Oral History - all
George Cables was classically trained on the piano having studied at the High School of Performing Arts in Manhattan and at Mannes College. During his training he never considered a life in jazz but that all changed once he had the opportunity to performer with the likes of Art Blakey and Freddie... more
Cecil McBee studied clarinet in elementary school and was inspired by the encouragement of his band director. He knew from that young age that he wanted a career in music. When he was a teenager he switched to bass and began playing at local clubs and parties. His incredible career includes live... more
Dave Nicholas was just four years old when he began playing a piano that was left in their new house when they moved in the 1930s. The previous owner had purchased the piano on monthly payments and Dave’s father decided to take over the payments while arranging lessons for young Dave. He later... more
Sebastian Mariné was encouraged to pursue music by his parents. The roots of his passion for music go back to when he was a small child singing Gregorian Chants in his family’s church in Spain. Music has always been a spiritual expression for him, something he conveys to his students at the... more
Suzi Quatro was six years old when she saw Elvis Presley perform on the Ed Sullivan Show and had what she calls her “lightbulb moment,” knowing that was what she was going to do with her life. She started playing bass at 14 when her sisters formed an all-female garage band called The Pleasure... more
Birth Date: July 14, 1954
Deceased Date: February 27, 2022
Harry Gillum was interviewed for the NAMM Oral History program during the Stay-At-Home Orders for Covid-19 in June 2020. His interview was recorded on Zoom and captured his remarkable career in music retail and his contributions to our industry. Harry was just 16 years old in 1971 when he began... more
Manel Punti is the Managing Director of Music Distribution, a wholesale business in Spain that his father established in the 1960s. Manel grew up in the music industry as well as a musical family. His father played the piano and encouraged his children (and later his grandchildren) to play an... more
Antoni Punti and Gabriel teamed up with Keith Mardak in 1972 to form Hal Leonard Spain. The company’s success was fueled by the home organ boom, which was an important milestone of growth for the music industry in Spain. Years before, Antoni was the first person to establish Hammond Organ Studios... more
Juan Grecos is the president of Amigos de la Guitarra de Valencia and has served in that position since 2004. The organization is dedicated to showcasing the Spanish classical guitar and more recently flamenco guitar and other related instruments of Spain by presenting concerts at a number of... more
Yuji Tanaka is a Senior Executive Officer for Roland Corporation who has enjoyed a successful career in the music products industry. Yuji provided detail about how and why he came to work in the industry during his NAMM interview. He spoke about the innovations he has witnessed throughout the years... more
Birth Date: January 28, 1930
Deceased Date: October 10, 2021
Luis de Pablo was a Spanish classical composer who provided works for symphonies, chamber orchestras, operas, choir and film over his long and successful career. He was born in Bilbao, Spain, and by age twelve was composing his own pieces. Among his influential teachers was the German composer Max... more
Gabriel Lara was asked to create a series of music books with the Hal Leonard company for the Spain market beginning in 1972. Along with his business partner, Antoni Punti, Gabriel worked with Keith Mardak to form Hal Leonard Spain. During a trip to Milwaukee, Gabriel sat in Keith’s office and they... more
José Vinhas is the founder of Música.com, a retail store in the heart of Coimbra, Portugal. Coimbra is the third largest city in Portugal and most known for its university for which the store is located nearby. José began working for the music store Teclado where he not only learned the business... more
Consuelo Diez was strongly encouraged by her piano teachers growing up. One in particular suggested she focus on composition, which altered her career. As a composer, Consuelo wrote works for piano and full orchestras as well as electronic musical instruments. During her 2020 NAMM Oral History... more
José Nogueira was eight years old when his parents started a music business in Porto, Portugal. He took accordion lessons as a child as well as guitar and piano. In 1974, a group of friends formed a rock band combining elements of R&B and jazz, but they already had a piano player so one of José... more
Agostinho Rodrigues, known by his nickname Tico, is the owner of Porto Guitarra which is located in the center of Porto, Portugal. Even though his education focused on being a mechanical engineer, he grew up playing and admiring the guitar. In fact, he was given his first guitar from an uncle when... more
Takashi Yamazaki developed a passion for music at an early age. He played guitar and piano and was encouraged by music teachers, which became an inspiration for him in starting his chain of 50 music schools in Japan. In addition, Yamazaki-San opened a music retail store, which grew into five... more
DJ Ralph M still remembers a Halloween party he attended in 1982, where he was first introduced to hip-hop and break dancing. He was fascinated by the turntable and his dream was to become a Mixmaster on KDAY, a famous Los Angeles radio station. When he was thirteen, he received that opportunity... more
DJ Babu enjoys his journey teaching the artform of turntablism, a term he is credited for coining. Since buying his first set of mismatched turntables when he was seventeen, Babu has accomplished a lot, including wining the ITF World Team DJ battle title, producing one of the most popular battle... more
This video is of our annual NAMM Tribute, created in honor of our members and music industry friends who passed away in 2003. All moving images within this video indicate those who have been interviewed as part of the NAMM Oral History program. Larger segments of their interviews are posted here on... more