Deceased
Haruhiko Ikebe developed a novel way of approaching music retailing, creating Super Pro Shops that stock vintage and new instruments along with accessories and knowledgeable sales staff for a very specific item. In other words, Mr. Ikebe created a saxophone store, a guitar store, a flute store and...
Bob Sperzel’s grandfather and father were both mechanical engineers working in their own shops creating machine parts for several industries. As Bob learned from them he discovered on his own a real need for machined parts to be improved for turning keys for guitars. Bob witnessed first hand how...
Vanetta Wilson was the fourth generation owner of her family’s music business. Chesbro Music began in 1911 as a music retailer and expanded over the years to become one of the largest music wholesalers in the country. Since taking on the Hoshino line of products in the 1970s, the company has...
Stan Lindenbaum grew up in Brooklyn and developed many thoughts and ideas about selling. While working for several different industries during his career, Stan studied the idea of incentive marketing, a concept that worked out well for him in his years in the music industry. He worked for the...
Elliott Rubinson fell in love with the bass at the age of 12 and played it every waking moment as he grew up in Queens, New York, in the rock era of the 1960s. He toured with a number of bands and eventually decided to start his own music store in Florida so he could spend his days immersed in...
Jackie Mills as a drummer put down the beat for jazz and big band stars such as Tommy Dorsey, Charlie Barnet, Dizzy Gillespie and Billie Holiday. As a record producer, he played a critical role in the careers of Janis Joplin, Irene Kral and Bobby Sherman. As the co-founder of Choreo Records (later...
George Avakian produced so many pop and jazz recordings over his 50 plus year career with several labels it might be easier to list the recordings he did not take part in. Before entering World War II George had already produced his first recording, as well as writing about the music that he loved...
Billy Taylor was first and foremost a jazz pianist. This fact might surprise some people who knew Billy best for one of a number of other careers he enjoyed in music, including teaching, composing and advocating for music education. As a jazz performer, Billy learned from the best including Ben...
Saul Walker’s career in the field of electronics went back to the early sound designs before World War II. As an engineer he was trained in the United States Navy and worked on several important projects including early sound recordings and the use of what would become transistor technology. Saul...
Manuel Velazquez was one of the greatest guitar luthiers of the last one hundred years. He was born in Puerto Rico in 1917 and handcrafted his first classical guitar when he was still a teenager in 1929. He studied the art of guitar making from his older brother and the importance of woods from his...