Olympics

David Garretson is a special representative for the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, which represents motion picture technicians, artists and allied crafts of the United States and Canada. As a union leader, David has overseen the creation of several initiatives that have benefited stage hands and roadies for years. He began his career lighting dance recitals and worked his way up to working for the Chicago ballet and regional theater in the mid 1970s.

Dennis Guillaume began his career in the music industry in piano retail in the late 70's, a position he feels very much assisted him when he worked for Kimball Pianos throughout the 1980's. During this time the piano industry was experiencing steady decline. In an effort to reverse the trends, Dennis took part in several marketing and promotional projects including the 1984 Olympics in which 84 grand pianos were used in the opening ceremonies and the 1988 Super Bowl in which 88 grand pianos were used during the half time program –and every last one of the pianos were Kimball. Denn

Greg Herreman became the Front of House engineer at the Backdoor Club in San Diego while still in college. The venue attracted nationally known performers, which was a perfect training ground for Greg, who worked there from 1973-1978. He also worked sound for television programs and live events such as the San Diego Folk Festival and the 1984 Olympics. In 2002 he joined the NAMM Show team and provided staging and sound reinforcement for all of the stages at one point. He also plays an important role in the annual Tribute program by directing the bagpipe band to and from the specia

Jim Mingo learned much more than he can put into words from his experience in his school's marching band. Jim developed many skills he uses to this day including how to work within a team and how to listen to others. While playing in college he worked for a sound company and later would provide equipment for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. After touring for the sound company and working in the Pro Audio Division of Guitar Center, Jim had the opportunity to work for The Music People in Connecticut. He started in 2004 and since that time has worked his way up to Director of P

Jeff Rona played a critical role in the coming together of the minds and companies that would agree on the MIDI specs back in the 1980s. The meetings took place at NAMM shows over several years and included Dave Smith, members of Yamaha and Roland to name a few. Jeff was the founder and past president of MMA, the MIDI Manufacturers Association. He is also a film composer and musician known for his studio work in LA and New York. Among his many projects of note was the concert he composed for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, which toured throughout China. 

Harold Wheeler remembers standing in front of the large orchestra about to raise his hands to conduct when it hit him - "I am at the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Olympics!" That epic moment was one of many highlights in a diverse career that included being a studio musician (he was a member of the band Meco which had a big disco hit with their version of "Star Wars"), orchestrator on Broadway (he won the 2003 Drama Desk Award for his work on Hairspray) and served as musical director on many works (including Nina Simone’s 1971 album Here Comes the Sun).

Stephen Zelenka has had quite the career in the music industry. His love for music started early while he was growing up and playing gigs in London,  he eventually landed a job working for the band Gentle Giant. This job entailed a lot of tasks associated with touring, and Stephen earned the nickname of “Zoomie Zelenka”  at the tender age of sixteen  by running around with so much to do having been awarded the job title of guitar tech, projectionist and PA engineer all on the same gig! After touring with Gentle Giant, Stephen went on to work with TFA Electrosound in the UK and wen