Pianos
Brenda Dillon has played a vital role in the development and acceptance of group piano lessons based on the concept of recreational music making. As a strong advocate of RMM, Brenda has promoted the many benefits to students and to teachers. Brought up on the piano and having studied music in...
Carl Henderson opened his first piano store in Covington, KY in 1963, after nearly 20 years in the finance business. In the early days he struggled to increase his inventory but ensured that he always allowed a budget for advertising. Over the years his newspaper and TV ads have not only helped...
Russell Lindquist joined his uncle’s piano store in Iowa in his early 20s, and soon discovered his love of the business. He especially loved selling. Russell opened a Hammond Organ dealership in Houston, Texas, during the boom of the B-3 and the home organ era. Over the years he created several...
Bruce Stevens has served as President of Steinway and Sons longer than any non-family member in the company’s more than 150 year history. Bruce has presided over several important programs at Steinway and Sons, including the launch of the Boston and Essex brand pianos. His association with the...
Ron Sadler’s great grandfather settled in Aurora, Illinois, outside of Chicago, to establish Sadler Piano. Over the next 123 years, the company has faced some unique times and made an impact on the music industry. During the Great Depression, Ron’s grandfather discontinued manufacturing pianos to...
Wesley Schaum’s father wrote and arranged music with the hope of serving school band programs in a meaningful way. He wrote several important scores including the noted Schaum Piano Method Books before joining forces with his son Wesley in 1959. Together, father and son formed Schaum Publishing Inc...
Peter Heid enjoyed his career playing with many of the dance bands of the 1930s and 1940s in his hometown of Appleton, Wisconsin. After the war, he used his love of music to open a small store, Heid Music, in the heart of downtown Appleton. The store continued to grow over the years as Peter found...
LaRoy Edwards was the celebrated piano technician who began his long association with Yamaha back in 1961, the year before the company officially entered the United States market. Along the way he helped create the bond assurance program for retailers to track customer satisfaction, and the Little...
Dennis James recalls with a smile the day he visited Colton Piano as a teenager. He later worked for Colton founder, Vern Schaffer, getting the experience and training for the career he had dreamed of--opening his own piano and organ retail store. That dream was realized in northern San Diego...
Tom Kowalczyk served a long post as the artist relations director at Kurzweil Music. Tom had begun his career in music retail in the 1970s and became an expert on electronic keyboards as a salesman and musician. Ray Kurzweil, the company founder and instrument innovator, hired Tom to assist with...