Oral History Interviews

Joyce Moore has been encouraged by many friends and family members for years to write a book. After her NAMM interview, we concluded the same thing. Joyce was there when Jackie Wilson recorded “Higher and Higher.” She had an onboard tour of the very plane that crashed two months later, killing Otis Redding and seven others. Being married to Sam Moore for 40 years put her right in the middle of his fascinating career as did her role as assistant Maître D at Mr. Kelly’s in Chicago. Her passion for music and witnessing artists not being fully compensated for their recordings propelle

Sam Moore and his singing partner Dave Prater helped put Stax Records on the map with their string of top hits in the 1960s. Their powerful performances inspired their nicknames of Double Dynamite and The Sultans of Sweat.

Denny Mack was surrounded by music his entire life! His father was a Vaudeville performer and it seems all Denny ever wanted to do was be involved with music. He played drums at sock-hops when he was in school and continued to be in rock trios throughout college. Along the way he developed a keen interest in audio equipment and live sound production. While going out on the road as a drummer with a number of acts, he learned all he could from the audio engineers about the role of the Front of House and monitor engineers.

Michael Campion has attended the NAMM Show since the late 1970s, first as a wide-eyed musician, then as a retailer and finally as an exhibitor. Tracing his evolving roles at the show mirrors his fascinating career in the music industry. Playing in garage bands led to his involvement with songwriting and composing jingles, which led to working in a music store. Michael formed a team that opened LAB Sound (Home of Tone was their slogan), which branched out into three retail locations in Southern California. The store’s focus was rack systems for heavy metal bands in the 1980s.

Kelly Wheeler and her husband Dorsey run a music retail business in Idaho with several locations. Dorsey Music was established in 1969 and just three years later Kelly walked through the doors looking to buy a guitar. She soon began working in the store before they were married a few years later. One of her first impressions of the broader music industry was attending the NAMM Show with Dorsey in 1975. Among the highlights for her from that Chicago show was being in a small room with just a few people and watching Les Paul perform!

Dorsey Wheeler attributed some of the success of his music store to the training and ongoing support he received from companies such as Peavey Electronics and Cannonball Musical Instruments. Having a strong relationship with his suppliers was a key element for his business, as was attending the NAMM Show annually. Dorsey was a band director for three years in the Idaho public school district before he decided to purchase a small music store in Nampa, just outside of Boise. He changed the name of the store to Dorsey Music in 1969 and set out to expand the business to several locati

Laurel Summerhays was 11 years old when she received her first paycheck working in her family’s music store. Her parents, Hyrum and Colleen, opened Summerhays Music in 1936 and their family has served the greater Salt Lake City area ever since. After college, she pursued a career in banking but returned to the music business after her father passed away. Since that time she worked closely with her two brothers to grow the business, opening up new locations and dedicating themselves to supporting music education programs at all levels.

Katelyn Summerhays was 11 years old when she had her first official job in her family’s music store. Her grandparents opened Summeryhays Music in the Salt Lake City area in 1936, and her family has owned and operated the multi-location business ever since. Katelyn started out answering the phones and sweeping up, which led to full-time work during summer vacations from school. Before following her own dreams of pursuing her interest in sociology, Katelyn managed her own store in Layton, which will always be a special memory for her.

Mark Altekruse, like so many passionate members of the music industry, specifically remembers the lessons he learned from one of his earliest and most influential music instructors. Trombonist Bugs Beddow was a local musician in Detroit who served as a musical mentor to young Mark, who went on to form his own band (Rhythm Kitchen) which ultimately led to a long career with Roland, BOSS and Apple. Along the way, he had some incredible musical experiences including playing in the Hex Orchestra on their recording of Human Experiments. Within the music products industry, Mark worked o

Chris Leonard grew up surrounded by gear! His father served as sound engineer for local events and at church. This exposure ignited a passion in Chris and set his career path in the direction of Live Sound. Among the gigs important to him in his early career were providing sound for the Philadelphia Eagles' Super Bowl parade in 2018 and as monitor engineer for Tears For Fears! Chris was hired by IMS Technology Services in 2011 as Director of Audio within the Event Staging Division. In the early stages of the 2020 Pandemic, he was promoted to Director of Operations.

Larry Blank was greatly influenced by attending Broadway musicals with his parents as a kid. As a result he studied drama yet realized he wanted to be a musician. Larry played piano growing up and as a teenager had opportunities to perform for small musical shows. Word soon spread of his abilities resulting in Larry becoming one of the youngest conductors on Broadway when he worked with Joel Grey in the show Goodtime Charley. He went on the road with A Chorus Line and served as conductor for Marvin Hamlisch’s They’re Playing Our Song on Broadway, which Larry always thought was a w

Gio Giovanni has a rich background in music, a passion of his since he was a kid. Gio grew up in Detroit, where he studied guitar and became a Hip Hop DJ. He took classes that incorporated music theory into the art of DJing and worked part time as a DJ when he moved to Nashville in 2006. With the help and support of his parents, a year later Gio formed his own studio, The Record Shop, which provided artists a full scope of services. Gio views his role as being involved with the creative process in order to help the artists achieve their vision of each project.

Gary Panton grew up in Niagara, New York, and played the drums and vibes in high school. It was there that he started his first band, a jazz trio. In 1970 he was hired by Dick Crino in Dunkirk, New York, to work in his small music store. While Gary started on the sales floor, he soon followed Dick’s lead to serve the local school band directors as a school road rep. He even gave drum lessons in the store before going to college at Fredonia School of Music. The somewhat unique focus of the school was teaching musicians how to teach music rather than concentrating on performance deg

Russell Scull is the proud son of Bert and Isabell Scull, two widely influential members of the music industry’s family. The Sculls provided accounting services to music stores beginning in the 1950s and are often credited for the growth of their clients over the years. The Scull Groups, as they came to be known, looked deep into their retailers businesses, not just debts and credits but market surveys as well as careful analysis of buying trends across the United States. During his interview Russell was able to provide details of his parents' background, views on their business a

Lynn Scull is the daughter-in-law of Bert and Isabell Scull, who formed the now historic Scull Groups to serve music retailers throughout the United States. Lynn married the Scull’s son Russell and became part of the family in 1974. She witnessed first-hand the devotion Bert and Isabell had towards their musical retail clients. Lynn also points out that the Scull’s had several other customers for their CPA firm, including retailers in the jewelry, furniture and lady’s apparel industries.

Matthew Green grew up in a very musical family. His father plays French Horn and was greatly influential on Matthew's own musical pursuits. At first he played the cello in school then later switched to bass. He studied classical music for some time and found wonderful and inspiring music teachers at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. Wanting to have a career in music, Matthew applied for an opening at Cannonball Musical Instruments after graduation and soon realized he enjoyed both  the work and the people. Beginning with the task of leveling pads on saxophones, Matthew work

Marietta Robison was living next door to Sheryl and Tevis Laukat in 1996 when the couple approached her for help with their idea to start an instrument company. With a strong background in accounting, Marietta was intrigued by the idea and from the very beginning of the business, which would become Cannonball Musical Instruments, she served as the CFO and Controller. She took part in the growth of the company and takes great pride in helping form the family feeling by being encouraging and supportive to the staff.

Howard Summers is an instrument designer at Cannonball Musical Instruments, specializing in trumpets. Howard began playing the trumpet in the fourth grade in New Orleans and proudly can still recall his music teacher’s name, Jim Webber. As he developed as a musician, Howard learned to play a wide range of instruments including the French Horn and trombone. Inspired by his teachers, Howard earned his degree and became a band director in the Salt Lake City, Utah area. When he discovered one of his students was the daughter of the founders of Cannonball Musical Instruments, a strong

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

Randal Clark is the Media Director and Education Specialist for Cannonball Musical Instruments in Sandy, Utah. He began working at Cannonball in 2000, focusing on addressing the needs of band directors and other music educators by gaining their views on how the instrument line could be improved. Always being involved with music, his father was a choral director and he was and still is a high school band director. Randal expanded his role within Cannonball by taking advantage of developing technology to share their story and promote their instruments.

Matthew McBeth applied for a job at Cannonball Musical Instruments in Sandy, Utah, right after he graduated from high school in 2011. At first Matthew was given the tasks of mowing the grass and other yardwork. He later helped install the shelving in the warehouse, which led to more and more responsibilities including managing the warehouse and the shipping area. He took careful study of the process of making the instruments, which at Cannonball include saxophones, trumpets, trombones and flutes. Matthew built on what he was taught and advanced the process of packing to ensure eac

Massiel Gregory grew up surrounded by music in Guatemala before moving to the United States and settling in the Salt Lake City area. In the early 2000’s she began working at Cannonball Musical Instruments where she was one of the first employees to learn hand engraving. Like so many employees at Cannonball, Massiel wears many hats and has served as the packing manager as well as the company’s semi-precious stone specialist. She is proud of the skills she had learned and the instruments she works on, and equally proud to be part of the Cannonball family.

Leesa McBeth played flute since she was a child and remembers the day her sister, Sheryl Laukat, was given a saxophone which their parents purchased from Sears, where her father was employed. Music was all around them growing up and Leesa pursued her passion by teaching music. She taught for 30 years, including 26 years at Kennedy Jr High and the other four at both an elementary and high school in small towns. Those experiences mean the world to Leesa as she feels so blessed to have been able to bring music in the lives of over 15,000 students. Between schools for a time she worke

Joshua Baldi wasn’t quite sure what to expect when he answered an ad for an artist at a musical instrument company. With a background and deep seated passion for art and music, Joshua was pleasantly surprised to learn the job involved creating designs for engraving onto musical instruments such as the saxophone. He soon not only learned the craft of hand engraving but excelled at the process, in addition to creating new and exciting patterns such as dragons and those based on Day of the Dead themes.

Joan Fox was just 15 years old when she met her future husband, Maurice. His parents started a music store in South Carolina, Fox Muisc House, in which Joan would work for many years. She married Maurice in 1953 and become passionate about their employees and customers, treating both as members of her family. She loved the music business and worked hard to build the store's reputation for excellent customer service, utilizing her background and talents in advertising. She even recalled having live television ads in the 1950s set in the store.

Joel Silverman, the sales and marketing guy behind several innovative pro audio products and the founder of Silverfish Audio, has had quite a musical journey! As a kid he played clarinet, drums and guitar in school and looks back fondly on his high school band director and the day the Beatles debuted on the Ed Sullivan Show. During college he studied electrical and computer engineering and found himself providing the sound for touring bands doing college concerts in New York’s North Country.  By the time he graduated, Joel has amassed enough gear to provide sound for every college

Sharell Del Fiorentino remembers as a little girl pretending the back of her daddy’s car seat was a piano keyboard. As long as she can recall, she has always wanted to be a pianist. When she was ten her parents purchased a piano for her, although they could hardly afford the expense. As a result young Sharell did not have formal lessons but instead taught herself to play by ear. Over the years she learned to read music and by the time she was 18 she was giving piano lessons to other aspiring music makers.  As an adult, she studied theory and continued to teach as well as play. “Oh

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 watching his father work in a music store, Ken eventually honed his skills as a luthier, alongside his good friend Bill Collings. When a customer requested a microphone installation inside their Martin D-28 guitar, Ken found a way, and ultimately his new passion, the MiniFlex Microphone was born. Since that original request, Ken successfully built MiniFlex Microphones and even opened his own retai

Brockett Parsons is proud of the musical education he received in grade school, which was furthered by participating in the school band program at his high school. He went on to graduate from Berklee College of Music. He cut his teeth on classical and jazz while having a strong interest in R&B and Hip Hop. While touring with Lady Gaga he felt the need to enhance his stage presence, which led to the creation of the circle piano made by Piano Arc. He toured again with Lady Gaga using the instrument, which was also played with her on Saturday Night Live and the Super Bowl.

Michael Aguilar played instruments both in and out of his school music programs growing up, which proved to be a wonderful background later in his career. After nearly five years in the retail end of consumer electronics, Michael became National Sales Manager for the tape recorder division at Panasonic in 1972. The company, wanting to branch into the musical instrument business, formed Technics in 1979. Three years later Michael was hired to lead the company, which took off during the early days of digital instruments.