David Dawkes is proud of his family's connection with the music industry. It was his grandfather who formed Dawkes Music. After losing hearing in one ear from playing in a band, his grand...
Mike Daws moved to Melbourne from England in 1974 where his brother-in-law, a drummer, introduced him to Billy Hyde. Billy was a well-known drummer who helped his son, Garry, run a succes...
Tim Dawson was inspired by his mother, a band director. All of her children played a musical instrument and Tim found the trombone! After serving as a band director for three years, Tim f...
Arlette Day and her husband, John, formed Day Murray Music in 1946. The name comes from the young couple’s last name and their hometown of Murray, Utah. They worked closely together and s...
Klint Day followed in the footsteps of his mother and father who formed Day Murray Music back in 1946. The store was named for the couple’s last name and the store location, Murray, Utah....
Rosanne Day has enjoyed working alongside her husband, Klint, as owners of Day Murray Music, a mostly print music retail store in Utah. Her husband’s parents established the first of thei...
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 h...
Jenna Day attended the NAMM Fly-IN in 2015, where she realized the power of music and the role each of us has in bringing music into the lives of young students. Having participated in he...
Skip Daynes is proud of his heritage and the fact that he operates the oldest family- owned music store in the United States. Daynes Music in Salt Lake was also one of the first Steinway ...
Christian Dean is the co-owner and guitar tech for The Magic Flute in San Rafael, California, just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. In 1978, he purchased his first guitar from The Magic F...
Anita DeBlasio manages the Union Ave. location of Music Village in San Jose, California. The store was established by Joe Teixeina in 1964 to serve the musicians and to foster music in t...
John DeChristopher was playing in a band when he would visit the EU Wurlitzer Music Store in Boston. Those early store visits for gear led to a job and John’s introduction to the music p...
Fred Decker formed the retail store Music Villa in Boseman, Montana, which is now run by his son. Fred's passion for the music business became an inspiration for several members of the m...
Paul Decker found his passion for music while learning to play the drums as a child and growing up in his dad’s music store, which he eventually purchased from him. The current location w...
Judith Delgado is the daughter of former NAMM President James Kleeman. Known around the NAMM building as the Professor, Jim was a strong leader who helped establish the Professional Devel...
Luella Derwin was one of the first women owners of a music store in America. In 1937, when her bandleader husband Hal Derwin went on the road, Luella was left behind, “So one day I was ...
Gary DeShazo began his musical career as a Texas bandmaster and then worked with James Caldwell, the founder of Caldwell Music. With a great understanding of the educators’ needs, Gary so...
Mark Despotakis has become a well respected arts advocate and strong supporter of music education policies as Director of Market Development for Progressive Music in McKeesport, Pennsylva...
Jim DeStafney is the co-owner of Blues Angel Music in Pensacola, Florida. After completing a 24-year career as a Navy fighter pilot, Jim opened the shop in 1997. Blues Angel Music has bee...
Nan DeStafney served her country as a United States Navy nurse. As she neared retirement, she met navy man Jim DeStafney who had the idea of opening his own music store. The two were marr...
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 ...
Bud DiFluri enjoyed a long and successful career in the music industry in both retail and manufacturing. He managed the Yamaha band and orchestra department in New York City with a focus ...
DeAnn Diller grew up in a small Kansas town, picking up piano at the age of 5 years old. In the small town she found she was able to be involved with many aspects of music including band...
Steve Dillon has a great appreciation and knowledge of vintage band and orchestra instruments. The first musician in the Dillon family can be documented back to the 1700s, thus the store’...
Peter Dods was an investment banker on Wall Street on September 11, 2001, which in his words, “uprooted my life and caused me to rethink what I wanted to do.” Having been a music maker h...
Fat Dog is the founder of Subway Guitars in Berkeley, California. Since the 1960s, the store has become a hub for musicians to gather to discuss everything from politics and human rights...
William Dollarhide was the president and co-owner, along with his wife Margaret, of Dollarhide’s Music Center in Pensacola, Florida. He grew up in a very musical family, with his mother a...
Lee Donais may be the only industry member who played piano (as part of the Navy Band) for three United States Presidents: Johnson, Nixon and Ford. After his career with the Navy Band, L...
Mat Donaldson set out to create an encouraging and exciting lesson program when he opened his own shop, Drum World, in 1990. He opened the store, located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with the idea...
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 ...
Tom Dorn studied jazz trumpet at Lawrence College in Appleton, Wisconsin. The experience cemented his passion for music and soon Tom found himself working for the Wurlitzer retail stores...
Doug Beck was hired in the keyboard department at Manny’s Music on the famous 48th street in New York City. The street was lined with musical instrument stores and while Doug worked there...