazine whose background as a musician makes him perfect for the job! His passion for music began at an early age and by the time...
Jon Anderson is best known as a founding member of the band Yes. His musicianship, arranging and songwriting helped catapult the band to international fame with hit records and sold out p...
Whispering Bill Anderson began his music career as a songwriter penning the 1958 hit “City Lights” for Ray Price. Within a few years Bill was encouraged to sing some of his songs in his l...
Lee Anderton’s grandfather started a small music store that Lee now runs, Anderton Music in Guildford, England. During Lee’s early years in the business, he worked to make the Internet an...
Craig Anderton was among a very small group of engineers at the dawn of the synthesizer revolution during the 1970s that was in the position to report, educate and compose music based on ...
Ralph Angelillo grew up inspired by Joe Morello. His dad was a bassist for big dance bands in the 1940s and '50s and his four brothers all played music. In 1961, at the age of 17, Ralph p...
Jim Armstrong worked in the music publishing industry for many years, both for Charlie Hansen and Columbia Music. His music career began at the famous music retailer in southern Californi...
Brooks Arthur began singing at an early age and began taking voice lessons to sing in his temple before he was a teenager. While working in the mail room of a record company, Brooks hear...
Julia Arza is the Director of Operations and a passionate advocate for AIMM, the Alliance of Independent Music Merchants. She joined the organization in 2017 and has helped expand its sum...
Bernice Ash began working at the Sam Ash Music Store in New York City in 1947, one year before marrying the founder’s eldest son, Jerry. Bernice and Jerry continued the tradition of keepi...
Paul Ash had great memories of his father, Sam Ash, the founder of Sam Ash Music in New York. Paul enjoyed the years he worked with his father and credited him for his knowledge of the mu...
Jerry Ash recalls his father, Sam Ash, giving him a pocketful of change and sending him off on the subway to New York City to pick up the sheet music orders from the publishers. With nick...
Sammy Ash was named after his grandfather, the founder of the Sam Ash Music Company in New York City. Like his grandfather, Sammy had a deep passion and understanding of the music busine...
Derek Ash recalls that every family gathering always included talk of the music store. After all, Derek's great-grandfather was the founder of the family's business, Sam Ash Music. Thanks...