Full Interview
Tosin Abasi is the founder and lead guitarist of the group Animals as Leaders and has a style of playing that is often unmatched. Tosin grew up in Washington, D.C and has memories of trying guitars out at Chuck Levin’s Washington Music Center. He took the leap to create music professionally and...
Jamal Batiste grew up in a very musical family and when he saw his brother’s drum kit at 3 years old, he fell in love. Raised in New Orleans he was surrounded by what he calls the gumbo of music, playing all styles and in many different settings. Throughout his career he has played alongside groups...
Bill Reeves saw a production of Peter Pan as a kid and was fascinated with how the sets changed and how the actors could fly. While majoring in technical theater in college Bill had a summer job at a local casino resort and started working on the traveling shows. This led to working on his first...
Ernie Watts is the answer to the question - who was playing the “mystery horn” on Frank Zappa’s The Grand Wazoo album? A veteran studio musician and bandleader, Ernie has had thousands of career highlights such as playing in the Tonight Show band and recording with Marvin Gaye, Kenny Burrell,...
Lance “KC” Jackson was always the one to fix the instruments in the band growing up. He learned early on the importance of learning a little bit of everything and to continue to educate himself on new programs and gear over the years. This approach to his career led to an impressive list of artists...
Sherry Klein grew up outside of New York City during the height of the folk scene. She loved to go to Greenwich Village and has amazing stories of meeting Joni Mitchell and going to Woodstock during that time. While attending college she was introduced to sound and recording, and she was hooked....
Dan Slick grew up in Johnstown, PA playing the family’s upright piano but soon switched his focus to the organ. He began his career in the music industry working at Fulton Piano and Organ and has since worked with several other companies over the years including Baldwin and Technics. In 1984 he and...
EveAnna Manley grew up around music and played several instruments. Attending college she discovered that she preferred the more mathematical side of music theory after she was introduced to electronics and developed an interest in audio. Hearing Bill Graham speak in one of her classes inspired her...
Lana Negrete grew up in her father’s music store and always had a passion for music and the arts, but she wasn’t sure if music retail was for her. Everything changed when she became a mom and saw the need for more robust school music programs. She wanted to ensure that all kids were given the same...
András Simonyi grew up listening to traditional Yiddish and Hungarian folk music, but his true love was rock and roll music. This became a lifeline for him growing up behind the iron curtain and helped him feel less isolated. Mr. Simonyi became an economist and later an ambassador for Hungry which...