OH Taxonomy
Juan Croucier toured the world as a rock and roll star as an original member of Ratt! He began performing bass in Hollywood in 1973, which lead to friendships that would later become the foundation for Ratt. He wrote several hits for the band including "Lack of Communication" and "You're in Love."...
Jon Bormann attended his first AES Show in 1973. Just two years later, at the age of 25, he formed his own pro audio dealership, AVC Systems. Soon Jon began designing and building studios while seeking to provide the best sound system possible. In many cases this meant creating gear specific to...
Billy J. Kramer took part in the British Invasion, coming to America and performing a number of his hit songs on the Ed Sullivan Show, just like four of his friends from Liverpool did a few months earlier. In fact, several of the songs he performed were written by Paul and John, who wanted to write...
Ralph-Joerg Wezorke became active in the pro lighting industry in 1975. He is the founder of pro-lighting company Lightpower. The company was formed in 1978 in Paderborn, Germany and soon became an important rental house for touring acts as well as stage plays and smaller rock and roll performances...
Honoring Craig Smith for his invaluable service in assisting the NAMM Resource Center in obtaining fantastic interview contributions to the NAMM Oral History Program. This video contains some of the highlight interviews that Craig helped us gather over the years. Thank you Craig!
Kevin Mitchell wrote the MMR cover story in 2009 dedicated to the NAMM Oral History program and has been a strong advocate and supporter ever since! His background in music (he played the piano as a child and would graduate from UMKC’s Conservatory of Music) and his love of journalism (he feels his...
Rich Galassini was nineteen years old when he first visited Cunningham Pianos as a customer with his parents. A few years later, in 1987, when he was just 23, Rich began working at the store. After working closely with the family that owned the business, Rich was able to purchase the company and...
Karl Winkler began playing the viola in the fourth grade and got accepted into the local youth orchestra two years later. His first job in the music industry was working for Howard Beaver at Beaver's Band Box in Arizona while in college. He later took over the keyboard and recording department of...
Barry "Foz" Fasman wrote over 30 songs for the NBC television series FAME, which resulted in the sale of over 4 million records and opened the doors to several other successful projects. As an arranger and conductor, Foz worked on several top selling recordings including Melissa Manchester's “Don’t...
Perry Capalbo spent many years working with his dad, Nate, at the family music store, Downey Music. Downey Music was opened by Nate Capalbo when he left La Habra Music, which was founded by his brother, Toby Capalbo, who was interviewed by the NAMM Oral History program in 2010. Perry and his...