Yamaha DX7
Akio Hiyoshi was on the engineering team at Yamaha in 1959 that designed the Electone Organ, which brought the small piano manufacturer into the electronic musical instrument market, where they would become dominant for decades. The team also worked on the Clavinova, the CS 80 (Yamaha's last...
Hirokazu Kato took part in the innovative engineering team at Yamaha in Japan who utilized FM Synthesis to create an electronic musical instrument, first the TRX prototype and then the revolutionary DX7. Kato-san began his career with Yamaha in 1965 when he helped design the company's first...
Yoshi Kobayashi began working for Yamaha Corporation of America in 1958. In the early days of his career he was tasked with supervising the import and export of the motorcycle division. As the musical instrument side of the company grew and expanded into the United States, Yoshi-san was placed in...
Craig Yarbrough worked alongside his brother Tony and sister Phyllis (his younger sister joined them later) in running the music store they established in Memphis to serve the working musician. The all-in-the-family store soon developed a special role in the industry, which focused on audio and...
Tony Yarbrough’s love of music led to buying a music store in Memphis that was closing and renaming it Yarbrough Music, which soon became a hub for musicians in and around town. He took an interest in audio and pro audio installations and created a division of the store called Memphis Audio. ...
Ed Cornett was hired by Yamaha to head the team in charge of creating the DX7. His story of the long hours, creative and innovative team members and the support of the company uncover the key elements that came together to create one of the most successful musical instruments of its time. Ed grew...
AR Rahman can be thought of as the Quincy Jones of Indian Music! His love and passion for music began when he was exposed to electronic keyboards thanks to his father. He was proud to be among the first in India to purchase many early synthesizers including the Yamaha DX-7. As he grew as an...
Mike Lang was a well-respected keyboardist who can be heard on over 2,000 movie scores and countless studio recordings over his long and successful career. He worked with composers such as John Williams, Henry Mancini and Jerry Goldsmith to jazz and pop performers such as Ella Fitzgerald and Frank...
Avery Burdette, the product manager for Yamaha Corporation of America, began his long love of music pushing down the pedals of his mother's organ as a small child while his mother played. Avery played trombone in school bands before forming a Southern-Rock style group in high school. He also worked...
Richard O’Donnell was vice president of Yamaha Corporation of America at a very historic time in the company’s growth and development, the 1970s. Richard worked on several projects including managing the operations for the Everett Piano Plant in Michigan, which Yamaha purchased to expand its piano...