Russ Gazda recalls listening to his mother playing the Hawaiian Guitar as a child. He played the accordion and later was introduced to the Hammond B-3, thanks to recordings by his hero Bo...

Norman Cantrell attended the University of Oklahoma City where he earned his degree in music education. He soon realized his passion was not in teaching but rather in piano repair and tun...

Fumio Mieda was hired by the founder of KORG, Tsutomu Katoh, back in 1967. Mieda-san began working on a number of innovations as he hoped to improve the function of electronic organs. The...

Glen Kersten and his wife were just married when they rented a small house that turned out to be owned by Frank Lohnes. Mr. Lohnes also owned a music store called Dearborn Piano & Org...

Dan Miller has always felt a great sense of pride by providing the music people have worshiped to in the many churches he has performed in over the years. He took piano lessons as a child...

Bill Hesterman has always been fascinated by the pipe organ. He studied piano and organ as a child, and with the good fortune that one of his teachers was an organist for the Mormon Taber...

Frederick Swann was one of the most famous organists of the last 50 years due to his many publications, recitals, church performances and his long run on the television program The Hour o...

John Green began installing pipe organs when he was still in school and fell in love with not only the technical process but in the reaction of the customers. He worked in a music store i...

Dan Dugan is a pro lighting and pro audio engineer who invented an automixer that he first presented at AES in 1974. With a rich background in theater, both in lighting and sound, Dan cre...

Pat Bovenizer, the current Vice President of Peterson Electro-Musical Products, Inc., gives credit to some “Irish Luck” as he discusses his growth with the company. Beginning part-time wo...

Fred Buch has always been interested in combining electronic technology with pipe organs.  When he entered the pipe organ business in the 1957, electronic organs were not sufficiently adv...

Scott Peterson is the President of Peterson Electro-Musical Products, which his father, Richard, established in the pursuit of his passion for audio electronics and pipe organs.  Among Ri...

Dewey Kuhn grew up listening to his grandmother playing the organ, which she did in her younger days accompanying silent movies.  His passion grew as he learned to play.

Hector Olivera was born in Argentina where he studied organ with his father, a noted church organist. In 1965 Hector studied at Julliard School of Music and soon after that began providin...

David Estey is related to the Estey's who established the Vermont-based Estey Organ Company in 1846 as well as the Estey Piano factory in New York. Pianos must be in his blood as David be...

John Wessel was born in Holland and recalled with a stern face his World War II memories of running from the Nazi's. He was just one step ahead of the SS on several occasions. After the w...

Ned Phoenix of Townshend, Vermont, a reed organ player and restorer since 1970, is the founder of the Estey Organ Museum in Brattleboro, Vermont. Ned is fond of saying, "This may be the o...

Dennis Waring has created his own line of musical products made out of cardboard.  The harp and guitars are a fun way to get people playing a musical instrument, which is his main goal.  ...

Georg Steinmeyer was the factory supervisor at the Estey Organ Company in Brattleboro, Vermont. He joined the company in the years following World War II when he moved from Germany to the...

Ken Edgington has many friends in the music industry, several of whom suggested he be included in the NAMM Oral History program, but when approached Ken was rather humble about his role i...

Charlotte Atkinson is an organist extraordinaire! Showing an aptitude for music early on, Charlotte continued with formal education earning Bachelor and Masters degrees in music. At San D...

Dick Christian has spent his entire career in the piano and organ business and has made many friends along the way. His support for the industry led him to the role as president of the Na...

Gordon Pfund spent his life in the music industry that he loved. At an early age he began working for Werlein For Music in Louisiana and became enamored with the piano and organ market. H...

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...

Steve Markowitz’s father invented a unique electronic organ in the 1930s and established the Allen Organ Company in Allentown, PA. Steve’s father, Jerome, built his first experimental ins...

Martha Markowitz married her knight-in-shining-armor right after World War II. She soon helped him run the small organ company he started before the war. The Allen Organ Company has been ...

Maurice Fox loves selling organs to area churches. In fact, even after a retirement from the presidency of Fox’s Music in Charleston, South Carolina, (his son now holds that position), he...

Robert J. Jones traveled on a tour bus with his father and sang gospel music together for many years as the Song Fellows. They recorded for Homeland Records in Nashville and performed aro...

Robert Street grew up in the piano business. In 1914, Robert’s grandfather, Claude P. Street, opened his first music store in Nashville, Tennessee. Claude was certain that a successful bu...