Organs
Lee Donais may be the only industry member who played piano (as part of the Navy Band) for three United States Presidents: Johnson, Nixon and Ford. After his career with the Navy Band, Lee was hired by Gordon Keller to help run His string of piano stores on the east coast. Lee moved to Florida...
Dr. Lonnie Smith was among the well respected organists who endeared himself within the music products industry as a master of the Hammond B3, who often demonstrated his skills for fellow musicians. He was a regular performer at the NAMM Shows since the 1960s. Dr. Lonnie was born in Lackawanna, New...
Hector Olivera was born in Argentina where he studied organ with his father, a noted church organist. In 1965 Hector studied at Julliard School of Music and soon after that began providing concerts within the music industry to demonstrate the latest electronic development for organ as well as...
Mike Bates is the senior member of the Institutional Solutions Group in the Keyboard Division of Yamaha Corporation of America. Over the last 28 years with the company, Mike’s career has included nine years as the general manager of the Music Education Division. In his long career with Yamaha, he...
William Dollarhide was the president and co-owner, along with his wife Margaret, of Dollarhide’s Music Center in Pensacola, Florida. He grew up in a very musical family, with his mother a pianist and teacher and his father a band director. His grandfather was also a band director, so Bill was very...
Betty Lee co-founded Tom Lee Music in Hong Kong with her husband in the early 1950s. In the beginning, Thomas Lee kept his full time work as an English secretary at a textile company while Betty Lee looked after the day to day administration of the small trading company which was to become Tom Lee...
Frank Lee’s parents established Tom Lee Music Company in Hong Kong to bring quality musical instruments to their customers. As President of the company, Frank has focused on those original goals and has followed his parents lead to serve their customers. Having been brought up in the business,...
Kenny Lee began playing music in grade school and has been passionate about it ever since those early years. When he heard from a friend about a job at Tom Lee Music Company in Hong Kong, Kenny jumped at the chance. In the early part of his career, Kenny worked in nearly every part of the store...
Lyle Bird grew up in a musical family with his mother playing the piano daily. As a teenager he played trumpet in several swing bands during the big band era including with such leaders as Henry Busse. He played in a band during his navy service during World War II and again played in several small...
David Estey is related to the Estey's who established the Vermont-based Estey Organ Company in 1846 as well as the Estey Piano factory in New York. Pianos must be in his blood as David became a piano technician before opening his own store in New Jersey. Along the way he decided to create a line of...