Music Manufacturing
Jack Linton followed in the footsteps of his father who formed the famed Linton oboes brand of musical instruments. The instruments have been handcrafted in Elkhart, Indiana, since the 1930s. The company gained a well-respected reputation for their professional series, which have been played by the...
Rollie Bunn worked at Taylor Music in Aberdeen, South Dakota, when he was growing up and in fact returned to the store to work full time after attending Northern State Teacher’s College. During his college years he was a part time band director, which he enjoyed, before returning to Taylor. Ten...
Larry Moody began his career in the music industry as a retailer working for Ziggy Coyle in Ohio. The store was owned by Ziggy, a past president of the NAMM Board of Directors, and Russell Hill. The retail experience was helpful to Larry, who was hired by Yamaha and later by the Gemeinhart Flute...
Gilberto Serna is the keeper of the Deagan flame! The mighty vibraphone company once produced professional level instruments used by symphonic and popular musicians alike. Shortly after the company’s 100th anniversary it was sold, it’s tools moved out of its original building and many of the...
Tedd Waggoner began his career in the music industry in 1969 and soon joined the Selmer team. Tedd worked in most of the positions for the company but found his greatest satisfaction when he began working in the Vincent Bach division of Selmer. As a trumpeter, Tedd fit right in and soon learned...
Keith Wilson helped design and manufacture the famed SM57 and SM58 microphones for Shure back in the early 1960s. As an engineer, Keith later came up with the idea of creating a system for vocalists, with mixer, amplifier and a microphone that could cover the range of the human voice. The system...
Dan Smith was inducted into Fender’s Hall of Fame for good reason. Dan designed the re-launching of the famous guitar company after it was sold by CBS. Dan’s vision was to bring the product back to the early concepts that originally made the Fender name famous. His success led to a long career with...
Stephen Stern was born a wood craftsman. In fact, growing up his two passions became building furniture and playing the guitar. When he had an opportunity to put both together in the early 1980s, he jumped at the chance and went to work for Charvel Guitars. After returning to cabinet making he saw...
Abigail Ybarra was hired to work in the Fender factory back in 1956; just years after the famous electric guitar company released the Stratocaster. She conveyed in her interviews that the early years of the company were very exciting and that she and the rest of the factory workers were very proud...
George Koregelos made a series of well-respected flutes under his name in the 1970s that was but one of his career highlights in the music products industry. After studying instrument repair at the CG Conn Company in Elkhart, Indiana, George began designing his own instruments with a focus on the...