Deceased
Rocco Prestia grew up in Northern California where he began playing guitar as a teenager before joining the group Tower of Power just after the famous band was formed. It was during these early days when Rocco switched from guitar to bass, which provided a special groove as he mastered what many...
Jerry Trestman grew up in a musical home, in fact his older brother played saxophone for several of the big bands during the swing era. Jerry served in the Korean War and was stationed in Japan where he conducted several Japanese bands and played in small groups. Jerry continued to play...
Jerry Grote grew up in Minnesota and began playing guitar after seeing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964. As a high school student, Jerry began visiting local music stores and discovered music retail. One of the stores he visited was called The Guitar Center, not related to the...
Paul Winther took over his parent’s music store in Boise, Idaho, which was opened in 1943. Paul enjoyed the selling side of the business, especially selling pianos and organs. Paul took great pride in the fact that his son Greg came into the business and would run the store after his retirement...
Keith Jorgensen opened a piano-focused retail store in the Salt Lake City area that would grow to 13 stores in three states! Keith Jorgensen Piano Centers were all run by Keith until his retirement, when his children took over. During his long career, Keith was a retail leader who created several...
Sandy Nelson was among the small group of musicians who scored a top ten instrument hit record when he recorded "Teen Beat" in 1959. The song sold a million copies and paved the way for Sandy to become a well-respected studio musician. He followed up his first hit with another called "Let There...
Al Rinaldi was the first person ever to receive the Steinway Lifetime Achievement Award, which was given to him in 2012. Al never worked for the piano manufacturer nor did he work for any of it's sister companies. Al was a Steinway dealer in Philadelphia, who in fact was turned down from being a...
Sam Ulano was the drum teacher, performer, method book author and drum shop owner whose name became synonymous with the world of drumming. During his long and celebrated career, Sam played with some of the legends of jazz and popular music. In 1948 he published the first of nearly one thousand...
Bucky Pizzarelli was a jazz guitarist who helped bring the sounds of the electric guitar into jazz and into popular music, beginning in the 1940s. As a stage performer and later a studio musician, Bucky's guitar can be heard on countless recordings both by other artists as well as on his own. He...
Miriam Bienstock was one of three founders of Atlantic Records, which set the stage for over 60 years of recordings of primarily black artists. In the early years this was one of the only labels giving opportunities for the likes of Ruth Brown and Ray Charles to be heard! Miriam ran the office and...