G. Leblanc Corporation
Mike Kamphuis is perfectly suited for his position as Vice President, Division of Education at Conn-Selmer in Elkhart, Indiana. His role allows him to work closely with educators and industry leaders with the mission to make music programs available to all students. Leaning on his own experiences,...
Dana Messina was always intrigued by all the machinery in factories thanks to his engineering background, but his business skills are what lead to his success at both Selmer and Steinway. Dana was able to help streamline the business while never compromising on the quality of the product at both...
Lloyd Turner happily landed his first teaching job right out of college as band director for Madison Central High School in Jackson, Mississippi in 1966. The job cemented in Lloyd’s mind the thought that this was the career for him. He taught for over 20 years with stints working in local music...
Andy Strayer began his career in the music industry working for a music store, which he joined right after earning his music business degree at Wingate University in North Carolina. After several years in retail, Andy became a manufacturer’s rep for Leblanc and later for Pearl Drums. Along the way...
Angelo Battellini proudly managed the Martin Band Instrument factory in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he worked for 51 years. He was born the son of a brick layer in Italy, a trade he learned at a young age. When Angelo was 17 he traveled with an uncle to America. While laying bricks, a cousin in...
Denver Spence joined the music industry in 1968 after having been involved with his school marching bands and school band programs since he was in elementary school. He worked as a school road rep for Jenkins Music in Kansas City for two years before opening his own retail store in Ada, Oklahoma....
Bill Price was active in the band instrument business after being involved with other industries and as a result has a very unique and positive perspective on the music industry. Bill was hired to join CG Conn by his longtime friend Bill Cordier. Together they had an interest in purchasing the...
Jim Stella began playing the trumpet in the fourth grade and continued to play throughout college and went to instrument repair school right after school before landing a job in manufacturing. He began working for Leblanc in the Martin Band Instrument factory and soon thereafter became plant...
Larry Ramirez had a fascinating career in music! As a trumpet player he landed his dream job designing instruments for many of his childhood heroes! While working for Leblanc, Larry was assigned to repair the instruments of many of the company’s top endorsers. Over time he developed friendships...
Dave Surber’s father was a United States Navy musician who worked for the Leblanc Company after he retired from the navy. When Dave was looking for a job his father found one for him in the buffing room at Leblanc. Dave moved into polishing clarinet keys while his father worked with artist...