Nick Batt is the Director of Sonicstate - a website and podcast dedicated to reviewing and commenting on advancements in electronic musical instruments. During his NAMM Oral History interview he spoke about the history of Sonicstate, which was launched at the dawn of the Internet in 1994. Nick also... more
Gaz Williams is a well know podcaster and consultant for Sonicstate. He is also a passionate musician having played bass since he was 15 years old. At an early age, Gaz combined his bass with MIDI and was always looking for the latest gear that could enhance his playing by creating new sounds. Gaz... more
Eddie Veale is the studio designer who worked hand in hand with some of music’s greatest artists to create their own home studios. Eddie designed the home studio John Lennon used to record “Imagine.” In fact, John was so excited to get in and use his new studio, he began recording while Eddie was... more
Adrian Smale grew up in a very musical home. His mother played and taught piano while his father played the violin. He witnessed firsthand the joy music can bring a person’s life and, years later, played a vital role in doing just that while working in music retail. As a classical guitarist, Adrian... more
Trevor Austin has encouraged and assisted countless young musicians for over half a century as the director of the Rosehill Instrument stores in England. His passion for playing goes back to when he was a child and hearing instrumental music. Trevor later became a top level euphonium player and... more
Nigel Edmund-Jones was the founder of the London Rock Shop. The small store was established in 1980 and became legendary in the music industry for the long list of famous customers. The store closed after six years, which gave Nigel an opportunity to focus on musical composition and publishing. He... more
Chris Wright recalls hearing the drummer play in the famous British instrumental band, The Shadows. From that moment on all he wanted was a drum kit. His dear dad brought home a used drum for him one day and as they say, his life was never the same! Chris loved playing drums and also helping his... more
Eric Lindsey was given a guitar from his father when he was 13 years old. For years it puzzled Eric on how he took to making music so quickly and with such skill. He later learned that his grandmother was a musician, which provided special insight for Eric as to his roots and love of music. Eric... more
Pete McClelland teamed up with his wife to open a folk instrument music store in London in 1975. The idea was new and it was unclear if they would be successful, but they dedicated themselves to their customers and to the folk and bluegrass communities. Hobgoblin Music grew, and Pete felt a... more
Colin Holdsworth works directly with the British government to provide funding for music-based companies in the United Kingdom to export their goods. As a result, Colin has played a vital role in bringing British companies to the NAMM Shows in the United States as well as helping grow the Music... more
Nigel Clark began taking oboe lessons when he was seven years old. By the age of 17 Nigel started working in the music industry for an oboe reed making company Harry Baker ( oboe reeds) ltd. In 1973 he was able to buy, with partners, the small oboe making company T W Howarth & co Ltd., from... more
Ivor Taylor took part in one of the great developments of the music industry when he established a pro audio retail store in London. Turnkey was just that, an easy solution for its customers who were seeking to take advantage of developing technologies to make, record, and produce music. It was... more
Andre Jacquemin remembers the day he was asked to engineer some comedy records for a young group of writers in London. He thought, who will want a record with only jokes? That group of writers became the nucleus of Monty Python and, over the years, Andre became their musical director. For over... more
Greg Niven was a gear-head at the perfect time - when technology was developing in the 1970s and the great synthesizer boom of innovation was on! He was working in the famed Harrods department store’s music department in London at the time. The store wanted to provide the latest innovations for its... more
Bob Moses watched his dad on the workbench in the garage and asked if he could help out on small projects. His father was an electrical engineer who worked for 3M on several digital projects, and both father and son worked together on improving their own stereo equipment. After Bob graduated from... more
Bill Wenzloff proudly represented Morley at the 2019 NAMM Show in Anaheim when the CEO of NAMM, Joe Lamond, presented Bill with the NAMM Milestone Award for 50 years in business. Bill was not with Morley from the beginning, but he has been a dedicated staff member for decades. Bill’s passion as a... more
Anssi Hyvönen grew up in Finland where he developed a great love of recorded music and the gear to play it on. This gradually led to establishing Amphion as a hifi company in 1998. As an audiophile the playback side of the music chain was always familiar to him. To understand the whole recording... more
Sharon Hennessey and her brother, John, are the co-presidents of The Music People. The company was established by her father, Jim, back in 1979. Sharon worked in every position within the company, knowing from a young age she had a deep passion for the music industry. She worked alongside her... more
John Hennessey has fond memories of growing up in the family music business. The Music People was established by his father, Jim, in 1979. John helped manage the growth and development of the business from a small distributor to a manufacturing company. John and his sister, Sharon, also played an... more
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 married and saw Jim’s vision come true when Blues Angel Music was opened in Florida. Nan has served in the... more