Women in the Music Industry
Dorothy Dunkley co-founded Dunkley Music Stores in Boise, Idaho, with her husband Bill. She took over the store while Bill was on the road selling pianos door to door in the early years of the store. The Dunkley’s were widely known in the industry as great advocates of music making. Along with a...
Kitty Wells has been crowned the First Lady of Country Music for her pioneering style and impressive string of hit recordings beginning in the 1940s and continuing into the mid 1960s. For most of her life, she had also been a regular on the tour schedule along with her husband, Johnny Wright. Ms....
Craigie Zildjian has accomplished what no other woman has done in her company’s over 380-year history; she has become president of the Zildjian Cymbal Company. She has also been a pioneer in industry-related organizations where few other women have been. Following in her father’s footsteps (Armand...
Deborah Zildjian proudly recalled stories of her father and her grandfather, two of the most successful leaders of her family’s 380 plus years as cymbal makers. Deborah has a compelling way of recounting her family’s history such as her memories of her grandmother and grandfather. Deborah serves as...
Barbara La Mair is the niece of the late industry icon Louis La Mair. During her interview, she provided warm and insightful background into the personal life of this one-time NAMM President. Barbara and her friends just happened to be visiting the NAMM Foundation’s Museum of Making Music at the...
Ellen Cavanaugh brought her innovative business ideas and skillful communication and marketing concepts to expand the historic brands that make up the Super-Sensitive Musical String Company. Formed in the 1930s and established on the Red Label line of strings, Super-Sensitive was purchased by Ellen...
Mildred Kirschner was simply known as Millie around the NAMM headquarters office where she was hired in 1946. The Chicago based association was being run by Mr. Mills when a heart condition forced him to retire. A young William Gard became the next leader of NAMM who has since become a legend in...
Susan M. Davis has fond memories of Les Paul and Mary Ford coming over to her house for dinner when she was a little girl. Her father was Gibson Guitar president Ted McCarty who signed Les Paul to a company contract and who introduced a line of electric guitars with Les Paul’s name on it. Susan...
Phyllis Fender was married to Leo Fender, the great pioneer of the solid body electric guitar. After reading several publications on his life’s work, it was a refreshing treat to hear about the man behind the workbench when Mrs. Fender sat down for her NAMM Oral History interview in 2003. She...
Monica Burdex grew up enjoying music of many styles and having a real interest in research and library science. She combined her passions becoming the music librarian for California State University at Northridge. During her long career she also worked tirelessly to help re-establish the Southern...