OH Taxonomy
Bernie Capicchiano was coached from the Accounting world to manage a new music retail store for the Brash Group in Australia in 1973.His long career in the industry includes a strong relationship with the Hammond-Suzuki Company as well as Johannus Organs, Schimmel, Hailun and Bernstein Pianos....
Elizabeth Fernando grew up in her parent’s retail music store. By the age of ten she ordered special strings customers were asking for that her parents did not carry and sold them within the store as her side business. This clever approach to customer service was the beginning of her successful...
Mathias von Heydekampf enjoys the pro audio side of the music industry. He was working part time in his father’s car hifi company when he discovered his passion for the pro Audio business.He worked for Bose were he felt he received a great education in Marketing. After having worked many years as...
Stu Hamm attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he credits a good deal of his understanding for creating his own style as a bassist. During that time Stu met several musicians who were key to his early career including Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. His impact on the bass has been...
Jimmy Vivino wanted to be a blues guitarist when he first heard “Foxy Lady” by Jimi Hendrix! He has since been a successful musician both on stage and in the studios. He and his brother played the Crown Lounge in New Jersey (Jimmy on B-3) and backed up all the groups that came to club, such as the...
Thomas Austin was a key part of the Sherman Clay team for over 40 years! The store chain focused on pianos; however, Thomas recalls the home organ boom in the 1970s as the company was a Hammond Organ dealer. The company was formed in San Francisco in 1870 and grew to be the biggest (for a time)...
Tess Taylor is the president of the National Association of Record Industry Professionals (NARIP), which is one of the largest music business networks in the world. Tess formed the association in 1998 to bring the industry together and to serve educational and professional needs around the world...
Honoring Jim Funada 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 Jim helped us gather over the years. Thanks Jim!
Kurt Zentmaier fondly recalls the stories his father told him on how the family music store was established back in 1959. Rondo Music’s first location was right outside of New York City and soon developed a strong business known for its customer service. The full line store gained a reputation...
Ellis Seal was working for an aerospace company, working long hours and never having the time to spend with his family or his hobby of guitar building. In 1998 he opened his own company and said goodbye to his aerospace career to focus on his dream. Ellis took an interest in composite structures...