Music Manufacturing
John McLaren Jr. grew up in the music business as his father, John McLaren Sr., served as a strong leader for CBS Musical Instruments, which owned such brands as Steinway pianos and Fender guitars. His father was also the Senior Vice President for Yamaha Corporation. John Sr.'s involvement in...
David McLaren worked closely with his father, John McLaren Sr., at BBE Sound in Southern California, which purchased G&L Guitars. David fell in love with the G&L story and products, and today serves as President & CEO. His main focus is to continue the legacy of the two founders, George...
Mike “Monte” Montefusco played both trumpet and piano as a kid before playing bass guitar professionally for several years. Like many touring musicians, Monte worked in a local music store while off the road, which ignited his passion for the music products industry. Beginning in 1996, Monte joined...
Chris Wellons was playing percussion in grade school, and about the same time, he took an interest in wood working. He was hired as a cabinet builder while still in school and continued in the field until he was made aware of a job at Taylor Guitars in 1992. Chris was the 34th employee and was...
Tim O’Brien joined the Taylor Guitar team in the marketing department back in 2013. At the time, the digital world was changing with the rise of smart phones and social media. Tim assembled a team that took a fresh approach to marketing and helped the company make great use of their own unique and...
Charlie Redden played guitar in bands when he was in school and always has had a passion for playing. After working for Amazon in the early days of that company's history, back when they only sold books and CDs, Charlie earned a degree in economics at San Diego State University and soon found an...
Matt Guzzetta loves to design things. He designed a motorcycle that won a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for a coast to coast ride on only one tank of gas. As it turned out, one of his car shops was next door to the American Dream guitar shop where Bob Taylor and Greg Deering (among...
Paul Baronnat started singing in choirs beginning at the age of eight. As a singer of the permanent choir of the Paris Philharmonic Orchestra, he was approached by RCA to work for its classical catalog. In 1985, after 15 years at RCA, Paul started to work for the woodwind instrument maker Buffet...
Jacques Gaudet was president of the famous French brass instruments production company, Antoine Courtois. Since 1789, the name Courtois has been synonymous with fine brass instruments. In 1917, Jacques' grandfather, Emanuel Gaudet, was a music publisher who acquired the company. When Jacques’...
Dr. Susanne Schnitzer shares her memories growing up in the Kirschnek family. Grandfather Franz Krischnek, founder of Kirschnek String Instruments, was a businessman with worldwide connections (many of them to the United States) while his daughter Ilse Fischer managed the rest. She took the...