Instrument Repair Technician
David Dawkes is proud of his family's connection with the music industry. It was his grandfather who formed Dawkes Music. After losing hearing in one ear from playing in a band, his grandfather took to repairing instruments in his garage. This is where their family business began. From simple...
Greg Weast owned and operated Columbia River Music, a retail store in downtown The Dalles, out in Wasco County, Oregon. The location, 410 E 2nd Street, had its own musical history, having housed a series of music stores since the 1930s, including Cook Music, Fulton Music, Raben’s Records and Roth...
Ken Dapron grew up in a very musical family. His parents were members of the pop singing group called The Merry Macs. Music was all around him as a child. Ken played saxophone and drums in school and fell in love with the guitar. He played in many bands throughout his school years with dreams...
Walter Hutcherson began repairing guitars in the 1950s and in fact was one of the first repairmen to work on Fender Instruments. He opened Walters Music Exchange in Austin, Texas, and soon gained a reputation for reliable repair with special care and attention to detail (such as removing the cat...
John Kagerer is known as the Horn Doctor up in Anchorage, Alaska. With a very interesting background that includes welding and watch repair, John combined his skills to become one of the sought-after band instrument repair technicians in the state. After attending the Allied School, its founder,...
Carl Thacker was a teenager when he began repairing band instruments. In fact he was a Charter Member of NAPBIRT and attended the first annual convention before he was 20 years old. After a long career as the instrument repair technician for Illinois State Universally, Carl devoted himself full...
Randy Wood is the president of The Music Shoppe in Normal, Illinois. The store specializes in band instrument repairs and strong customer service. The store goes back to the days when a former college band director, John Noonan opened a small retail and repair store. In 1961, Randy's father, Tom...
Joe Butkevicius became a flute specialist as an instrument repairman. Over the years Joe worked in music retail, for Pearl Flutes and now is employed by KHS. Joe has also been very active with NAPBIRT, the National Association of Professional Band Instrument Repair Technicians. In addition to its...
Julie Jurgenson is among the pioneering women in the band instrument repair side of the music industry. She was trained at Red Wing and worked for a couple of shops before opening her own in Rochester, Minnesota. All along she wanted to service a large number of instruments and found it possible...
David Kessler grew up in his father’s band instrument repair shop. David established the store’s Internet site and has played a key role in the connection the store has with each of their customers. What is clear to anyone who sees David in action, talking with customers, is that he is passionate...