OH Taxonomy
Howard Durbin was hired by RCA following World War II and worked within the engineering department on improving the phonograph record. He was assigned to the team that addressed unbreakable 78s and later on the team that developed the 45 record and still later the Red Seal LP. He attended the...
Dave Weiderman was raised in a family with a great love of music. Dave’s father owned a music store in Chicago, where Dave was able to meet some of the great musicians of the time. His early years as a player were influenced by watching Buddy Rich live and wanting to make music of his own. His...
Gene Joly is a well respected leader within the industry who has mentored many young employees who have developed within their own careers as well as helping grow the industry! After performing on the road for several years, Gene was offered a job in the music store he often hung out at, EU...
Tom Bedell began giving guitar lessons in his home town of Spirit Lake, Iowa. Just a few months later, when Tom was 14 years old, he imported guitars with his name on the headstock from Japan. The year was 1963. Tom continued to make guitars and played in local bands, growing his wholesale...
Bill Robinson began working in the music industry when he was in his 20s. His high school friend opened a music store after graduation and hired Bill to work for the store where he later became a partner. When the store closed some years later, Bill became an independent rep for several music...
Richie Pidanick was the Vice President of Culture and Values at Guitar Center. It was Richie’s job to train the company’s employees on the philosophy of what is most important to the corporate culture, namely customer service. Richie knew the culture and Guitar Center’s values as he lived them...
Larry Breedlove is the founder of Breedlove Guitars, although his brother Kim runs the company now. Larry fell in love shortly after opening the Oregon-based guitar company and moved to his native San Diego to be close to his sweetheart. It was in San Diego that Larry reconnected with his dear...
Sam Radding is the founder the famed American Musical Instrument Manufacturing Company, which was the training ground for several future iconic luthiers including Bob Taylor, Kurt Listug and Greg Deering! Sam’s brother opened a small retail store in San Diego in the mid 1960s and soon Sam had the...
Tim Luranc grew up in San Diego with his father, an educator, playing music in the house all of the time. His dad wanted to play a guitar with some of the popular music of the day, such as folk music. His dad didn't play the guitar as much as he had hoped but young Tim took a liking to the...
Andy Powers began working with wood as a kid and soon realized he had a strong interest in building. With the guidance of his father and the use of his tools, Andy built a guitar and loved it! He studied the art of guitar building and soon designed his own style of guitar. With each completed...