Reeds
Mark Kortschot is a Professor of Engineering at the University of Toronto who was approached by Guy Légère with an interesting idea in 1997. Guy wanted to make a synthetic reed for the clarinet from oriented polymers, but needed some help obtaining and working with these high-tech materials. Mark...
Emmanuel Tonnelier is the General Manager for Vandoren Paris, the world famous reed maker based in France. He works closely with Bernard Van Doren, who is the grandson of the founder. Emmanuel has played a vital role in the expansion of markets as well as bringing the company into the Internet age...
Bernard Van Doren is the grandson of the founder of Vandoren Paris, the world famous reed maker. His grandfather, Eugene, formed the company in 1905 based on his technique of making high quality reeds. His father, Robert, expanded the company to include other products and introduced the renowned...
Greg Grieme was a banker when he met Bill Gray who asked for some support. Bill explained his idea to create a company that would invest in and support music companies. Together they formed BGE Financial Corp, which over time helped several music industry companies. Along with Michael Skinner, Bill...
Gary Winder has been active in music sales for over 30 years. Gary worked with G. Leblanc and Coda Music Technologies before he moved on in 1997 to join Yamaha, finally serving as Director for National Sales. While with Yamaha, Gary created strong working processes with his team that not only...
Mimi Piper was looking for a part time job after raising her three boys when a neighbor told her of an opening at Rico Reeds in Los Angeles. She joined the company as an assistant in 1974 and remained with the company until it was sold in 2005. During her career with the company she worked...
Wendal Jones began playing double reed instruments as a child in grade school. He switched to saxophone for a time to play in a number of dance bands in the Colorado area. After college, where he studied music, Wendal became a band director. While working in Arizona, he started to make his own...
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...
Amy Mao teamed with Dr. Paul Shelden in 2004 to create a new line of band instruments. With the growing technology available in China, Amy and Paul set out to produce the finest musical instrument possible within the setting of a manufacturing factory. With an eye for detail, Amy produced the...
Jean Francois Rico had an early interest in news photography, but following his grandmother’s passing, Jean began working at the company his grandfather had established, Rico Reeds. The company dominated the reed industry for many decades with a powerful sales force around the world and a steady...