Yamaha Corporation of America
Wolfgang Haffner grew up in Germany and began playing drums at a young age. He gravitated towards jazz and one of his first recordings was with Al Cohn in 1987. He went on to record with the likes of Dominic Miller, Metro, Eddie Daniels, and Peter Bolte. Wolfgang was interviewed for the NAMM Oral...
Michael Bland was playing drums for top acts while still in high school. Just two years out of school, in 1989, Michael began playing for Prince, a gig that lasted seven years. Michael was on drums for such Prince albums as Crystal Ball, Emancipation, and Chaos and Disorder. He also worked with...
Dave Weckl was proudly inducted into the Modern Drummer Magazine's Hall of Fame in 2000. The award was extra meaningful to Dave given the list of previous winner who inspired his playing when he was a kid. Dave grew up in Missouri and studied Jazz in Connecticut before moving to New York for his...
Gerry Brown went to school with Stanley Clarke, who always encouraged Gerry to follow his passion for music. Years later the two old friends recorded an album together called School Days! Gerry went on to perform and record with Stevie Wonder for nearly 20 years and other artists such as Chick...
Akira Jimbo, a drummer out of Japan, has been playing drums since he was 17. Akira has released over 10 solo albums throughout his career and has demonstrated a passion for education through his instructional videos. In his 2008 interview, Akira talks about his unique playing style and how others...
Tommy Aldridge doesn't mind being compared to the wild Muppet named “Animal." As Tommy puts it, both have crazy hair and crazy drum styles! Tommy's playing career has included gigs with Ozzy Osbourne, Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy, and Black Oak Arkansas. Being a fan of jazz, Tommy used Louis Bellson's...
Tony Verderosa was inspired by Bill Bruford's use of electronic percussion units to write new music in real-time. After graduating from the Crane School of Music, Tony began working with a number of innovative drum products. He debuted the DTS70 Triggering Module for Yamaha and sought new ways to...
Russ Miller, drummer on more than 400 albums including Tina Turner, Hilary Duff, and Andrea Bocelli, has always had a passion for music. During his 2008 interview for the Oral History Project, Russ discusses how important it is to connect to the music and his 3 important rules for keeping his...
Rick Young has spent over 20 years with Yamaha making several important contributions to the Pro Audio Division and Band Instrument Division. Rick has also played a vital role in the Music Achievement Council providing his background and passion for music to enhance successful programs and...
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...