Band and Orchestra
George Holden is the president and co-founder of Smith-Holden Music Store in Bloomington, IN. As a music teacher George partnered with a close friend who sadly committed suicide soon after the store was opened in the 1950s. In memory of him, George decided not to change the store name. Over the...
Vito Pascucci was assigned to band instrument repair during World War II for Glenn Miller’s Army Air Force Band. Although Miller was much older, the world-famous bandleader and Vito became fast friends and, in fact, outlined a plan to establish a chain of music retail stores after the war. Miller’s...
Jack Hyde was the classic music retailer of the 21st Century. Jack opened a store in the mid 1950s because he loved music, plain and simple. The store, in Northern California, became such a success that he soon opened a chain of Jack’s House of Music stores. His mall store at Arden Arcade in...
Bob Ziems (it sounds like "seems as in Ziems it seems") was a dedicated member of the testing department at CG Conn from 1941-1971 and later with Selmer. However, it was what he did for a hobby that became most important to the NAMM Resource Center. As early as 1937, Bob took photographs of every...
Merle Johnson was a past president of the famous EK Blessing Company in Elkhart, Indiana. Emil Karl Blessing opened a small brasswind valve company in 1906 and soon expanded his products to include cornets and trumpets. Over the years the company grew to include Mr. Blessing’s sons, who played a...
William Petersen served as president of Selmer Corporation from 1975-1990 during a time of great growth. Bill took over as the head of the renowned band instrument company after the retirement of his old boss and industry icon, Charlie Bickel. Under Bill’s direction the company acquired Ludwig...
Abe Wollam was a close associate of Bud Reglein. Beginning in the 1940s, Abe worked with Bud at the jj Babbitt Mouthpiece Company out of Elkhart, IN. Abe developed strong engineering skills, which proved to be invaluable as the company grew over the years and required specialized tooling. As...
Rob Palmer served as president of UMI (United Musical Instruments) in the final years of the company before the brands it manufactured were sold to other companies. UMI played an important role in the transition of several products in Elkhart, Indiana, during the 1990s and early into 2000. At the...
George Quinlan was proud of his store outside of Chicago, for which the walls are full of photographs of the children he rented or sold an instrument to, and the fact that he survived hard times such as a store fire. However, George may have been most proud of the fact that his son took over the...
K. Ethel Merker was asked by the Holton Company to create the now popular Merker French horn. Her career has included acclaimed symphonic performances, radio and TV jingle work, and several well-known music education programs over the years. Her list of accomplishments is even made more impressive...