Music Manufacturers

Tim Laskey founded the Wyman Piano Company.  After a long and successful career with some of the top names in the music industry, such as Wurlitzer and Baldwin, Tim wanted to introduce a new line of pianos to the market.  The Wyman instruments are manufactured with state of the art advances in Asia and carry with them great traditions such as the fact that the building has produced pianos since 1949. Tim has enjoyed his career and like so many others, proudly claims many friends he has gained as a result. 

Grit Laskin grew up in Toronto and as a teen had his mind set on playing the guitar during the folk boom of the 1960s.  He performed, recorded and wrote music, some of which was recorded by the likes of Pete Seeger.  Along the way he found a few ways to adjust the guitar to suit him better and thus arrived at the idea of becoming a guitar builder.  He signed up as an apprentice with John Larrivee in the early days of Larrivee’s own pioneering career as a luthier. Grit later branched off on his own as a luthier and soon put his artistic talents to good use as a gifted in-lay artist

Robert Laube spent over 30 years as the top salesman for Kimball Piano and Organ Company. In fact, he may very well have sold over one million organs during the big boom of the early 1970s. This boom was marked with mall stores in many cities and clever marketing that resulted in over 25% of all instrument sales being organs in 1973. Bob’s zest for selling pianos and organs was clearly evident when his NAMM Oral History interview was completed on April 5, 2006.  Bob passed away in 2015.

Paul Laubin followed in his father's footsteps both as a symphonic oboist and as an instrument maker.  Alfred Laubin made his first oboe in 1931.  He steadily improved his design, and went on to make hundreds of instruments and grow A. Laubin, Inc. into a full-time business.  Paul grew up in the business and played oboe professionally for over 30 years.  Paul's son Alex joined him in 2003, making A. Laubin a third generation family business!

Sheryl Laukat is passionate about the saxophone and the company she formed with her husband back in 1996. Tevis and Sheryl Laukat had the idea of creating a saxophone with acoustics that could be adjusted and modified even after the instrument was created. Their ideas and innovation led to the establishment of Cannonball Music located in Sandy, Utah. Although the saxophone was their first product, the couple has since focused on bringing unique designs to their trumpet and clarinet lines as well. Sheryl’s pride and dedication to the company is as bright as her ever-present smile.

Tevis Laukat and his wife Sheryl formed Cannonball Musical Instruments in 1996 in Sandy, Utah, located just south of Salt Lake City. The couple set out to address some of the issues they and their musician friends were having with their instruments. As a touring performer with a host of jazz and pop performers, Tevis gathered ideas of several ways to modify the instrument, based on its acoustic properties and airflow. With the motto to always improve on their instruments, Cannonball soon built a reputation for innovative and great-sounding saxophones. The company has since expande

Julee Laukat is a technician and hand engraver at Cannonball Musical Instruments in Sandy, Utah. Julee is dedicated to her craft, and she is also married to Tevis’ brother. Tevis and his wife Sheryl established the company in 1996 and from nearly the beginning, Julee has pitched in wherever needed. She started as the packing manager in the early days and sought to learn some of the technical tasks, which include hand engraving instruments such as the saxophone and trumpet. Sheryl & Tevis' son, Ryan, was the first engraver at Cannonball so she feels proud to be continuing on in

Josef Lausman proudly followed in his family’s footsteps. In the small German village of Nauheim (near Frankfurt) he made mouthpieces, primarily for trumpets and trombones for many years until his retirement. The small factory may not be well known to players by name, however, since their products are made for many of the leading horn makers around the world, are played by professionals and students alike. When asked if he ever planned to produce their own name-brand mouthpieces, Josef replied, “Maybe we will one day, but right now we are too busy doing what we do best, make produ

Bill Lawrence was known for his pick-up design and his long career as a German based guitarist. In fact, when visiting the Framus Museum in Markneukirchen Germany, you can learn of his influential musical career when he was known as Billy Lorento. Always interested in electronics, he applied his two interests and soon developed his own pick-up for the guitar. For over forty years, Bill published numerous articles on the subject of guitar design.  He was granted numerous patents, and worked with some of the most respected companies in the guitar industry, including Framus, Gibson,

Robb Lawrence loves playing the guitar as well as gathering the history of his instruments. He has written books and articles for magazines, including Guitar Player and has provided lectures and college classes mostly based on his deep interest in the early days of the electric guitar. Over the years he has befriended several of the instrument’s pioneers such as Les Paul, Leo Fender, Paul Barth (Bartell Guitars), Doc Kauffman (Fender) and George Beauchamp (Rickenbacker). Robb seeks every opportunity he can to share the stories of his friends and the wonderful momentos he has colle

 Harvey Leach has an eye for art and skilled craftsman hands, which together has come to define a new era in guitar luthiery and in-lay artistry.  Harvey’s work in guitar design has developed hand-in-hand with his passion of in-lay designs.  Creative cowboy and western themed scenes have graced his work found on Martin Guitars and have pioneered a series of in-lay techniques such as his “smoke and mirrors” look in his cowboy guitar, a method using colors and materials to create a feeling of moving smoke.   

Andy Leary bought his first synthesizer when he was in high school and has been hooked ever since. His passion for music and electronics led him to attend a few classes at Stanford University taught by Dr. John Chowning, who is best known for his discovery of FM Synthesis. In 1991, Andy began working at KORG R&D part time while earning his masters degree. He worked on synthesis and audio processing algorithms, discovering his passion for the company’s innovative products and working to provide instruments that assist fellow musicians in crafting their sound.

John Ledwon is a theater organist with a love for the instruments he plays. Since the age of 11 John has been enamored with the sound and design of pipe organs and has become an expert on the workings of both concert and theater organs. Along the way John has also collected a number of instruments to better understand their unique innovations first hand. In recent years he has played the large Wurlitzer organ in the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood following its restoration paid for by the Disney Company.

Betty Lee co-founded Tom Lee Music in Hong Kong with her husband in the early 1950s.  In the beginning, Thomas Lee kept his full time work as an English secretary at a textile company while Betty Lee looked after the day to day administration of the small trading company which was to become Tom Lee Music. When the textile business was not doing well, Thomas Lee began working full time in Tom Lee Music.

Noel Lee recognized an opportunity to introduce high quality cables that would consistently provide the top-level audio signals to support high-end instruments and amplifiers. He had studied electrical engineering and at the time was working at Lawrence Livermore Labs in Northern California. By night he played drums in a number of local bands, one of which toured Hawaii. He began driving around to music stores with his cables to see if there was any interest and there was! The products were such a success he was soon offering a full line of cables and audio equipment including hea

Tom Lee is one of the most famous names in the Asian market of music retail.  With Tom Lee Music stores all around Hong Kong and parts of China, his name has been synonymous with music since the early 1950s.  In addition to the stores that he established with his wife Betty, the Lees also formed a music foundation in 1967, which has provided greatly needed support to thousands of music programs.  Four of their seven children work for the company, which has expanded into Pro Audio and Music Instrument wholesale and retail businesses in Hong Kong, China, and Canada.

David Leed was born in the United Kingdom where he was hired by Boosey & Hawkes, which sent him to South Africa. While there, David became the General Manager for the Hammond Organ Company, which had a factory for Hammond-- in fact the fourth largest operation for the company in the world.

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 instrumental in the design and building of the microphone testing room as well as the testing area for the GE amplifiers. Karen Juday reported to Bob for a time. She was later killed during the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York.

Dr. Alfio Leone was among the world’s best loved luthier of traditional Italian musical instruments. He learned his craft by years of studying the vintage instrument in the region of Sicily where he was born, established his factory, and where he passed away. In 1958 he changed the name of the company to Musikalia, where he worked day and night for many decades. “I’m not always sure which direction is home, after all I am in the shop from early until very early, but this is my life” he once said. Dr.

Karl Leong participated in the International Coalition during the NAMM Show beginning in 2012 to discuss collaborative efforts in creating more active music makers.  As CEO of KHS, Karl has been active in these and other music education efforts both in Taiwan and around the world.  As CEO, Karl has also been active in growing the company’s brand name, including Jupiter Band Instruments, Mapex Drums, Majestic Concert Percussion, Walden Guitars and Hercules Music Stands.  The company was established in 1930 and the name comes from Contribution (Kong) to School (Hsue) and Society (Sh

Don Leslie, the inventor of the very successful Leslie Speaker, was pleased with the concept of the product that was a simple idea but a tricky design. As a child, Don was fascinated by the large pipe organs and how the sound traveled all around the listener. He had the goal of bringing that experience into the home. His speaker, which has a rotating sound-cone, uses the Doppler effect to create its unique sound. The speaker became popular when used with the Hammond B-3 organ and both seemed to be created for each other, even though they were not originally.  

Harvey Levy is the bow-tie wearing spokesman and brother of the founder of Levy – the world’s leading maker of guitar straps. Harvey has become synonymous with creating and designing products, and he has also been a long time supporter of music and music advocacy. Mr. Levy noted, “Making music should be a part of everyone’s lives” during his 2005 interview and has worked hard to support music programs for decades. 

Kimberly Lewis grew up in the industry, first with her father’s ShoBud retail store in Nashville and later with his cable and accessories business known the world over as George L’s. Kimberly enjoyed her childhood being surrounded by country legends such as Roy Acuff, whom she also referred to as Uncle Roy. She would later play an important role as one of the first female leaders within the industry. Along with her mother and sister, Kimberly became welcomed female exhibitors in the years when such a thing was rare at the NAMM Show and in Frankfurt.

Jack K. Lewis served as President and COO for the Conn Organ Company after years of serving as it's Manager of Marketing Administration, General Sales Manager, Director of Marketing and Senior Corporate Executive. Jack was involved with Conn Organ during the great home market boom of the 1960s and 70s. He was president at the time McMillan owned the company but retired from Conn Organ before it was closed. While in his retirement, Jack created the Conn Organ Family page on Facebook to reunite former employees and others associated with the company. During his interview for the NAM

Terry Lewis has fulfilled many roles within the music products industry including Executive Vice President of Yamaha Corporation of America. Under his leadership, the company expanded its educational and foundation programs while playing a vital role in many key industry originations such as MENC, NADSD and NAMM. Terry was also an early supporter of the American Music Conference (AMC) as well as the NAMM Foundation’s Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad, California, where his wife has not only been a supporter but also a long-time volunteer assisting with special programs and tours

George Lewis was the founder of George L’s in Madison, Tennessee, one of the industry’s leading innovators of cable and electronic components.  George played a large role in the development of ShoBud as a retail store and manufacturer of steel pedal guitars.  George’s entire family works in the business, which is now being operated by his two daughters.  His interview was as much a recount of his career as it was an American history lesson as George was on board a ship in Pearl Harbor on D

Ben Lewry is an instrument designer, luthier, and innovator whose work bridges the worlds of traditional guitar craftsmanship and modern music technology. As the founder of Visionary Instruments, established in 2008 in Oakland, California, Ben has focused on creating custom guitars and performance systems that integrate MIDI control, digital interfaces, and cutting-edge design. Ben’s passion for building began at an early age, leading him to construct his first guitar as a teenager and later spend years working as a repair technician and custom builder.

Howard Lieberman began playing the guitar at the age of 6. A decade later he saw Jimi Hendrix in concert - an event which forever changed him. By the time he was seventeen, Howard was recording in Jimi’s Electric Lady Studios in New York. After attending Brooklyn College and earning a degree in physics, Howard began looking for ways to create music using the computer. In 1985 he presented his idea of having speakers within a computer to Bose and Apple, an idea that both companies thought was crazy. Yet, a year later, Bose hired Howard to help them develop products. He worked at Bo

Neil Lilien has been a life long supporter of the arts, playing music since he was a child and growing up to own one of the finest names in stringed instruments. Neil worked for Guild Guitars for nearly 20 years before purchasing Meisel Stringed Instruments in 1984. The company, which had also been known as C. Meisel & Company, is one of the world’s best-known providers of violins and related products.

Stan Lindenbaum grew up in Brooklyn and developed many thoughts and ideas about selling. While working for several different industries during his career, Stan studied the idea of incentive marketing, a concept that worked out well for him in his years in the music industry. He worked for the Thomas Organ Company just as the designer, Mr. George Thomas, signed a deal to have the instruments made. Stan later worked in the consumer electronics industry before returning to the music industry as a regional manager for North American Music selling acoustic pianos.

Elisabeth Link played a significant role in advancing music education through her work with Sonor, the renowned manufacturer of percussion instruments. A key focus of her efforts was the expansion of Orff Schulwerk instruments, which became widely used in classrooms around the world. Elisabeth was instrumental in strengthening Sonor’s presence in music education and in supporting teachers through innovative programming and outreach. Working closely with Hans Borgese, assistant to Carl Orff and a composer in his own right, she helped expand Sonor’s educational workshops and initiat

Roger Linn forever changed the way people dance! As the inventor of the electronic Linn drum machine, he ushered in the new wave of electronic dance music beginning in the 1980s. The Linn drum machine also brought new meaning to the term “re-mix” and opened up a new era of sampling for club dj’s around the world. Roger worked closely with David Smith and others in the early efforts of MIDI in the 1980s. Roger has since created a host of successful products, including the AdrenaLinn guitar synth, which uses modern technology to bring some of his early concepts into the digital age.