Pianos
Peter Sullivan grew up in a musical home with both his mother and father playing piano. Peter played piano, ukulele, as well as double bass as a youngster and became passionate about playing and teaching music. He developed into a well-respected studio musician and landed the job of Music Director...
Max Cooke was an Australian classically trained pianist and professor who wrote a series of method books to assist his students. He began teaching piano students at the University of Melbourne in 1952. Along the way, he developed a teaching style based on his teachers and ideas he gathered about...
Abel Sanchez is the noted restoration expert for such piano brands as Steinway and Chickering. Abel was born and raised in northern Mexico on the cattle ranch along with seven brothers. By the late 1950s, he moved to San Diego where he began working for two music stores as a piano technician. Some...
Spooner Oldham was a studio musician down in Muscle Shoals, Alabama before becoming a noted songwriter. Spooner's keyboard skills can be heard on such classic records as "You'd Better Move On" and several songs with Aretha Franklin including the Wurlitzer introduction on "Never Loved a Man the Way...
Robert Strait is proud of the music retail traditions that his father developed when their family owned store was first established back in 1967. Since that time, his father, Dan, along with his brother, David, expanded the store to offer a complete line of musical instruments as well as lessons...
David Strait is one of two sons of original Strait Music Company owner and founder, Dan Strait. During his interview David talked about growing up working with their father in a true family business. David has been very successful as the head of the piano department for over 40 years and expanded...
Glenn Treibitz purchased Hollywood Piano from the original owners which was established in 1928. As the “go to” piano store for movies and television, Hollywood Piano has provided pianos to the likes of Charlie Chaplin, Frank Sinatra, the set of the television hit Frasier, and Casablanca. Hollywood...
Chris Syllaba grew up in Washington D.C. and found music throughout the city during his childhood years. He soon found a position within Jordan Kitt’s Music store in 1984 and rose through the ranks to his current position as the President and CEO. During his Oral History interview at the 2017 NAMM...
Paul Shaffer served as the band leader and musical director for David Letterman's late-night television program from 1982 until David retired in 2015. Along the way, hundreds of noted musicians sat in with the program's house band allowing Paul to play alongside many of his friends and heroes. ...
Camille Scheidemann is the current owner of Frank and Camille’s Piano Store on Long Island, New York. For her, it all started when Dennis Awe, the young, amazingly talented organist/store owner told Camille’s father he would teach her to play if they purchased the Lowrey Heritage organ. That...