Woodwinds
Kenneth Glore began working for Bach in the saxophone department before working for Linton on oboes and then off to Armstrong flutes that was later bought by Selmer. He has been with Conn-Selmer ever since. In all, he has been in the industry for over 50 years and has enjoyed his work in the...
Jonathan Montel has worked on the bench in the factory at Selmer in Elkhart for over 40 years! He has worked in many positions during his career with a special concentration on oboes, clarinets and bassoons. He has also seen many changes to the process of instrument making, including the first...
Gary Shanholt began working on the bench at Selmer in Elkhart on Main Street back in the 1970s. He continued to work for the company after it merged with Conn, becoming Conn-Selmer. Gary began working on saxophones and later in the cleaning room before finding his niche within the company in the...
Bernice Pelmear began working in the Selmer factory in Elkhart, Indiana in 1973. She was trained by veteran co-workers, a tradition she carried on as a trainer years later. Her work focused on assembling oboes and bassoons and continued on after the merge with Conn.
Nick Rail is the president and founder of the retail string of stores in Southern California with his namesake that began in 1986. Nick began his career as a band instrument repairman for La Grandeur Music in 1974. After becoming active in the repair side of the business, Nick decided to open his...
Steven Wasser grew up in a very musical family and played reed instruments as a child but really dreamed of owning his own business. After graduating from Harvard Business School, Steven worked in several industries before having the chance to combine his interests of business and his passion for...
James Glanville was part of the team that relocated the Conn instrument manufacturing operations from Elkhart, IN to Nogales, Mexico, back in 1972. The result was a heavy blow to Elkhart, which had once been the Band Instrument Capital of the World. However, it was a needed move in order to keep...
Bob Malone is one of the leading experts of band and orchestra instruments in the United States who is currently working as Director of the Ateliers in Los Angeles for Yamaha Corporation of America. Bob became one of the most noted band instrument repairmen in Southern California, where he opened a...
Paul Shelden was a Professor Emeritus in Music for Brooklyn College and both studied and taught music at Juilliard, beginning on clarinet and saxophone, but branching into electronic music on which he focused his doctorate. While teaching, Paul was introduced to the idea of improving on the sound...
Haruhiko Ikebe developed a novel way of approaching music retailing, creating Super Pro Shops that stock vintage and new instruments along with accessories and knowledgeable sales staff for a very specific item. In other words, Mr. Ikebe created a saxophone store, a guitar store, a flute store and...