Synthesizers

Brian Kehew played a big role in the NAMM Foundation’s  Museum of Making Music’s 2009-2010 Waves of Inspiration: The Legacy of Bob Moog exhibit, which provided the NAMM Resource Center a chance to interview him for this Oral History program. Brian discussed his personal background in music and the development of his personal interest and love for electronic music and synthesizers. Brian spoke of his friendship with Bob Moog and other leaders of the industry as well as his thoughts on milestone products during the heyday of MIDI and sound synthesis. His second NAMM interview was ca

Christoph Kemper blended his love of music with his love of computer programming as early as 1986 when he put his Commodore 64 to use coding for musical sounds. Kemper formed Access Music Electronics in the late 1990s just after rolling out its first product, the Access Virus series A. The Virus synthesizers offered a unique sound that soon became a part of the styles of such artists as Dr. Dre, Nine Inch Nails, Dido and Fatboy Slim. Christoph continued to design and develop the Virus series, which continues to attract musicians at all levels.  

Mike Kent is a music technology engineer and strategist whose career has helped shape the evolution of electronic instruments, digital audio, and industry standards. A lifelong synthesizer enthusiast and trumpet player, Mike began his professional journey with Roland Corporation, where he spent more than thirty years in international roles spanning research and development, product innovation, commercial A/V, and strategic technology partnerships.

Scott Kinsey is an internationally acclaimed keyboardist, composer, and producer whose work has helped shape modern electric jazz and contemporary fusion. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, the Michigan native quickly rose to prominence as a member of the influential fusion group Tribal Tech alongside Scott Henderson, Gary Willis, and Kirk Covington, touring worldwide and recording six landmark albums during his 21-year tenure with the band. A protégé of legendary keyboard innovator Joe Zawinul, Scott developed a distinctive musical voice rooted in improvisation, synthesis, a

Jerry Kovarsky was the product/brand manager at KORG for over 15 years. Working with Jack Hotop they were part of the team that created a long line of innovative synthesizer products for KORG, including the Triton, the Oasys, and more recently the M3 and the Kronos. Jerry played a vital role in establishing the team of engineers and programmers who worked on these and many other influential products produced by KORG during his time there. Before that he spent 8 years as the Director Of Marketing for Ensoniq, and before that he was both a demonstrator, and later a Product Manager f

Tom Kowalczyk served a long post as the artist relations director at Kurzweil Music. Tom had begun his career in music retail in the 1970s and became an expert on electronic keyboards as a salesman and musician. Ray Kurzweil, the company founder and instrument innovator, hired Tom to assist with the product launches and soon discovered Tom’s invaluable abilities as company spokesman to professional performers. Tom witnessed first hand the early development and expansion of the successful Kurzweil technology as well as the growth of the product line. Tom also took part in the compa

Roger Kraft was a pioneer in the retailing of electronic musical instruments such as keyboards and synthesizers in the 1980s.  Many may recall the days of keyboard stores throughout the United States in the early days of MIDI, when innovative keyboards were the craze.  With a background in electronics and music, Roger not only sold these creative products, but often would modify instruments to fit his own needs as a musician.  The keyboard store was the launching pad for a fuller musical retail store called Kraft Music, which he is always proud to point out is currently run by his

Bernie Krause teamed with Paul Beaver to form the popular and innovative team of Beaver & Krause and recorded a number of early electronic albums in the 1960s and 70s. They also worked on hundreds of movies using synthesizers such as the APR 2600 and the Module Moog, for which they were the official West Coast distributor in the company's early days. Bernie was also an early pioneer in recording the sounds of nature, which lead to the forming of the organization Wild Sanctuary (named after an album he completed with Paul Beaver).  

Sergey Kupriyanov is the president of a retail and wholesale company in Russia.  In fact, Sergey was the first current music retailer from Russia to be included in the NAMM Oral History collection when he was interviewed in 2015.  His interview included his own background as well as a nice overview of the Russian music retailer and how dealers in the country have changed in recent years.  He also operates a wholesale business for musical instruments and accessories in the country as well, making his views on the industry very interesting and important.

Kurt Kurasaki is an electronic music composer and synthesist based in Northern California. Although his preferred instruments are the Buchla Music Easel and Buchla 200/200e system, he is versed in wide array of synthesizers and electronic techniques.

Ray Kurzweil appeared on the popular 1950s and 1960s quiz show “I’ve Got a Secret” to reveal that he had made a computer that could make music. Since those early days, Ray has come to define the computer age of music making. Founder of Kurzweil Music, Ray designed some of the industry’s most noted electronic instruments of the 1980s and 1990s.

Denis Labrecque formed DeLab Consulting in 2015 after a series of positions in the synthesizer, computer music and digital signal processing fields. It all began with learning analog modular synthesis at Electronic Music Laboratories (EML), then working with the team from there that became Star Instruments, producing the famed Synare 3 electronic drum. His growing knowledge and interest in personal computers led him to be part of key developments for Passport Designs (MasterTracks Pro, Encore) at the dawn and the expansion of MIDI technology.

Mike Lang was a well-respected keyboardist who can be heard on over 2,000 movie scores and countless studio recordings over his long and successful career.  He worked with composers such as John Williams, Henry Mancini and Jerry Goldsmith to jazz and pop performers such as Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Zappa.  Interestingly enough, Mike was there in the studios when the boom of electronic instruments hit the market.  He was asked to play the latest Moog or APR products and remembered with a smile the first time he played a Yamaha DX7 in the early days of MIDI.  Mike was also a noted s

Terry Lawless is an expert at all things MIDI. When the language first came out, it was hard for most people to learn and especially difficult to program. However, Terry, who had just completed both a math and music degree, was very comfortable with MIDI and used his skills to help program for acts such as Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, and many other rising stars. To this day, Terry still owns just about every synth and keyboard he has ever purchased, making for one great MIDI instrument collection.

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 Lehmkuhl started playing music at the age of four, beginning with piano lessons in the music store his parents had opened in 1977. By his teenage years, he owned a Minimoog and, in 1983, he attended Yamaha’s three-day conference to teach music store employees how to program the Yamaha DX7. John earned a music performance degree, then began working in a music store selling synthesizers, teaching classes on how to play them, and programming patches for his customers.

Gary Leunberger opened a music store in San Francisco during the 1980s that soon specialized in electronic keyboards and synthesizers. Being a top seller of Yamaha instruments led the company to hire Gary to help program their products. Gary created the voice presets for the DX7, among others, which was first demonstrated by Gary at the NAMM Show in June 1983.  The following year the instrument was released at the NAMM Show, a moment in history Gary will never forget.

Julie Lewis has been surrounded by music her entire life, and knows first-hand the power it has on those who experience it. As a child she sang in choirs and played the cello, and can recall the happiness on the faces of those around her. As a nurse she often sang to those she cared for and witnessed the healing and comforting powers that music can provide. After meeting her husband Don, she dedicated herself to not only managing his career but using their skills to bring people together who could benefit from his musical talents.

Don Lewis was trained as an electronic engineer and, because of his love for music, he created one of the very early integrated-sound controllers, a precursor to MIDI. In the early 1970s when many electronic musical instruments such as synthesizers were being introduced, performers such as Don found it difficult to access all of the sounds they wanted in a given performance. While some performers pre-recorded the sounds they wanted to use, Don wired several instruments together so he could produce those sounds live. His instrument was called LEO, the Live Electronic Orchestra.

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.

Jaee Logan was introduced to a number of innovative synthesizers in the early days of development.  These include the Oberheim 2 Voice, the Arp 2600, and the Mini Moog. He beta tested software for Sequential Circuits, Robert Keller PC48 Track, and Passport Design and was hired by Jim Miller's Personal Composer System 2 to help demonstrate their notation software at the NAMM Show.  Jaee has been a regular attendee ever since!  He became well known for programming and sequencing sounds.  In the early days of MIDI, he was often in the studio working with artists such as Bobby Brown, 

Carlo Lucarelli graduated with an electronics engineering degree in 1963, marking the beginning of a distinguished career. After three years with GTE in Milano, he joined the music products industry, starting with Farfisa Organs in the Ancona area of Italy. Carlo's expertise and dedication contributed significantly to Farfisa until 1976 when he and three colleagues co-founded Siel. This new venture quickly gained recognition for producing innovative electronic musical instruments. As president and general manager, Carlo played a pivotal role in both the design of the instruments a

Dave Luce grew up in a musical home and in fact wrote his doctoral thesis on the analysis of musical instruments back in 1959.  As an interesting side note, that thesis was sponsored in part by NAMM.  Dave set out to study nuclear physics when he saw a bulletin board listing for a research study on the acoustics of musical instruments and as he has said, he turned left into the world of music.  When Bob Moog moved his synthesizer company to Buffalo, New York, Dave was hired to run the technical engineering division of the company for many years.  Dave stayed on with the company af

Takaki Maeda and his team were celebrating the 40th anniversary of Casio's Musical Instruments division while attending the NAMM Show in 2020. This special occasion was the perfect opportunity for us to sit down with Maeda-San for his NAMM Oral History interview. His perspective on the growth and development of the company and its innovative products is unique because his role has been marketing vs. manufacturing. Maeda-San was often involved with the development of products and had exclusive insight into the product launch before being sent to the marketing department.

Marc Mann grew up with an insatiable love for music, always requesting tunes in the car and teaching himself guitar after buying one from a vendor on a Mexican beach. Early piano lessons with a neighbor sparked a lifelong connection to keyboards, which later became central to his career. After starting as a math major at UCLA, Marc switched to music, earned his master’s, and immersed himself in the university’s electronic music lab, mastering synthesizers, sound physics, and emerging computer music technologies.

Money Mark grew up fascinated with music and musical instruments. He read all he could about the latest keyboards and synthesizers, which were becoming popular during his childhood. In his 20s he played in several Los Angeles-area bands, wrote his own music and began recording. All of this was the perfect background for his next big adventure--meeting and recording with the Beastie Boys. Money Mark worked on the Check Your Head album in 1992 as well as III Communication (1994), Hello Nasty (1998) and The Mix Up (2007).

David Marshall grew up in a musical home and played piano and cello at an early age.  As part of the Wessex Youth Orchestra he played in many prestigious concerts including the Schools Prom at the Royal Albert Hall and later studied music at City University in London as his interest in electronic musical instruments grew.  During the 1980s at the University, David was exposed to the latest in electronic instruments and the university’s recording studio, which only deepened his interest and passion.   He joined Roland UK in 1988 as a trainee product specialist,  where Brian Nunney

Mike Martin grew up tinkering on his grandmother’s piano before and taking piano lessons throughout his school years. Hearing his first synthesizer helped provide the motivation to work towards buying his first one in the early 1980s which he still has today. Mike got his official start in the industry when he took his first job in a music store in high school and eventually transitioned into a sales position with Kurzweil, and then took on a position at Yamaha. Now as the General Manager of Marketing of Electronic Musical Instruments at Casio, Mike just celebrated his ninth year

Chris Martirano started working for Kurzweil Music Systems in 1986. For the first few years he was on the sales side of the equation, originally the district sales manager for the northeastern U.S., then promoted to regional manager for all states east of the Mississippi River in 1988. Later he served as Kurzweil’s director of product development for 12 years, steering the creation of some of the most powerful and forward-looking synthesizers ever made, including the K2000, K2500, and K2600, all of which sported V.A.S.T., Kurzweil’s potent variable architecture synthesis technolog

David Mash studied guitar in much the same way his mother studied the piano. He was focused on the classical traditions and even took lessons from Andre Segovia. His mother was a student of a student of Chopin!

Max Mathews was working as an engineer at the famed Bell Laboratory in 1954 when he was asked to determine if the computer Bell was designing could create music. The landmark Music 2 and later Music 4 projects put the two concepts together as early as 1957-–the computer and music had a future and Max was there for the birth. Max had moved on to musical programming when Don Buchla and Robert Moog created similar electronic music in the form of the synthesizer. As a Stanford University professor, Max worked with his close friend John Chowning for several decades on a number of progr

Greg Mathieson spoke passionately about his career in music during his NAMM Oral History interview. He brought up some very interesting points, such as his views on working on the road vs in the recording studio, and his experiences of developing a true musical connection with the vocalists he plays for. He cited examples such as Olivia Newton Johns’ show at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City when she sang her hit “I Honestly Love You” while Greg played solo piano and held on to her every note.