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December 15, 2010
Volume 27, No. 12
Read it Here First!
Taylor-Made
For Europe
B y B r i a n B e rk
Taylor is opening up
shop in the land of the
Van Gogh Museum and
the Anne Frank House.
Come Jan. 1, Taylor
Guitars will sell its guitars directly to retailers
in Europe. This marks
the end of a three-year
agreement between
Taylor and Fender that
allowed the latter to
distribute the former’s
products abroad. Taylor will open a prominent
European headquarters near Amsterdam to support its efforts. Why make the changes? The Music
& Sound Retailer interviewed Brian Swerdfeger,
Taylor Guitars’ vice president of sales and marketing, to get much more information.
“In our industry, distribution has taken many
forms,” he said. “Manufacturers like Bob Taylor
and Kurt Listug start out small and then pick up a
distributor or rep firm to help them sell domestically. The business grows and grows and you start
selling to dealers directly.
(continued on page 50)
Have you seen it?
25th Annual Music & Sound Award Nominees
It’s hard to believe that it’s been a quarter century of awards, but we’ve reached our silver
anniversary. We will be handing out the 25th annual Music & Sound Awards in just a few
weeks: Jan. 13 at Winter NAMM to be exact. So who’s up for some great hardware this year?
We contacted the nominees, asking them to share what the honor means to them. Also, for
our 25th edition of the awards, we added a new category. Best New Manufacturer honors the
rookie of the year, if you will. There are some fantastic companies up for that prize.
This marks the greatest diversity of nominees ever. More than 75 different manufacturers
have been nominated this year. Let’s look at the full nominee list. Also, check out the inside
of this issue to see if you were nominated. We have our full list of dealer nominees, as well!
Best Acoustic Guitar:
C.F. Martin DCPA1
“On behalf of all of my co-workers at Martin, we
want to thank our loyal guitar-playing customers
and dealers for noticing and acknowledging our
company, especially our efforts to blend our
traditional Martin Dreadnought design with
a cutaway and sophisticated electronics. We
embed tremendous pride and care into each
of our guitars and the award for Best Acoustic
Guitar means everything to us. Beyond that,
we strive with our company and charitable
foundation to be an excellent corporate citizen.
We don’t brag about this, so it’s especially
nice to be recognized for the Outstanding
Community Service Award. Thank you!”
—C. F. Martin IV, chairman & CEO
Ovation Adamas Kaki King
Signature Model
“Ovation is extremely proud to have our Kaki
King Signature model nominated for this
Music & Sound Award. Kaki is one of the most
talented players we have ever had the pleasure
to work with. From her early days learning to
play her father’s Adamas guitar, Kaki has always
displayed a natural ability to extend the musical
possibilities players can get out of their guitars.
Her new signature model will certainly inspire
others to do the same.” —Rick Hall, Ovation
product manager, KMC Music
Ibanez Montage (MSC350PW)
Taylor Baritone 8 String
“Wow! ‘Best New Acoustic,’ ‘Outstanding
Community Service,’ ‘Product of the Year’
and ‘Manufacturer of the Year’ awards….We
are honored to be acknowledged in multiple
categories. The Music & Sound Awards represent
true achievement in our industry, and once again
to be part of this elite group is rewarding. Thanks
to our dedicated and enthusiastic network of
retailers and our many fans for their ongoing love
and support of the Taylor brand.”
—Brian Swerdfeger,
vice president sales & marketing
Hohner Essential Folk EL-SF Plus
“Hohner is honored that our Essential Folk
acoustic guitar has been recognized as one of
the most important new products. In the very
crowded acoustic guitar market, the Essential
series guitars have definitely risen above
the competition. It is truly gratifying to
see this product acknowledged by this
Music & Sound awards nomination.”
—Scott Emmerman, director of
sales and marketing
MUSIC
& SOUND
Music & Sound Award Dealer NomineesP. 29
NAMM Exhibitor ListingsP. 30
Michael Laiacona of Whirlwind P. 35
AWARDS
BALLOT
ENCLOSED,
OR VOTE
ONLINE AT
WWW.
MSRETAILER.
COM/AWARDS
L AT E S T
Wanamaker ‘Wants’
Top Percussion Job
Fender Musical Instruments Corp.
(FMIC) announced that music industry veteran Jay Wanamaker will be
joining Fender in a newly created position, senior vice president of percussion. Wanamaker will report directly
to Ed Miller, president of KMC Music,
with a dotted line to FMIC CEO Larry
Thomas. He will oversee the branding
of all KMC percussion brands worldwide, including Latin Percussion, Toca Percussion, Gretsch Drums,
Gibraltar Hardware and Sabian cymbals (U.S.), and will be relocating to
KMC in Bloomfield, Conn.
Wanamaker is a 30-year music industry veteran who formerly served
as executive vice president/general merchandise manager of Guitar
Center and, earlier, served as vice president/general manager of
the Yamaha Corp. of America, Pro Audio & Combo Division. He has
designed numerous percussion products under his signature line and
launched Yamaha’s line of concert and marching percussion products.
He is a percussionist, author and composer who served on the faculty
of the University of Southern California (USC) Thornton School of
Music. He has authored numerous publications and composed music
for the motion picture Drumline.
MI Brings in $2 Billion
A Research and Markets report released on Nov. 5 claimed MI
manufacturers have a combined annual revenue of $2 billion. The
report states there are about 500 manufacturers. However, it called our
industry “highly concentrated.” The top 50 manufacturers account for
more than 80 percent of the revenue figure, according to the report.
Revenue per employee is $130,000.
Major Summer NAMM Changes
NAMM made a three-year commitment to the Summer NAMM show
in Nashville while changing the dates, days of the week and more.
NAMM announced Summer NAMM will take place from July 21 to
23 in 2011. That’s a major change, considering the show took place in
June this year. NAMM stated the show will take place in July through
at least 2013. An even bigger change, however, is that the show is shifting to Thursday to Saturday. Therefore, it will occur one day earlier in
the calendar week compared to every previous year.
Saturday, July 23, will be a public day, which will continue last year’s
test run that occurred on the Sunday of the show.
NAMM will have a new addition to the 2011 show called the “Top
100 Dealer Awards.” The awards honor retailers with top ideas.
The three-year commitment should allow Summer NAMM to see the
new Nashville Convention Center, expected to open in 2013. “These past
few years, even in the depths of the recession, our members came to
Nashville to network, attend NAMM U sessions and do their fall buying,”
said Joe Lamond, NAMM president and CEO. “NAMM member companies, especially independent dealers and innovative exhibitors, have told
us they want and need this show, and we’re resolved to support them.”
No Sale
MakeMusic CEO and Director Ron Raup resigned from both
positions on Nov. 10. The company’s board of directors unanimously
appointed Jeff Koch as Raup’s interim replacement. MakeMusic will
conduct a national search for a new CEO. Koch will be a candidate.
Koch has served as a director of MakeMusic since 2006 and chairman
since October 2006. He was CEO at LaunchEquity Partners.
MakeMusic also said it had considered strategic alternatives, but
did not receive a legitimate bid to purchase the company, which is
publicly traded on the NASDAQ market.
A company press release said Raup left to “pursue other opportunities.” Also, board members Andy Stephens and Michael Cahr stepped
down in order to bring the size of the board down to six members.
NAMM Can’t Stop Loving You
Former Arkansas Governor and part-time bass guitar player Mike
Huckabee recently launched a benefit album called “I Wanna Play!: An
Album to Put Musical Instruments into the Hands of Every Child in
America” on his weekly news commentary show. Platinum recording
artist and songwriter Aaron Tippin and producer James Stroud led the
charge on this project at Gov. Huckabee’s suggestion.
They jointly selected the list of participants, which includes Aaron
Tippin (“I Wanna Play,” written by Aaron and Thea Tippin), Lorrie
Morgan (“You Are So Beautiful”), John Anderson (“Swingin”), George
Jones (“Amazing Grace”), Neil Sedaka (“Laughter In The Rain”), Ray
Price (“Danny Boy”), Ronnie Milsap (“Honky Tonk Women”), Darryl
Worley (“Katie’s Song”), Louise Mandrell (“I Can’t Stop Loving You”)
and Tracy Lawrence (“Fightin’ Side Of Me”). The songs and artists
reflect a varied tapestry of creative influences to highlight the importance of making music. The CD is now available on iTunes, Amazon.
com and www.wannaplaycd.org, as well as by calling toll-free (888)
499-4996.
This project is a continuation of Gov. Huckabee’s support of the
efforts of the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM)
Foundation’s Wanna Play Fund, which provides musical instruments
to schools and other music programs across the country, allowing
many who otherwise couldn’t afford instruments to enjoy the fun, and
assorted benefits, of playing music.
Music & Sound Retailer
VOLUME 27 NO. 12
Inside
F E AT U R E S
Page 43
ON THE COVER
Music & Sound Award
Nominees
columns
We release the full list of nominees for Music & Sound
Awards. See if your favorite product, person or company
is nominated.
Page 22
ON THE COVER
26 Music & Sound
Independent Retailer
We have a crazy-but-true story of a burglary plot foiled by a great
employee and great dogs. Also, check out how Big Beat on Nov.
7 went.
Taylor-Made For Europe
Taylor Guitars will sell all of its products directly to
dealers in Europe beginning on Jan. 1. Find out why
the big change was made and where Taylor’s European
headquarters will be. We interview Brian Swerdfeger
about it first.
29 Music & Sound Award
Dealer Nominees
We gave you the manufacturer award nominees on the cover.
Now, we give you the retail list. Is your store nominated? Only one
way to find out. Awards will be handed out at NAMM next month.
32 NAMM University
Listings
Page 18
Page 4
35 Five Minutes With
Michael Laiacona, founder of Whirlwind, drops by to talk about
25 years at the company. He also founded another company prior
to Whirlwind. Learn about that company and why Laiacona got
involved in MI in the first place.
buzz
3 Latest
12 Dealer
13 People
18 Products
Here’s a complete list of dealer education sessions at the NAMM
show next month.
39 MI Spy
Spy scoped out three stores in Westchester County, N.Y., as well as
one in Fairfield County, Conn. Which provided the best service for
a guitar a 16-year-old will play?
Page 18
43 Appraisal Scene
Investigation
Rebecca Apodaca talks about estate settlements and much more.
45 Business & Marketing
Carl Mandelbaum’s second column tells you how to formulate a
marketing plan.
47 Veddatorial
Dan Vedda details his thoughts about a huge holiday coming up in
a few days.
54 Formidable Females
Page 12
Sonia Vallis, owner and president of LPD International, has had
fate point in different ways. Despite being the daughter of the
founder of the company, she has received the education, put in the
hours and exuded such a strong work ethic that she has earned
each and every employee’s respect.
december 2010
editorial
The ‘New Normal’
Brian Berk
Editor
I have to admit it. I let out a chuckle, or perhaps you’d
call it a guffaw, when I saw that the National Bureau of
Economic Research declared that the economic recession,
the longest swoon since the Great Depression, ended in
June 2009.
Come on. The recession is over? Could have fooled me.
Yeah, and I saw some pigs flying recently. Things really
improved since June of last year?
When I looked further into the report, it did say the
statement did not mean the economy had “returned to
operating at normal capacity.” No kidding. If you were
a retailer that took part in what was one of the greatest
disappearing acts this decade, you know what I mean.
That magic act I’m referring to was the “great floor traffic
decline of 2010.”
Not everyone saw floor traffic reach a nadir in the same
month this year, but many of you told me that you went
through a time this year when you could have locked
the doors for the day and gone home, and still made the
same number of sales as if you had remained behind the
counter.
The magic disappearing act is shrouded in mystery.
Why did floor traffic decline precipitously? Why was it
good early in the year? What has caused the floor traffic
to improve for many of you recently? Fair questions all.
Unfortunately, nobody has the answers to these questions.
Hopefully, your floor traffic has rebounded. But even
if it has, there is no “white knight” ready to rescue the
economy. If you invested $1,000 in the S&P 500 stock market index in 2004, do you know how much money you’d
have now? The answer: $1,000. If you invested $1,000 in
2000, you’d have $930. Pretty bad.
Perhaps the recession did end, despite the shocking
unemployment rate. However, we’ve entered the “new
normal.” What does that mean? A lower-growth period.
Sure, the economy should grow. But the economy will not
buoy MI for some time. The Internet era will not happen
again. With that said, I do believe this decade will be better than the prior one, economically speaking.
I’m not saying we’re in a 25-year economic malaise like
the one in Japan. Nor am I saying a “double-dip” recession
is imminent. What I am saying is there is little impetus for
the economy to rebound dramatically, which would help
you at your store a great deal. I keep having a vision in
my head of a former out-of-work person seeing his/her
paycheck, smiling about his/her economic situation and
driving over to your store to purchase an instrument,
along with a few accessories.
Hope is an amazingly powerful element of our lives. It
keeps you going on tough days. It allows us to think peace
in the world will happen someday. For some, hope keeps
them alive.
Expectations are completely different. We simply can’t
expect floor traffic to rise sharply. Unfortunately, there
is no magic pill. You have to work even harder to obtain
and retain customers. We hope to provide some recommendations for you in that area, thanks to the addition
of Carl Mandelbaum’s column. He’s a marketing expert
who penned a column beginning last month. You will see
subsequent articles from the New Jersey native in ensuing
months. We hope it can provide some assistance.
If the economy will not help you out, we need to force
the issue.
December 15, 2010
Volume 27, No. 12
BRIAN berK
[email protected]
Editor
Dan Ferrisi
[email protected]
Assistant Editor
George Hines
Skip maggiora
Editorial Advisors
JANICE PUPELIS
Graphic Designer/Artist
STEVE THORAKOS
Production Manager
circulation
[email protected]
fred gumm
Web Designer
Michelle Loeb
Rebecca Apodaca
Dan Vedda
gene fresco
Peter Gerstenzang Contributors
jeffrey kyle, jr.
Robert l. Iraggi
[email protected]
Advertising Director
DOUGLAS YELIN
[email protected]
Art/Production Assistant
robin hazan
[email protected]
Operations Manager
VINCENT P. TESTA
President/Publisher
Editorial and Sales Office: The Music & Sound Retailer, 25 Willowdale Avenue, Port Washington, New York
11050-3779. Phone: (516) 767-2500 • Fax (Editorial): (516) 767-9335 • Fax (Sales/All other business):
(516) 767-9335 • [email protected].
Editorial contributions should be addressed to The Editor, The Music & Sound Retailer, 25 Willowdale Avenue,
Port Washington, New York 11050-3779. Unsolicited manuscripts will be treated with care and must be accompanied by return postage.
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december 2010
L AT E S T
Buckingham To Go His Own Way
Multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer
Lindsey Buckingham will be presented with the
Les Paul Award at the 26th Annual Technical
Excellence & Creativity Awards, to be held Jan.
14 in the Pacific Ballroom of the Anaheim Hilton
during the 2011 NAMM show. Presented by the
TEC Foundation for Excellence in Audio, the
TEC Awards recognizes outstanding achievement
in professional audio production and product
design. The Les Paul Award, named in honor of
the renowned musician and inventor who died last
year, is presented annually to an artist or studio
professional whose passion, originality and skill in
music and recording has made a lasting impact on
the world. Past recipients include Paul McCartney,
Brian Wilson, Stevie Wonder, Neil Young, Bruce
Springsteen, Sting, Al Kooper, Robbie Robertson
and others since the award was instituted in 1991.
Lindsey Buckingham’s career began to take off
when he and Stevie Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac’s core lineup of drummer Mick
Fleetwood, bassist John McVie and keyboardist/singer Christine McVie in early
1974. The former blues band, with the addition of “Buckingham Nicks,” immediately morphed into a pop hit-maker. The group’s eponymous album, produced
by Keith Olsen, contained singles including Buckingham’s “Monday Morning,”
“World Turning” and “I’m So Afraid.”
MDA Coming Soon
The MDA Show & Tell Event will take place on Jan. 11
at the Disney Paradise Pier Hotel in Anaheim. Plenty of
manufacturers will be on hand in a relaxed environment.
For more information, e-mail Madeline Crouch at office@
musicdistributors.org.
Premier Drums Returns
to this Side of the Pond
Universal Percussion announced an exclusive distribution agreement that will bring Premier drums back into
the American market. UK-based Premier has its roots in
the early days of drumset production. Desire for a Premier
kit went worldwide when The Who drummer Keith Moon
displayed his drumming style on ever-expanding sets of
Premier drums in the 1960s and ’70s. From those days
to today, Premier has maintained its position in Europe,
Asia and other markets around the globe. Unfortunately,
distribution and customer support in the U.S. did not keep
pace with industry standards, with the result that the brand
virtually disappeared from American drumshops, said Universal Percussion. That, however, has now changed, with
Universal Percussion now the exclusive U.S. distributor.
latest
Paiste America, Yamaha Conclude Distribution Relationship
Paiste America, Inc., and Yamaha Corp. of America announced
that their five-year distribution
relationship for Paiste products
will conclude at the end of 2010.
Paiste America will move to serve
its major U.S. retailers directly
Musicorp
Distributes
DDRUM
Musicorp announced the addition of the DDRUM D1 entrylevel drum set to its product line.
“DDRUM is…excited to partner
with Musicorp in developing a
more diverse dealer base for
this…kit,” said Derek Badala,
DDRUM Director of Sales. Musicorp will distribute the DDRUM
D1 entry-level drum set, which
comes with cymbals, throne and
hardware. The D1 is in-stock at
Musicorp’s Louisville, Ky., warehouse as of this month. Finishes
available will include Police Blue
and Midnight Black.
TGIF
Sanyo announced it is teaming with a local non-profit
organization, First Friday Music
Club Inc., to offer educational
support to Correia Middle
School, which is located in
Point Loma, San Diego. The
partnership includes a donation
of Sanyo products, as well as
Sanyo-sponsored professional
music and video production
workshops for the middle
school students, over a threeday period from Nov. 3 to 5.
Sanyo donated 10 of its Dual
Cameras, which will be used by
the school’s video production
and yearbook staff. Additionally,
the company is donating five of
its linear PCM sound recorders,
which can be used to record
music or audio for use in video
production. To teach music students the importance of sustainability and how easy it can be,
the company has also donated
five of its eneloop Pedal Juice
rechargeable nine-volt batteries.
beginning Jan. 1, 2011. “We have
had an excellent relationship
with Yamaha Corp. of America
and appreciate their efforts
supporting the distribution of
our instruments in the past five
years,” said Erik Paiste, presi-
dent of Paiste-America, Inc. “Our
heartfelt thanks go especially to
Yamaha’s Dave Jewell and the
company’s district managers,
who have maintained and upheld
Paiste’s market presence in major
U.S. dealerships.”
Paiste retailers in the U.S. that
are currently working with Yamaha will continue to do so through
the end of 2010. Paiste America
will contact them to ensure an
orderly transition.
L AT E S T
Music China Produces Record-Setting Performance
Text and Photos by Tom Lagomarsino, Pianodisc
With hopes of continued improvement in the global economy, a record
43,238 visitors from all over the world attended Shanghai’s 9th annual
China Music Expo from Oct. 12 to 15. More than 1,200 exhibitors from 27
countries showcased products of all types, including western and traditional Chinese musical instruments, sheet music, music software, hardware
and accessories in six large halls comprising more than 70,000 square
meters of floor space, which were jam
packed with musical product of all types.
Organized jointly by INTEX Shanghai,
China Music Instruments Association
(CMIA), Messe Frankfurt (HK) and International partner NAMM, who presents
its popular NAMM University Sessions,
Music China has become the biggest
annual fair for music products in Asia.
Seminars included the first global forum
on traditional Chinese music and the
First Shanghai Senior Music Symposium.
Music China reported an attendance
increase of 14 percent compared to last
year.
Once at the fair, we found the energy, pulse rate and booth
traffic good the first day, along with the bonus of qualified buyers
and orders. Optimism throughout the piano hall was good…better than the previous year. Visitors from most, if not all, Pacific
Rim countries, Europe, Middle East and South America were
inquisitive about new products, show specials and placing orders.
It’s no secret that the United States has been hit harder, and
the decline of business has been greater, than Europe and Asia.
As a representative of a U.S. manufacturer with a WOFE (wholly owned
foreign enterprise) in China, it’s pretty easy to get excited about any and
all positive business activity. Music China has done a good job of attracting retailers, importers and distributors from all over the world. Visas and
security to enter China don’t seem to be a hindrance for international buyers, whereas the same buyers (or at least our customers) report difficulty
obtaining visas and U.S. security clearance to attend the January NAMM
show in the highly coveted destination of warm and sunny Southern California.
One of the biggest surprises this year was the addition of what appeared
to be dozens of new piano manufacturers, distributors and parts vendors
mostly from China. The many new additions in the piano hall are a testimony to the strong local market, as new, fresh and exciting trademarks
like Steinway’s Lang Lang piano can attest. Nevertheless, this year’s
expansion of companies in the piano hall led more than one visitor to ask if
any Chinese government stimulus money had made its way to the Chinese
piano industry.
Those who have attended the fair over the years know that Music China
has found a good ally in its international partner, NAMM. With the assistance from the folks at NAMM, and the NAMM University template, Music
China now offers a wide variety of help for domestic music retailers. The
impact and improvements that these services have had in a short period of
time with piano dealers in China is both remarkable and impressive.
By the afternoon of day two, traffic died down and on day three and four,
both public days, the traffic had died down noticeably.
Nevertheless, Music China continues to improve in many areas and
has become a serious destination for buyers and sellers. A few bumps and
areas needing improvement shared by fellow exhibitors include better
enforcement of the noise levels, which were ear piercing. More than a
few exhibitors said they would not be back unless there was enforcement.
Another complaint was the lack of air conditioning.
10
Audiolines.com Settles,
Shares its Side of Story
Following up on a story covered last month, J2 Electronics
Group Ltd. (dba Audiolines.com) has broken its silence regarding
the Sweetwater Sound lawsuit. In a written release, Bernard Howard Fryman, president, J2 Electronics Group Ltd., said, “Three
weeks ago, at the advice of our legal counsel, J2 Electronics Group
Ltd. (dba Audiolines.com) agreed to settle the federal lawsuit that
Sweetwater Sound filed against us for trademark infringement
this summer. As the new owners of the Audiolines.com website,
our corporation is indeed now responsible for the contents of this
website.”
He continued, “On September 2, 2008, J2 Electronics Group
Ltd. took over the operations of Audiolines.com. At the closing,
our attorney, the seller’s attorney and the seller all guaranteed in
a signed contract that they transferred J2 a business and website
‘free and clear of encumbrances.’ We felt that we were diligent
and were protected. We also believe that pirated information is an
encumbrance. Upon the closing, an archival copy of the site before
any changes were made was stored. The Audiolines.com website
at closing had over 9,500 items and [it] was unrealistic to police
the reading of each entry. Since that closing, the old officers/owners of Audiolines, Inc., have dissolved their corporation.”
He further said, “Yes, we currently own the site, so this content
piracy has become our problem. Yes, we removed these entries
immediately, and settling this lawsuit was the cheapest way to
make it go away. We can’t countersue the original Audiolines, Inc.,
as they have shut down.” He expressed confusion as to why the
matter had to reach the litigation stage.
december 2010
latest
Little Kids Rock Hits Charity Home Run
“Imagine all the people… sharing all the world.” John Lennon’s words
rang true when a cast of professional musicians shared the stage with
Little Kids Rock students at the charity’s “Right to Rock” benefit to restore
and revitalize music programs in public schools nationwide. New York
Diamond Amplifies Support
for the Troops
Diamond Amplification announced Diamond’s 2010 Support Your
Troops benefit. CEO/owner Jeff Diamant and business partner Terry
Martin have put together a program to turn 10 percent of all proceeds
from sales of Diamond products between Nov. 1 and Dec. 31 into
musical equipment that will ship overseas for military troops. Many
enlisted men and women are musicians but are unable to transport
their instruments while on deployment. This campaign will provide
guitar amplifiers to troops serving overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“We have always offered discounts for active-duty military personnel
as well as war veterans,” said Diamant. “Terry and I both want to do
something more for our troops. We get lots of requests for gear from
military personnel overseas and we just want to give them a little taste
of home, and a little reminder of what they’re fighting for.”
To further support the campaign, Diamond Amplification is creating
a Facebook Fan Page.
Yankees icon Bernie Williams, Season 8 American Idol Kris Allen and
Vanilla Fudge drummer Carmine Appice shared the stage with Little
Kids Rock students at the B.B. King Blues Club in New York City and
performed the Lennon classic for more than 250 guests.
The annual “Right to Rock” gala and celebrity-painted guitar auction raised more than $175,000, which will result in nearly 9,000 more
low-income children receiving free instruments and music education.
Bernie Williams was honored as the second annual “Big Man of the
Year,” an award named after, and presented last year to, “The Big Man”
Clarence Clemons. A recorded message by the E Street Band saxophonist introduced Williams, who accepted the award given each year
to an individual who helps Little Kids Rock put transformational music
classes and modern musical instruments into the hands of low-income
schoolchildren.
DEALER
Sierra Guitar Day at Bulldog Music
Sierra Guitars announced that
Sierra dealer Bulldog Music in
Boiling Springs, N.C., held a Sierra
Guitar Day on Oct. 23. The store
was packed with customers to see
all the newest Sierra guitar models.
DrummerFest 2010 Rocks Out
(R-L) Musicorp region manager Rick
Murray, owner of Bulldog Music Art
Mauney, Musicorp VP of sales Dan
Roberts
Dan Roberts, VP of Musicorp, along
with Rick Murray, region manager
at Musicorp, were present to answer
questions regarding Sierra Guitars.
For the duration of Sierra Guitar
Day, Bulldog Music honored the
newest Sierra Guitars promotion:
buy any Sierra guitar and receive
a free Stageline GS550A wooden
guitar stand, plus a $20 cash-back
mail-in rebate. Bulldog Music also
offered free Fender strings with all
purchases.
GC, Make-A-Wish
Make Dreams
Come True
Taylor Turner, of Troy, Ill., now
has a guitar, amp, electric drum set
and accessories, all thanks to Guitar
Center in Fairview Heights and the
Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois, according to a story from the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Turner, 17,
suffers from Hodgkin’s lymphoma,
a form of cancer. Following a course
of chemotherapy, the disease is in
remission. Beth Niedoborsky, of
Shiloh, is a wish granter associated
with the Make-A-Wish Foundation
of Illinois and attended the event at
which Turner received his musical instruments. Turner played the
guitar and drums for the group. The
Make-A-Wish Foundation grants
wishes for those individuals aged 2 to
18 who have life-threatening medical
conditions.
12
Cascio Interstate Music’s DrummerFest 2010, the 10th annual,
was held on Oct. 23 on Cascio’s SoundStage inside of the store.
According to Cascio Interstate CEO Michael Houser, “We experienced record attendance of over 1,000 enthusiasts throughout
the eight-hour event. Our musicians/customers were treated to a
unique experience with artists from very diverse musical backgrounds.” The NBA Milwaukee Bucks WILD! Drumline, which is
sponsored by Cascio Interstate Music, kicked off the day as they
marched from the store entrance to the SoundStage, where they
conducted a marching presentation.
Clinician/educator Dom Famularo then started out the official
clinics. Marvin McQuitty was the next artist up and demonstrated
his funk/groove style. Next up was Bun E. Carlos, part of Cheap
Trick, whose clinic was a history lesson in the drumbeats that
have made rock ‘n’ roll famous. Capping this year’s event was
Terry Bozzio, billed as “the ambassador of the ostinato,” a musical phrase that is repeated over and over during a composition.
Closing the day was a DrummerFest tradition, the All-Star Jam, a
20-minute jam with all the clinicians trading chops and grooves,
changing dynamics and ending with a barrage that brought the
crowd to their feet. Thanks were offered to all participating sponsors, including drum manufacturers Mapex, Sabian, Yamaha,
Ludwig and Zildjian.
Searching for America’s
Greatest Unknown Guitarist
Sam Ash Music is on the hunt for America’s greatest unknown
guitarist. The battle is underway, with the contest moving into
the final stages. Challengers from across the United States are
competing to win $20,000 in musical gear and the opportunity to
perform live onstage with guitarist Steve Vai. The store championships featured the four semi-finalists still standing from previous elimination rounds. The guitarists performed live in front of
audiences, playing along to one of six instrumental backing tracks
of Steve Vai songs. A panel of judges scored the players on their
technical skills, originality, accuracy and showmanship.
The store finals took place on Nov. 10 at every Sam Ash Music
store location and were open to the public. Admission was free.
Store champions went on to compete regionally in Orlando, New
York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and Charlotte on Dec.
8. All six regional champions won more than $1,500 in guitar gear
prizes from Ibanez Guitars, Morley, Line 6 Amps, Electro-Voice,
Jim Dunlop Products, Samson Technologies and Zoom Effects.
Regional champs will be flown to Los Angeles to compete in the
grand finals on Jan. 12. A panel of celebrity judges will determine
who is crowned Sam Ash’s “Shredder of the Year -- 2010.”
december 2010
PEOPLE
All Hail Haler
Amentt, Presley Put On
Their Blue Suede Shoes
Casio America, Inc., made two additions to the Electronic Musical
Instrument (EMI) division. Mark Amentt joins the company as the
director of sales for the Eastern US division, whereas Jim Presley will
serve as director of sales for the Western US division. Amentt comes
to Casio from AIMM: The Alliance of Independent Music Merchants,
where he served as director of operations. Presley comes to Casio
from Yamaha Corp. of America, where he served as marketing manager for the piano division.
In the new positions, Amentt and Presley will report to Stephen
Schmidt, vice president of Casio’s EMI division, and will be responsible for Casio’s continued growth in the music dealer channel nationally, while also managing the sales force that reaches out to independent
music dealer channels. Amentt has a background in the music industry, including his tenure at AIMM where he interacted on all levels
with the organization’s retail and vendor partners. He was important
in securing the growth and success of AIMM through increased sales,
product development, and operations and finance initiatives. Presley
has a history in the music industry, beginning his career in a small retail store teaching guitar and moving into sales and then management.
Yamaha Corp. of America announced
that Jim Haler has been appointed to the
newly created position of acoustic drum
manager in the Sales Department. In
this position, Haler is the go-to specialist
for independent outlets, Five Star drum
shops and full-line dealers with full-service
drum departments. Haler, who hails from
Kansas City, Mo., has been with Yamaha
for more than seven years, most recently as product manager, Yamaha
Drums. He has worked with the drum marketing department assisting with product development and doing product and sales training for
drums and tech support at festivals and for artists. Prior to his work
with Yamaha, he served as regional division manager, Drums and
Percussion, for Guitar Center. A drummer for more than 40 years, he
began performing professionally at age 14 and has experience as a
performer, teacher, drum builder and consultant.
Fender’s Accessory Man
Fender Musical Instruments Corp. announced that music industry
veteran Eric Spitzer joined the company as vice president of the Fender
Accessory Division. Spitzer joined the company on Nov. 1 and oversees the development of all Fender-branded accessory products. He
relocated to FMIC’s Ontario, Calif. facility. Spitzer is a music industry
veteran who got his start working in his father’s music store in 1971,
and began working full-time in music in 1980. During his career at
Guitar Center, he held a number of increasingly responsible roles,
including vice president of merchandise. Most recently, he ran the Purchasing department at Sam Ash. Spitzer was featured in the Music &
Sound Retailer earlier this year describing his and Fender CEO Larry
Thomas’ work helping Haiti earthquake victims.
Farina Hears
Sound of Music
The Music Group announced
the addition of John Farina as
chief financial officer. He brings
a blend of finance and operations
expertise, with more than 25
years of financial management,
corporate development and general management experience in
both private and public high-technology companies. He has spent
more than 12 years in electronic
manufacturing services companies; serving as president and
CFO of Nam Tai Electronics Inc.,
and as V.P. finance, V.P. M&A
and general manager at Celestica
Inc., where he was part of the
founding management team. He
also worked for 13 years with
IBM Corp., where he gained
experience in financial management, culminating in the role of
divisional chief financial officer.
13
PEOLPLE
The American Audio Way
Edgar Bernal, aka DJ
Etronik, has accepted a position as the Product/Sales
Specialist for American
Audio. Bernal, a Los Angeles
native, has had a professional
DJ career for more than 15
years. He took the 2010 US
DMC DJ Championship title
in New York this past August.
He was the first DJ in the US
to represent the World in all
three DMC World Battle Categories, as he was named the
DMC US Supremacy Champion 2006, DMC US Team coChampion (as part of “The Angry Exs”) in 2008 and DMC West Coast
Champion 2010. Bernal placed fourth in the 2010 DMC World Finals
that took place in the UK. As a member of the American Audio team,
Bernal will handle inbound and outbound sales calls for the company,
in addition to showcasing and training products for customers.
Roxanne Wenzel
Cristin Livezey
Compass Points to Wenzel, Livezey
Full Compass Systems announced the promotion of Roxanne Wenzel
as its vice president of sales and marketing. Wenzel joined the company
in early 2008 and, possessing knowledge of sales and marketing strategies, she has helped push Full Compass to sales growth. Wenzel began
her career when she started her own real estate rentals business at age
23. Wenzel later started a second business in the housing industry. After
selling her second business to pursue other opportunities, Wenzel held a
number of positions, including COO at an IT asset management company, president of a special events company and vice president of sales for
a major international distributor of computer peripheral service parts.
In related news, Full Compass promoted Cristin Livezey to vice president of finance. Livezey joined the company as a corporate controller
in 2008 and has helped to drive numerous initiatives. Livezey graduated from Iowa State University and spent the first several years of her
career as an electrical engineer. Later, she earned an MBA from Loyola
University in Chicago. Livezey then joined a national brokerage and
investment banking firm as a financial consultant. In December 2000,
Livezey accepted an accounting position with Intelix, a Madison, Wi.based manufacturer of audio and video distribution equipment while
also working part time as a professor at Lakeland College. In February
2008, Livezey joined Full Compass.
In Memoriam: Ken Reichel
Ken Reichel, former executive
vice president and chief operating
officer of Audio-Technica U.S.,
died on Oct. 15 at his home in
Richmond, Va. A prominent figure
in the professional audio industry,
having first played key roles for
other microphone manufacturers, he joined Audio-Technica in
May 1982, serving the company
in various leadership capacities
through his retirement in June
2000. Audio-Technica U.S. experienced considerable growth under
Reichel’s management. He drove
market development and promotion for many products, notably UniPoint installed-sound microphones
and A-T’s 40 Series studio microphones. He was also a force behind
A-T entering the wireless microphone category and the company’s
longstanding relationship with the Olympics.
“Ken valued strong personal relationships based on mutual respect
and commitment,” said Phil Cajka, Audio-Technica U.S. president/
CEO. “He had a powerful combination of technical understanding and
sales acumen, which served him well in his time with the company
and gained him the respect and admiration of customers, fellow sales
personnel, and A-T’s R&D and engineering team.”
16
december 2010
PRODUCTS
Drums
Percussion
Pro& Audio
You Beta
Pass the Mic
Over view: Nady Systems’ HM-35 and HM-45U Headworn Mics
Specifics: Nady Systems has added two single-ear headworn mics.
These models, the HM-35 and the HM-45U, join Nady’s current Headmic Series. They are both wide-bandwidth, electret condenser mics.
The HM-35 is omni-directional; the HM-45U is uni-directional. Both
mics, according to the company, ensure clean, transparent audio and
enhanced vocal pickup with improved gain before feedback. Their thin
metal frames can be molded to fit any user, with or without glasses,
hats or headphones. Other features include lightweight, tiny capsule
(diameter 5.0mm); extendable boom that’s fully adjustable for optimum mic capsule placement; three sizes of foam windscreen included
to reduce wind and popping noise. Both the HM-35 and HM-45U are
available with Mini-XLR or 3.5mm phono plug for wired and wireless
applications.
MSRP: $29.99
Ship Date: Now
Contact: Nady Systems, 510.652.2411, www.nady.com
Overview: Shure’s Beta Drum Microphone
Versions
Specifics: Shure made additions to its
Beta mic line. The newest models include the
Beta 91A boundary mic, Beta 98A miniature
instrument mic and Beta 98AMP miniature
drum mic. With low handling noise and high
gain before feedback, Shure Beta mics provide
sensitivity and control for sound reinforcement. The Beta 91A is a halfcardioid condenser boundary mic for kick-drum and low frequency
applications. New cartridge design provides a smoother, more natural
response. The Beta 98A is a miniature cardioid condenser mic for
instrument sound reinforcement and recording applications. High
SPL handling makes the Beta 98A suitable for a variety of acoustic
or amplified instruments. The Beta 98AMP is a variation of the Beta
98A that combines the new cartridge with a flexible gooseneck and
integrated XLR preamplifier.
MSRP: Beta 91A: $299; Beta 98AD/C: $286; Beta 98A/C: $249;
Beta 98AMP/C: $336; Beta 98AMP/C-3PK: $874 (three pack of Beta
98AMP)
Ship Date: Now
Contact: Shure Inc., 847.600.2000, www.shure.com
Drums
& Percussion
Drums
& Percussion
Big Gig
Overview: Yamaha Drums’ GigMaker Drum Set Series
Specifics: Yamaha Drums introduced a series of GigMaker drum
sets. Though geared toward first-time players, the kits feature Yamaha
hardware with hex tom ball joints for precise positioning along with
five new glitter wrap finishes. In addition to the matching wood snare
drum and Yamaha’s double-braced hardware, the GigMaker drum
sets include matching wood bass drum hoops for tone and durability,
and come in 20-inch and 22-inch configurations. The kits, constructed
with basswood and poplar shells, are available as shell packs, complete
configurations with hardware or packaged complete with Paiste 101
cymbals.
MSRP: $699 for the shell pack; $999.99 for the drumset with hardware
Ship Date: Call company
Contact: Yamaha Corp. of America, 714.522.9011, www.yamaha.com
Cut to Ribbons
Over view: beyerdynamic’s RM 510 Interchangeable Ribbon Capsule
Specifics: beyerdynamic debuted what it is calling the first wireless ribbon mic. The RM 510 interchangeable ribbon capsule is for
beyerdynamic’s OPUS 900 and OPUS 600 wireless systems. The RM
510’s capsule design features an ultra-light, barely three-micrometerthick aluminium ribbon that delivers frequency response and transient
behavior. A sound-channeling technology provides the capsule with its
cardioid polar pattern, making the RM 510 ribbon capsule suitable for
use on stage with wireless mic systems. The capsule’s treble resonator delivers high-frequency reproduction and also serves to protect
against “plosives.” Every RM 510 wireless mic capsule is handmade in
Germany. Employing a sound labyrinth on the rear of the diaphragm
and using an acoustic fabric, the sound characteristics and technical
specifications have been improved.
MSRP: Call company
Ship Date: First quarter 2011
Contact: beyerdynamic, 631.293.3200, www.beyerdynamic.com
18
december 2010
DJ & Lighting
PRODUCTS
Fog Rolls In
Dark Side of the Moonflower
Over view: American DJ’s Revo Burst LED Moonflower
Specifics: The Revo Burst, an LED Moonflower from American DJ,
doesn’t just fill rooms and dance floors with light; it saturates them
with color. It has a 46-degree beam angle and 294 LEDs arranged in
seven equal clusters that strobe and turn on/off in synchronization.
The Revo Burst’s wide beam angle results in extensive light coverage,
so there’s no need to hang this effect very high to immerse a dance
floor with colored light. The seven 42-LED clusters of light in the Revo
Burst strobe and turn on/off in precise synchronization using the
unit’s built-in programs. DJs can use the ADJ UC3 handheld controller
to turn the unit on and off and select the various built-in lightshows. It
weighs 8lb. and measures 12”x8.5”x9.5”.
MSRP: $239.95.
Contact: American DJ, 800.322.6337, www.americandj.com
Over view: MBT Lighting’s FAZER Fog Machine
Specifics: MBT Lighting launched a fog machine, the FAZER.
It combines the subtle, lighter fog effect of a haze machine with an
economical standard fog machine. A dispersing fan spreads the fog as
it exits the machine, avoiding the thick cloud produced by traditional
fog machines. The 450W heater produces 1800cu/ft/min of fog and
includes timer remote for auto-operation. The FAZER uses standard
water-base fog fluid like MBT Lighting’s FMJ4-4 fog fluid. Its size is
15”x7”x7” and it weighs 7lb.
MSRP: $159
Ship Date: Now
Contact: MBT Lighting, 843.745.8501, www.mbtlighting.com
Hey Mr. DJ
Overview: Pioneer Electronics’ Limited Edition HDJ-1000 Professional DJ Headphones
Specifics: Pioneer Electronics’ Professional Sound and Visual
Division introduced its limited edition HDJ-1000 professional DJ
headphones. The limited edition products will be offered in two
colors and, according to the company, “provide a more comfortable
fit and produce better low frequency reproduction for more effective
mixing.” The HDJ-1000 headphones come in black and gold, in addition to the original chrome model. The drivers in the HDJ-1000 headphones were tuned to deliver more impact in the lower bass frequencies of music. Its 38 micrometers diaphragm and 1.5mm voice coil
are more efficient in generating the critical midrange and mid-bass
frequencies in music and produce a more linear response, including
at high volume levels. The mono/stereo selector circuit was modified
to obtain clearer playback.
MSRP: $209
Ship Date: This month
Contact: Pioneer Electronics, 310.952.2162, www.pioneerdjusa.com
19
PRODUCTS
Drums
& Percussion
Miscellaneous
Drums
& Percussion
Print
& Publishing
Headbangers
Ball
Man to Mandolin
Over view: Hiscox Cases’ PRO-II-MAN Mandolin Case
Specifics: Hiscox Cases has released its first mandolin case. The
PRO-II-MAN joins the company’s Pro II Series. Designed to handle
both “A” and “F” style mandolins, the case features a 2mm-thick Acrylonitrile Butadeine Styrene (ABS) hard plastic outer shell, bonded directly to an inner molding made of high-tech polyurethane foam. This
semi-rigid inner molding is soft enough to cushion the most delicate
instruments, but firm enough to provide an overall structural rigidity.
The result is lightweight protection for mandolins: a case weighing
7.5lb. that offers crush strength, shock resistance and thermal insulation. Additional features include an interior finished in wine-colored
crushed velour, an accessory compartment and steel fittings for an
optional shoulder strap.
MSRP: $249
Contact: Musiquip Inc., 866.832.8679, www.musiquip.com
Over view: Rock House’s
7-String Fretribution,
Rhythms & Leads
Specifics: Rock House
released 7-String Fretribution, Rhythms & Leads, a
two-DVD set featuring Buz
McGrath of Unearth. Buz’s style combines elements of hardcore,
thrash and extreme metal, while not overlooking the importance of
melodic concepts. The seven-string guitar is the foundation that gives
some of popular music, especially heavy metal, its sound. In 7-String
Fretribution, Rhythms & Leads, Buz reveals his lead and song writing
techniques, sweep arpeggios, seven-string minor seventh arpeggios,
shred riffs spanning the neck. He teaches his way of creating harmony sections and pivoting lead techniques. Students learn how to
construct songs using the combination of single note riffs and power
chords and how to add harmony guitar counterparts to create full
rhythms.
MSRP: $24.99
Ship Date: Now
Contact: Rock House, 800.544.0626, www.rockhousemethod.com
Take the Lead
Over view: Mel Bay’s Advanced
Lead Guitar Concepts by Joshua Craig
Podolsky
Specifics: Mel Bay has released
Advanced Lead Guitar Concepts by
Joshua Craig Podolsky. From his
solo work as a producer, writer,
video game music composer and
author to his memberships in
many hard rock and metal groups,
Podolsky of The Alien Blakk has
become prominent. He has worked
with Rob Halford of Judas Priest,
Xzibit, Motograter, Christina Aguilera, Coolio, Dr. Dre, Mark Hamill
and others. Advanced Lead Guitar
Concepts: Mindset & Theologies in
Improvisation affirms to any player
with an advanced background in
music that he/she can go farther.
Advanced Lead Guitar Concepts is
a book/CD/DVD set for the modern-day contemporary rock, metal
and shred guitar enthusiast.
MSRP: $29.99
Ship Date: Now
Contact: Mel Bay, 800.863.5229,
www.melbay.com
20
december 2010
Print & Publishing
Stairway to Heaven
Over view: Alfred Music’s Led Zeppelin
Ultimate Play-Along Songbooks
Specifics: Alfred Music Publishing presents
an entire set of new Led Zeppelin play-along
songbooks with the first fully band-approved,
expanded CDs—containing “sound-alike”
tracks and transcriptions that allow you to
play the hits of this rock band.
Ultimate Play-Along: Led Zeppelin
songbooks allow guitarists, bassists and drummers to play along
to Jimmy Page-approved versions
of Led Zeppelin classics, without
Blues Brothers
Over view: The Marshall
Bluesbreaker – The Story of
Marshall’s First Combo
Specifics: The complete
story of Marshall’s first ever
combo amp, nicknamed the
Bluesbreaker, is told in The Marshall Bluesbreaker – The Story of
Marshall’s First Combo. Author
and Bluesbreaker enthusiast
John R. Wiley describes how
guitar amplifier figure Jim Marshall listened to the requests of
the local musicians and installed
his JTM45 chassis into a standalone speaker cabinet and how
Eric Clapton began using one in
1965 that created his signature
sound in John Mayall and the
Bluesbreakers. Wiley covers
the entire original production
of the Model 1961 and Model
1962 Bluesbreakers between
1964 and 1972, the Model 1962
Bluesbreaker Reissue, the 35th
Anniversary Bluesbreaker and
the 40th Anniversary Jaguar
Bluesbreaker.
MSRP: $29.95
Contact: Blue Book Publications, 800.292.6122
PRODUCTS
needing a full band behind them. Included
with each book is a CD that contains two versions of every song.
MSRP: $19.99 each
Ship Date: Now
Contact: Alfred Music Publishing,
800.292.6122, www.alfred.com
PRODUCTS
Drums
& Percussion
Guitars
& Amps
I Can See For Miles
Over view: Planet Waves’ Licensed Straps Featuring The Who
Specifics: Following the Beatles, Woodstock and Alchemy Gothic licensed straps and pick designs, Planet Waves launched licensed straps
featuring the artwork of The Who. These are the available designs: The
Who – Bullseye: This black, leather strap features the iconic bullseye
that commonly represents the band. The Who’s logo adorns the strap
near the end-pin hole. The Who – British Flag: A black, leather strap
with a British Flag printed along the front. The Who’s logo adorns the
strap near the end-pin hole.
MSRP: $54.99
Ship Date: Now
Contact: Planet Waves, 631.439.3300, www.planetwaves.com
All Amped Up
Over view: Vox’s Joe Satriani Signature Model
Specifics: Vox Amplification expanded its range of amPlug headphone guitar amplifiers with the Joe Satriani signature model, which
borrows sounds from the Vox/Joe Satriani series of signature effect
pedals. According to the company, the amPlug series of palm-sized
headphone guitar amps enables one to enjoy guitar/bass sounds
at home or on the go. Featuring a bright red body, the Joe Satriani
amPlug delivers the sound of Satriani’s custom rig—distortion pedal
through a high-gain tube amplifier, followed by a delay—and reproduces the settings created by Satriani himself. Inspired by the distortion circuitry of the VOX/Joe Satriani Satchurator pedal, the amPlug
Joe Satriani preserves the player’s “pick attack” to create an articulate,
melodic and playable distortion. Users can activate the delay with the
flip of a switch.
MSRP: $49.99
Ship Date: This month
Contact: Vox Amplification, 631.390.6500, www.voxamps.com
Hot, Hot, Hot!
Over view: Fender’s Hot Rod III Series Amplifiers
Specifics: Fender released the Hot Rod III series amplifiers, featuring
several upgrades based on player feedback, including improved speakers, enhanced circuits and revised cosmetic appointments. The Hot
Rod III series includes the Hot Rod Deville 410 III, Hot Rod Deville 212
III, Hot Rod Deluxe, Blues Junior III and Pro Junior III amps. The Hot
Rod DeVille and Deluxe amps feature graduated volume and treble pot
tapers, and include low-profile “pedalboard friendly” footswitches. The
Hot Rod DeVille 410 III is a 60W combo with a 4”x10” speaker configuration borrowed from the Super Reverb and ’59 Bassman amps.
MSRP: Call company
Contact: Fender Musical Instruments Corp., 480.596.7195, www.
fender.com
22
december 2010
Guitars & Amps
PRODUCTS
Maverick Rides Again
The Real Slim Phatty
Overview: Moog Music’s Slim Phatty Analog Synthesizer Module
Specifics: Moog Music introduced the Slim Phatty Analog Synthesizer Module. The Slim Phatty’s 100% analog signal path, user
interface, construction and MIDI, USB and Control Voltage functionality make it suitable for producers, touring musicians and DJs. It’s
17 inches wide. Based on the Little Phatty sound engine, the Slim
Phatty is a descendant of the Minimoog Model D and features the
classic Moog Ladder Filter. In addition to shaping the sound of its onboard oscillators, the Slim Phatty’s filter is a production tool that can
be used to process external audio, sweetening one’s favorite audio
source with everything from smooth analog warmth through wet,
resonant filter sweeps. Its size makes it a suitable voice expander for
one’s existing gear.
MSRP: $849
Ship Date: Now
Contact: Moog Music, 828.251.0090, www.moogmusic.com
Over view: Morley’s Mini Wah
Volume and Maverick (Mini Switchless Wah)
Specifics: Morley, manufacturers
of Wah/Volume Pedals and switching devices, released its two newest
pedals: the Mini Wah Volume and
Maverick (Mini Switchless Wah).
Measuring 6.75 inches in length,
4.5 inches in width and 2.75 inches
in height, these are suitable for any
pedal board. Both the Mini Wah
Volume and Maverick are equipped
with the company’s Electro-Optical circuitry, so there are no pots
to wear out like typical Wah and
Volume pedals. The Mini Wah Volume has a traditional Wah tone combined with a smooth audio taper volume. The Maverick is a switchless
Wah with a hybrid vintage/modern Wah tone that is suitable for anyone familiar with the company’s switchless Wahs, such as the Steve
Vai Bad Horsie, Tremonti Wah and Lynch Dragon 2.
MSRP: Mini Wah Volume: $139; Mini Wah: $149
Ship Date: Now
Contact: Morley, 800.284.5172, www.morleypedals.com
23
25th Music & Sound Awards
(continued from front cover)
Best Electric Guitar:
Ibanez RGA 8 String (RGA8BK)
DBZ Guitars Imperial Series
“I am honored that the DBZ Imperial
has been nominated by dealers for
Best Electric Guitar of The Year.
I had the concept for a long time,
but never built it. The inception of
the DBZ brand gave me a perfect
opportunity to make it a reality.”
—Dean Zelinsky, CEO
Jackson JS Series
“We’re pleased the Jackson JS Series
was nominated for Best Electric
Guitar of the Year. We listened to
our dealer network and tried to
design the right instrument at the
right price. We’re happy to see
they’re successful for dealers and
consumers.” —Jeff Cary, senior
vice president, marketing–Specialty
Brands, Fender
PRS 513 Swamp Ash
Line 6 Variax
Best Bass Guitar:
Ibanez SRA Series (SRA505BB)
Kala UBass-2
“Kala is grateful to our dealers
and the Retailer for this Music &
Sound Award nomination. We are
delighted that the Kala U-Bass
has been recognized by them as a
groundbreaking bass instrument by
including it in the Best Bass Guitar
category. With its polyurethane
strings and 20-inch scale, our
customers have discovered that the
U-Bass has incredible low end to
rival any bass instrument and offers
the ultimate in portability.”
—Rick Carlson
Alfred Michael
Jackson
Songbooks
Fishman
Aura
Sixteen
DBZ Cavallo
Pacemaker
American DJ Revo 4
Lakland 44-60
Godin Shifter Bass
Fender American Deluxe
Precision
“We’re extremely honored to be
nominated for Bass Guitar of the
Year, Product of the Year and
Manufacturer of the Year, and
extend a hearty ‘thank you’ to all
our dealers and business partners
who believe in what we’re doing
and are taking notice of our efforts.”
—Richard McDonald,
senior vice president, marketing
Best Guitar Accessory:
Graph Tech TUSQXL Nuts
“It’s truly incredible to be
nominated, because the focus is
usually on shiny, beautiful guitars,
and performance components
like TUSQ XL nuts can be easily
overlooked. Retaining the look
and tone of our original TUSQ
nuts and saddles, plus infusing
Teflon throughout the material
to provide unparalleled tuning
performance, no matter the style of
play, took years to develop. So, this
nomination is very inspiring for our
team, and shows us you understand
that components, no matter the
size, are as important as the wood,
finishes and hardware that make
guitars sound and look desirable.
Thank you to our fans!”
—Dave Dunwoodie, president
Barcus-Berry Breeze II & IV
Preamps
“The Breeze series was an exciting
launch in 2010, not only as an
addition to the Barcus-Berry line,
but also because it was selected as
the electronics line for all Sierra
acoustic-electric guitar models. We
are pleased with the positive dealer
response, and we thank everyone
who nominated us in this category.”
—Kimberly Hawthorne,
product manager
D’Addario EXP Electric Strings
“It is a great honor to know that our
EXP Strings and Puresound Custom
Pro Snare Wires have received such
fantastic acclaim that they have
been deemed worthy of nomination
for this year’s Music & Sound
Awards. It is very humbling to know
that our continuous hard work and
dedication to quality and innovation
has not gone unnoticed this past
year.” —David Via, VP of sales
and marketing
Seymour Duncan Alnico Pro II
Slash Humbucker
“Years ago, Slash approached me
about doing a signature Seymour
Duncan pickup. But, after going
back and forth with design
revisions, he gave up. He told me,
‘I finally realized the Alnico II Pro
is perfection—you can’t improve
on perfection.’ The APH-2 came
about as Gibson was recreating the
’59 Gibson Les Paul copy Slash has
recorded with since ‘Appetite for
Destruction.’ He couldn’t get its
gutsy punch with other instruments.
So, Slash challenged us to develop
a pickup that would make his live
guitars sound like his recording
guitar. The result is the APH-2.”
—Seymour Duncan
LR Baggs Anthem
“LR Baggs is honored to have the
new Anthem system nominated for
the Best Guitar Accessory category
of the Music & Sound Awards. We
work very hard only to release new
products into the marketplace that
truly make a difference and fulfill a
need or desire from the musician’s
standpoint. The Anthem definitely
does this in spades. We appreciate
the validation of our work from the
industry.” —Ryan Angle, COO
Best Keyboard/Sound Module:
Yamaha Tyros 4
“A great deal of R&D goes into
every product we manufacture
and it’s always satisfying to be
recognized for our instruments’
success, especially in such
competitive categories. It is even
more gratifying to know that these
nominations come from our dealers
themselves under the auspices of
the Music & Sound Retailer.”
—Rick Young, senior vice president
Kurzweil PC3LE
“We are so honored that our PC3LE
has been recognized. Thanks and
best of luck to all the nominees!”
—Mike Papa,
American Music & Sound
24
december 2010
D’Addario
EXP Strings
eMedia Piano &
Keyboard Method
Version 3.0
Electro-Harmonix Ring Thing
Casio Privia PX-3
Yamaha Piaggero NPV80
Korg Limited Edition SP-170RD
“Korg USA has been nominated
in several categories by our retail
partners for our Korg and Vox
brands. We are proud to bring these
high-quality products to the market
and are pleased with this ‘vote of
confidence’ from our dealers. It’s
an honor to be nominated, and we
appreciate the efforts of everyone
involved with bringing these new
products to the musical instrument
channel.” —Douglas Nestler,
vice president of sales
Best Instrument Amplifier:
Peavey 6506+ 112 Combo
Ibanez Tube Screamer Amp
(TSA15H/TSA112C)
Fishman Loudbox Mini
Genz Benz Shuttle 9.0 Bass
Amplifier
“We at Genz Benz are thrilled to
achieve this recognition for our
Shuttle 9.0 bass amplifier. We are
prouder still for the fact that this
is the second time we’ve been
recognized for innovation and
performance with this series, having
received this award previously for
our ShuttleMAX 12.0. Thank you
once again for the honor.” —Roger
Hart, director of merchandising/
Genz Benz, KMC Music
Vox AGA150
Best Power Amp:
Marathon Professional MA
Series
“We are honored that our MA Pro
Series Amplifiers were selected
as one of the best products. Our
amplifier boosts tremendous power
at an affordable price. And that is
one of the major reasons that we
are proud of our amplifiers and
maybe that’s why it got nominated
for this award.” —David Saghian,
managing director
Orange Tiny Terror
“Orange Amps are honored that the
Tiny Terror has been nominated as
Best Power Amp in the 2010 Music
& Sound Awards. The nomination
reflects the worldwide success of
the Tiny Terror.” —Alex Auxier,
global marketing coordinator
Line 6 DT50 112
Irradiant
SSL-3201RGB
Vox AC15HW1
PRS Sweet16 Experience LTD
Best Speaker:
QSC KW 153
Peavey Impulse 12D
GCI Technologies Gemini RS415
JBL PRX 600
Yamaha Active DSR Series
Best Multitrack Recorder/
Recording & Mixing Software:
Tascam DR-03
Zoom Q3HD
“Zoom is grateful for the Music &
Sound Awards nomination of the
Q3HD Handy Video Recorder.
It is the greatest of honors to be
recognized for developing a quality
product by the very people for
whom it was created. Our core
customers are musicians who value
great audio and the Q3HD aims
to provide the audio quality they
crave with exceptional 1080p HD
video.” —Mark Wilder, director of
marketing, Samson Technologies
Sanyo ICR-FP700D
Korg MR-2
Tascam PR-10
Best Mixer/Console:
Allen & Heath iLive R72
“Thank you to the Retailer for
the R72 nomination. What an
amazing honor!” —Michael Palmer,
PreSonus StudioLive 24.4.2
Roland M-300 V-Mixer
Mackie 402-VLZ3
Phonic Next Generation
Powerpod Powered Mixer
Best Cabled Microphone:
Audio-Technica AT2021 Small
Diaphragm Cardioid Condenser
“We are pleased and proud to
hear the news that A-T products
have been nominated for Music &
Sound Awards. It is an honor to be
recognized by our dealers for the
AT2021 Small Diaphragm Cardioid
Condenser Microphone and our
3000 Series Wireless Systems.
Thank you to the Music & Sound
Retailer for the nominations!”
—Gary Boss, marketing director
Shure Beta 27
“We’re honored to have two
JBL PRX 600
new products nominated for this
year’s Music & Sound Awards.
Sales of these products have been
strong, but this is another good
indicator for us as to how well the
Beta 27 and PSM900 have been
received by our customers, and we
appreciate the recognition.” —Terri
Hartman, director of marketing
communications for the Americas.
Audix Cab Grabber-XL (Cabled
Mic Accessory)
“Audix is delighted to be considered
for this category. The CabGrabber
XL was designed primarily as an
accessory to the i5 microphone.
Together, this is the perfect
combination for a killer guitar
sound.” —Cliff Castle
Sennheiser e835
MXL V177
“Marshall Electronics and MXL
are honored to have the V177
nominated in The Music & Sound
Awards. The V177 offers a great
value for all recording enthusiasts,
with a high-quality condenser
microphone that offers classic
styling, ease of use and delivers
the perfect vocal or instrument
recording.” —Jim Mona, national
sales manager, Pro Audio Division
Best Wireless System:
Shure PSM 900
Nady MGT-16
Sennheiser SKM 165 G3
Audi-Technica 3000 Series
Brace Audio DWG1000X
“Thank you for the nomination
of our Brace DWG1000x Digital
Wireless Guitar System. Having
toured with members of Prince,
Buddy Guy, Lady Gaga, Guns N’
Roses, Train, Eminem, Drake,
Queen Latifah, Janet Jackson,
Sean Kingston, Justin Bieber,
Mark Farner, Bonnie Raitt, Charlie
Daniels, P-Funk and many more,
forty-fifth edition
Man’s Best Friend
Whoever claimed dogs are “man’s best friend” really knew what he
was talking about. A man was very brave, as well. This story might
sound unbelievable, but it is true. Who needs Hollywood when true
stories like this happen?
On Oct. 21, two burglary suspects broke the plate glass front door
of Cassell’s Music in San Fernando, Calif. The suspects cut through
two padlocks with bolt cutters and were able to slide open the security
gates and access the store’s showroom. One suspect went straight
to the store’s cash register. The other suspect, sporting a skeleton
Halloween costume and carrying a sleeping bag, went to the store’s
acoustic guitar room and began to fill the sleeping bag with mid-line
acoustic-electric guitars. That suspect grabbed a Sofia Mari Bajo
Quinto, another guitar, and left through the broken front door on
his way to a pickup truck parked in a nearby alley. The suspects
had planned the heist well, except for one problem: Chris Grocott,
Cassell’s Music’s store manager, lives next door to the store. He was
awake, performing horn repairs, when the 4 a.m. burglar alarm went
off. Grocott put on his shoes and proceeded out his front door with
his three dogs, a pit bull, a German shepherd and a Dalmatian, in tow.
Grocott yelled for one of the suspects to “stop.” The suspect proceeded to run toward the pickup truck. Grocott and the dogs chased the
suspect. However, the suspect somehow leaped over a six-foot wall
and disappeared along with two guitars.
The other suspect with the skeleton costume and seven guitars in
a sleeping bag faced a much different result. The dogs chased the
man and cornered him against a neighboring business’ wall. The
dogs continued to bark to keep the suspect at bay. Knowing he was
in trouble, the suspect swung the bolt cutters at Duchess, the pit bull,
striking her in the head above the eye. That was a huge mistake by
the suspect. Following the blow to the head, Duchess brought the
In Concert
Tampa, Fla.’s Bigel
Music hosted its staff
concert on Nov. 7.
Audible Infrequencies and SpeakEasy
performed at the
event. During the
event, Bigel Music
also had raffled off a
guitar and a three-day
cruise to benefit the
Children’s Dream
Fund. “Many thanks
to all of you who came out yesterday,” the
store posted on its Facebook page on Nov.
8. “It was a great show. We’re very proud of
our teachers and students. Will be posting
pics and video soon. Getting ready for our
Strings for Food event this weekend.”
26
Grocott
is joined by
Duchess,
both heroes
in a burglary
attempt.
suspect down. Grocott followed by sitting on the suspect and holding
him down until police arrived. Another neighbor helped Grocott to
make sure the suspect did not flee. The suspect was taken to a nearby
hospital to treat his dog bites.
As of this printing, police were still searching for the suspect who
successfully fled. Ed Intagliata, owner of Cassell’s Music, lauded
Grocott for his efforts. “I wanted to reward Chris for his efforts far
above the call of duty by offering to send him on an all-expense-paid
trip to Las Vegas,” said Intagliata. “He said, ‘You don’t have to do that.
You gave me a job 10 years ago when no one else would. That’s all the
reward I need.’ That’s a very rare employee, who takes ownership and
pride and doesn’t expect to be compensated above and beyond.”
Grocott did have one request: extra-large dog bones for his three
crime stoppers.
Catch a Rainbow
The Grand Rapids Press featured Michigan-based Rainbow Music in its Nov. 7
edition. The story gives a full rundown
of the store’s 31 years in business. The
name Rainbow came from the fact that the
owners, Pete Bardolph and John Gelderloos, wanted a “colorful, attention-getting
sign for their new business.” Gelderloos
told the newspaper acoustic guitar sales
are hot right now. “The acoustic [guitar]
market in general is as strong as it’s ever
been,” he said.
Food For Thought
iMSO announced 25 dealers were
participating in Strings For Food events.
See next month’s issue for much more
information.
GearFest Big in WI
Cascio Insterstate Music brought in
big names for its sixth GearFest on Nov.
20. The New Berlin, Wis., retailer hosted
Billy Sheehan, Greg Koch and more. The
event, sponsored by Yamaha, Fender,
Archer, Hal Leonard and Roland, featured
clinics and performances from 11 a.m. to 5
p.m. Prizes were handed out and food and
drinks were provided.
Ohio Store Reopens
Tim Edwards reopened Studio E Music
& Sound in October at a new location in
Athens, Ohio. The store was destroyed
after a tornado ripped through the county
in September. The store reopened on Oct.
15 at 1002 E. State St. The store stocks 182
different guitars and offers lessons on a host
of instruments.
december 2010
Fitting the Bill’s
Baltimore’s Bill’s Music celebrated its 45th anniversary with a
celebration that included music from live bands, “Guitar Hero 2” contests, Gibson traveling exhibits, free giveaways, clinics and more. The
Baltimore City Council stopped by to declare the occasion “Bill’s Music
House Day.” Drummers Dennis Chambers and Larry Bright were
among the hundreds of well-wishers.
Bill’s Music was founded by Bill Higgins in 1965 as an eight-foot-byeight-foot store. Higgins still works in the now-much-larger store, along
with his wife, Nancy, and their children, Brian, Tracey and Jamie.
Forty-plus-year veterans Jim Mays, Lou Campagnoli and Ron Cook
also have prominent store positions. “Forty-five years is a big deal!”
said Tracey Higgins, who organized the celebration. “We wanted to do
something to thank all of our customers who have stuck by us through
the age of chain stores and Internet shopping. Because of them, my
family and the whole Bill’s crew have been able to do something we
love, working in the music business every day.”
Big Beat Scores Big
area. I see follow-through. People come back.”
You can accurately say Big Beat 2010 was
However, Bennett did admit people who
bigger than ever. This year, 15 independent perattended his Woodstick event don’t form a line
cussion retailers participated. More than 1,600
outside of his store the next morning to buy a
drummers participated. Many thousands of
drum set. “It takes time,” he stressed. “Somedollars were raised for Mr. Holland’s Opus and
times, people don’t come back until the next
other charities. Felice Mancini, Mr. Holland’s
summer. They filter in throughout the year. But
Opus executive director, said, “To have the
they do come back. The good will goes a long
enthusiastic support of so many music retailers
way.”
through such a fun event as Big Beat is quite a
In addition to raising money for Mr. Holland’s
thrill for us. They do a great job of promoting
Opus, Bennett gathers funds to be used toward
our work and getting players to join in the efbuying instruments for local schools. “When
fort. Last year, we were able to help 12 schools
we present those instruments to schools in the
in seven states, giving schools $80,000 worth of
Seattle School District, it’s a big deal,” Bennett
musical instruments. We hope to do even more
said. “We’re thought of as heroes. Teaching
in the coming year. We are so grateful to be askids how to play music is my life’s purpose.”
sociated with Big Beat!”
Participants in this year’s Big Beat in addition
This marked the third year of Big Beat, which
to Bennett were Buffalo Drum Outlet, Colorado
features clinics, celebrity appearances and much
Drum & Percussion, Columbus Percussion,
more. But the idea spans several years further
Drum Headquarters, Drum World, Ellis Drum
back. Donn Bennett, owner of Donn Bennett
Shop, Canadian-based Just Drums, Lemmon PerDrum Studio in Bellevue, Wash., originally
cussion, Original Long Island Drum Center, Reshatched the idea. The event was originally called
urrection Drums, Rhythm Traders, Skins-n-Tins,
Woodstick. “The idea came from a friend of mine
Stebal Drums and The Percussion Center. All
named Chris Kimball,” said Bennett last month.
of those stores are members of Five-Star Drum
“He thought of it as a rotary club fundraiser.
Shops. “The ultimate goal is to generate money
He called me with the idea. At first, I thought it
for Mr. Holland’s Opus, which they then use to
was a crazy idea. But, after thinking about it for
fund music programs in needy school districts
awhile, I thought it was a good opportunity to
in the Big Beat cities,” said Rob Birenbaum,
promote drumming. He and I have worked on it
from 2003. I have not counted the money yet, but All of the happenings at Donn Bennett Drum Five-Star’s manager. “Therefore, 15 programs
benefited. The stores don’t choose who received
I’m confident we doubled the amount of money
Studio
the money.”
we raised compared to last year. And we did well
Activities throughout the day varied from store to store. “World’s
last year. This year was our best event ever. And it was so much fun.
Fastest Drummer” competitions are one example. But there was one
I’ve learned from my mistakes and the event has been better and better
uniform event. “At 5:45 EST, all of the cities played the same beat at
every year. I think this event is just getting started.”
the same time,” said Birenbaum. “There’s a conductor in Seattle and
Raising money for charity is a wonderful cause. But does Big Beat
every other store is linked by the Internet.”
subsequently draw those customers back to the store? “Absolutely,”
Manufacturers really stepped up for Big Beat. According to Bianswered Bennett. “It’s the ultimate win-win event. It inspired people
renbaum, about $235,000 worth of products were provided by many
to play drums. I have a drum shop. It can only be good for my store.
companies to use toward giveaways and other charitable purposes.
Big Beat has helped to establish my store as the center of our drumIn 2009, 11 stores participated.
ming community. It really sets us apart from any other retailer in the
27
2011 Music & Sound Award Dealer Nominees
2010 BEST MULTI-STORE DEALER
Guitars & Basses
Recording-Related Products
Best Customer Service
Jim’s Music (MI, WI)
Skip’s Music (CA)
Alto Music (NY)
Guitar Center
Alto Music (NY)
George’s Music (PA, FL)
Guitar Center
Firehouse Guitars (GA, MI)
Mozingo Music (MO)
Ted Brown Music (WA)
Keyboards
Percussion
Sales Staff
Sam Ash
Keyboards & More (FL)
Daddy’s Junky Music
Ken Stanton Music (GA)
Fork’s Drum Closet (TN)
Sam Ash
Guitar Center
Skip’s Music (CA)
Skip’s Music (CA)
Willis Music (KY, OH)
Alto Music (NY)
Instrument Amplifiers
DJ Equipment
2010 Multi-Store Dealer of the Year
Alto Music (NY)
The Music Zoo (NY)
Willis Music (KY, OH)
IDJ Now (NY)
Best Buy
Willis Music (KY,OH)
Sam Ash
Sound Reinforcement
Best Clinics
Skip’s Music (CA)
Guitar Center
Dietze Music (NE)
Skip’s Music (CA)
Alto Music (NY)
Skip’s Music (CA)
Fork’s Drum Closet (TN)
Alto Music
Corner Music
Willis Music
2010 BEST SINGLE-STORE DEALER
Guitars & Basses
Music Villa (MT)
Elderly Instruments (MI)
Guitarworks (IN)
Everything Music & Sound (OK)
Keyboards
Beacock Music (WA)
Corner Music (TN)
Sweetwater (IN)
Grandma’s Music (NM)
Instrument Amplifiers
Everything Music & Sound (OK)
Spotlight Music (CO)
Owensboro Music (KY)
Texas Music Emporium (TX)
Sound Reinforcement
Corner Music (TN)
Metro Sound & Lighting (MN)
Advance Music Center (VT)
Daddy’s Junk Music
Skip’s Music
Recording-Related Products
Customer Service
Washington Music (MD)
Sweetwater (IN)
Music Masters (FL)
Corner Music (TN)
Sweetwater (IN)
Music Villa (MT)
Percussion
Sales Staff
Lone Star Percussion (TX)
Cascio Interstate Music (WI)
The Drum Pad (IL)
Backbeats Drum & Backline (UT)
Corner Music (TN)
The Music Center (WI)
DJ Equipment
2010 Best New Dealer
Asmar Sound (IL)
Music Trends (NY)
Rock & Soul (NY)
Georgetown Music (WA)
Whole Note Music (GA)
Downtown Music (SC)
Southbury Music Studio (CT)
Best Clinics
2010 Single-Store Dealer of the Year
Zone Music (CA)
Music Villa (MT)
Cascio Interstate Music (WI)
Corner Music (TN)
Music Villa (MT)
29
NAMM University Sessions
NAMM University Breakfast Sessions
NAMM U offers breakfast sessions each morning in the Hilton Anaheim Ballroom
(FREE breakfast served 8 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.; session 8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.)
Join in-depth panel discussions and guest speaker presentations featuring industry insiders discussing their
ideas and strategies for doing business in today’s competitive marketplace.
Time
8:00 A.M.
Thursday, Jan 13
Friday, Jan 14
Saturday, Jan 15
Sunday, Jan 16
Breakfast of Champions
Lessons Learned:
How Doing Business Now
Has Changed For the Better
The Retail Doctor’s Guide to
Growing Your Business
Best in ShowThis Year’s Hottest
Products
Idea Center (Booth 5501)
Idea Center sessions are loaded with business-building ideas that you can put to use right away.
Catch as many as you can and take the opportunity to learn what is and isn’t currently working for music retailers.
32
Time
Thursday, Jan 13
Friday, Jan 14
Saturday, Jan 15
Sunday, Jan 16
10:30 A.M.
Right & Wrong Retail
How to Use Facebook to
Market Your Business:
The Do’s and Don’ts
Reaching Out with the
Right Technology
Best in Show: What’s New in
My Store & My Plan to Sell It
11:00 A.M.
Tough Times Require
Tough Decisions
Adding Up: 5 Ways to Increase
Every Sale
How to Establish a Successful Web
Presence for Your Store
11:30 A.M.
Selling Yourself to the Bank
No More Slow Days! (How to Get A
Crowd in Your Store Every Day)
How to “Socialize” in the World of
Social Media
12:00 Noon
Tapping Into the SBA’s Resources
Take Your Music Lesson Program
Beyond ‘11!
Google’s Online Power Tools That
You Need NOW!
12:30 P.M.
Email Strategies: Tips for Targeting
Your Customers to Increase Sales
1:00 P.M.
Steal This Model: Stand Out with
a Unique Destination, Simplicity &
Products
1:30 P.M.
Songwriting Boosts Your
Business? Believe It!
Get Connected!-Online Business
Strategies
Create a High-Impact
Website Home Page
Now Hiring: Positive Attitude,
Strong Character and High
Motivation Required
Technology and the Music Retailer:
What You Need to Implement Social
Media
Creating New Customers
and Musicians with the
Mighty Ukulele
Guerilla Tactics Series: Play to Your
Strength-Know Your Local Market
My Experience with SCORE:
A Real-Life Success Story
Hire Us to Fire Us: How We are
Keeping Music Programs Alive
2:00 P.M.
Guerilla Tactics Series: Never Give
Up-How Community Support Reinstated a Music Program
How SCORE Can Work for You!
The New Face of the Community
Music Store
2:30 P.M.
Guerilla Tactics Series: How to
Advertise Your Music Store Events
in the Local Media Without Spending
A Dime!
The Key to BUYING Music
Product Inventory
The Key to MANAGING Music
Product Inventory
3:00 P.M.
Guerilla Tactics Series: Guerilla
Marketing on a Chimp’s Budget
If We Can Do It,
You Can Do It Too!
Your Customers Prefer “High-Touch”
NOT “Hi-Tech!”
3:30 P.M.
Proven Systems for Selling
Instruments and Accessories to Your
In-Store Students
The Hidden Secrets of Open Mics:
A Fresh Look at a Proven Model
The New Face of Music Lessons:
Teach the Entire Family!
4:00 P.M.
Successful Lessons Series:
Improving Your Business Cash
Flow through Your Music Lessons
Program
Lessons Learned: Best Practices
for Success-Minded Retailers
4:30 P.M.
Successful Lessons Series: Offer
Group Instruction to Grow Your
Music Program
5:00 P.M.
Successful Lessons Series: Create
In-Store Events & New Customers
2011 Best Tools for
Schools Awards
Luthiery Landscape: Shaping
the Look & Sound of Guitars
Mobile Marketing:
How to Use It & Profit!
december 2010
25th Music & Sound Awards
(continued from page 25)
Brace is not professional because
we say so, but because our users
do!” —David Stokes,
founder and president
Best Drum Set:
Gretsch USA Custom Limited
Piano White with Gold Nitron
Inlay & Hardware
“We are honored to be selected
by the Music & Sound Awards
for a nomination for 2010 Drum
Set of the Year. This kit, created
by Paul Cooper and the USA
Custom factory craftsmen,
represents Gretsch Drums’ ongoing
commitment to producing worldclass kits that embody innovative
visual appeal along with ‘That Great
Gretsch Sound.’”
—John Palmer, Gretsch Drums
product manager, KMC Music
Yamaha Rock Tour Drum Set
DW Performance Series Shell
Pack
“Being nominated for Best Drum
Set is a big deal to us. Not only
because this is the one of the bigger
product launches in the company’s
almost-40-year history, but also
because this set is near and dear
to our hearts. We’re truly honored
to be nominated for this year’s
Music & Sound Awards and the
recognition feels great. Thanks to
all!” —Scott Donnell,
director of marketing
Pearl E-Pro Live
“We are extremely proud and
honored that Pearl’s new E-Pro Live
has been selected by our music
retailer partners as one of the best
products in the Drumset category.
These nominations mean a lot to
us here at Pearl. They validate the
years of hard work by so many to
bring a product to market, and they
allow the thousands of retail music
dealers in our industry to speak
their approval with one voice. We
are truly honored.”
—Terry West, president and CEO
Mapex Black Panther Snare
Drum
“Sabian is honored to receive this
important industry recognition!
Many had told us that classic dark
‘old world’ cymbal sounds could not
be improved upon. We agree it was
a massive challenge, but the deep
knowledge gained from 30 years
of developing creative, innovative
products has resulted in what
we believe is the best suspended
cymbal available. The result is
perfect for today’s wide range of
orchestral work: It’s the sound of a
century-old model that has matured
through decades of playing.” —Staff
Paiste Alpha Rock Hats
“Paiste Cymbals is truly honored to
be nominated for this prestigious
Music & Sound Award. We are
very humbled that, out of so many
choices available to customers,
the voters selected our Alpha
Rock Hats among one of the best
in its category. We’d like to thank
all the voters and the Music &
Sound Retailer. We appreciate
your support.” —Andrew Shreve,
national marketing manager
Big Bang Distribution Kasza R,
F and S Cymbals
Meinl Benny Greb Sand Hats
“Developing the Sand Hats with
Benny Greb was a great learning
experience for us. The idea for the
Sand Hats was a direct result of the
success we’ve had with the Sand
Ride, which we developed with
Benny, as well. The R&D process
for these cymbals spanned a period
of almost two years. We are very
grateful to Benny Greb for his
participation in the development of
the Sand Hats. It’s a great honor for
the Sand Hats to be nominated for
Best Cymbal:
Zildjian K Light Flat Ride
The 20-inch K Flat ride is a one of a
kind cymbal. It’s the only dark flat
ride that we make that is traditional
both in sound and appearance.
Designed with no bell, this thin,
lightly hammered and lathed
cymbal is meant primarily to serve
as a softer, drier ride alternative in
medium to small group settings.
With excellent stick articulation,
this cymbal will still provide some
cushion that the band can ride on
without getting in the way.”
—Brad Baker, vice president of
marketing communications
Sabian Vault Artisan Traditional
Suspended Cymbal
33
five minutes wit h
michael laiacona,
B y B r i a n B erk
In a city known for being the
home to Eastman Kodak, Rochester, N.Y., it’s only fitting we paint
the full picture that is Whirlwind.
If a picture is indeed worth a thousand words, we then will present
you with two pictures. Michael
Laiacona has a lot of information
to share. His stories are unbelievable. He will tell you all about
Whirlwind, which is celebrating
its 35th anniversary this year, and
a predecessor company he helped
form. He’ll tell you why necessity
is indeed the mother of all invention. He will tell how he came up
with the name Whirlwind. He
will tell you about Whirlwind at
NAMM next month. And we will
tell you much more.
The Music & Sound Retailer: Let’s begin with your
background and your connection to the music industr y.
Michael Laiacona: I started
when I was about 11 or 12 years
old. With a bunch of friends, we
started a garage band in Albany,
N.Y. None of us knew how to play.
But we did know we liked the music scene. We were intrigued by
The Beatles, The Rolling Stones
and all of the popular bands of the
early 1960s.
During the course of two
or three years, we became a
full-fledged rock ‘n’ roll band.
We rose from the garage to the
school scene. We played at school
dances and private parties. When
we got to be about 15 or 16 years
old, we started playing at bars at
college fraternity parties. I was
the guy in the band who played
bass guitar and also became
technical advisor for the group. I
learned how to solder, fix cables
and fix any problem on the spot. I
grew a natural talent for instruments and started building my
own equipment. I built speaker
cabinets and more. Bands in my
area started bringing equipment
for me to fix. That’s how I got my
President, wHirlwind
technical background.
In my second year in college,
I was still playing in the same
band. I had been playing with
them for 10 years at that point.
I started to think about building
something no one else had. I
came up with a device you could
put your guitar into that made
things sound weird. Over time,
I started working in an electronics store. I met an electronics
guy who knew about circuits. We
started collaborating on different things. One of the things on
which we collaborated was a pedal I made. We wanted to make it
better. His name was Keith Barr.
Together, we became the starting
force behind MXR. After MXR,
he worked with Alesis. Keith just
passed away, unfortunately.
Keith and I built this nice little
box. It sounded really nice. It was
a combination of a phase shifter
and an octave divider in one box.
One night, I went to a nightclub
where a very famous guitarist was
playing. His name was Jesse Ed
Davis. At that time, he was out doing his own gigs. But he was the
guitar player for Taj Mahal. At the
end of the night, I went backstage
and told him I had a little box you
could plug your guitar into and he
was really enthusiastic about it.
He told me he wanted to hear it.
After the bar closed, he played for
a couple of hours using my box.
I was so enthralled that someone
famous liked this box so much
that I agreed to make him one and
send it to him
free of charge.
Lo and behold, a
couple of weeks
later, he called
me and told
me he wanted
a couple more. I scratched my
head and didn’t think much about
it. This time, he said he wanted
the boxes sent to England. I said,
“OK.” I never questioned it. I
made the boxes and sent them off.
This got me thinking that if this
guy, a famous guitar player, liked
the box so much, maybe other
people would, too. So Keith and I
started making some boxes in our
basements. I would go out at night
and sell them to the local bands in
the area. They would fall in love
with the box and, at the end of the
night, they would pay me for it.
Over time, I ran out of bands to
sell them to, so I thought about
selling the box to music stores.
The first music store I went to,
they threw me out. They were
mad because they told me I had
sold the box to every musician
they knew of. So there was no way
they could sell them.
So I thought that maybe if I got
in my car and drove far enough
away, where nobody knew them,
maybe those dealers would buy
the boxes. That’s what happened.
I went to music stores one by
one, demoing the box and taking
orders. That’s how MXR was
formed. I continued to do so
until it became an international
success. I traveled to all of the
countries in Europe, Australia
and Japan and took the box with
me. In the mid-1970s, I had a
parting of the ways with the partners of MXR. There were three
partners…not just Keith and I. So
I started my own company called
Whirlwind. One of the ideas I
had at MXR was to manufacture
not only guitar effects pedals, but
also other products musicians
needed. One of the things I realized was that I not only needed to
make guitar pedals that sounded
good, but I also needed to make
guitar cords, straps and a whole
bunch of other miscellaneous
products. I had brought that up
to my partners at MXR, but they
didn’t like the idea. They thought
those products were too low-tech.
MXR was a circuit board company and an electronics company.
They didn’t think making quality
accessories for musicians would
35
be up their alley.
When I left MXR and started
Whirlwind, the first thing we did
was to build high-quality guitar
cords. I went to my first NAMM
show in Chicago. I also wanted
to import some acoustic guitars
from Europe. I had a card table
with some heavy-duty guitar
cables on them. During the
course of three days that dealers
came to talk to me—and they
already knew me from my MXR
days—they didn’t really like the
guitars. But they looked at the
cords and said, “We don’t want
any of the acoustic guitars you’re
going to sell, but we’ll take a
couple of those guitar cables.” In
three days, I sold 25,000 guitar
cables.
To add to my story, Jesse Ed
Davis became a session guitar
player for The Beatles. So the
pedals went to the Beatles. I was
building boxes for The Beatles
and didn’t even know it. I didn’t
know until two years later, when
Jesse invited me to visit him in
California. I went to Marina Del
Rey and was in Jesse’s living
room waiting for him to come in,
and this guy in a bathrobe and
with a cup of coffee walks in with
a cigarette. He had long hair and
wore glasses. I knew exactly who
it was but didn’t say anything. Jesse came in and said, “Hey John,
do you know who this guy is?”
“I have no idea who he is,” said
John.
“He’s your best friend, John.”
“What are you talking about?”
“That’s the guy who’s been
making pedals for you for all
these years.”
He started smiling and laughing. We became friends instantly.
John was John Lennon. Jesse was
John Lennon’s guitar player on
“Imagine” and all the other solo
albums.
M&SR: How did you sell
that many cables in only three
days?
Laiacona: Well, people would
say I want a dozen of these in
10-foot length, a dozen in 20-foot
length, etc. And the big guys of
the day, such as Sam Ash and
Manny’s Music, bought four or
five thousand cables each. I came
home with orders for 25,000 and
said, “What am I going to do
now?” I had no idea what to do.
So I decided, “I guess I’m a guitar
cord factory.”
M&SR: How could you
possibly build that quantity of
cables quickly?
Laiacona: Well, I knew
manufacturing from MXR. I had
learned the game. I did tell the
dealers at NAMM that it would
take a month or so to get the ball
rolling. I would piecemeal the
product out when I first started
building. So, if someone would
order 100 cables, I shipped a
dozen or two dozen.
The guitar cables were a big
success with the customers. So,
I actually went from a zero-dollar
to a multi-million-dollar guitar
cord company in a manner of
months. That’s when I figured
that, if we can sell guitar cables,
we could sell speaker cables and
microphone cables and different patch cables. That idea went
over really well. I had a real cable
factory. Since I had been involved
with bands and knew about direct
boxes and snakes to plug a band
into a mixing board, that became
the next logical move. I started
making the first direct box, the
IMP 2, which, to this day, is still
the largest-selling direct box in
the world. It sounds great, is very
reliable, doesn’t require a battery and lasts forever. Then, we
started doing snakes for mixing
boards. In a span of about five or
six years, Whirlwind became a
big, established company. In fact,
it was bigger than MXR. Everyone needed cables and needed
lots of them. Paul McCartney,
The Who and others wanted
Whirlwind cables. It was the first
cable on the market that wouldn’t
break after you owned it for six
weeks. Back then, most cables
were imported. They were bad.
When I was in the garage band
when I was 11 or 12, the cables
were just junk.
The last 10 years, we’ve devoted our lives to digital audio.
That’s been going really well, too.
We’ve been doing large digital
audio installations for places like
the Dallas Cowboys stadium and,
most recently, the Orlando Magic
basketball arena. We do digital
audio for the Grand Ole Opry
and many theme parks. We’ve
done between 400 and 500 digital
installations all around the world.
M&SR: But you still make
guitar pedals, as well.
Laiacona: People came to me
and kept asking if I would make
guitar pedals again. At first, I
thought I had been there, done
that and didn’t want to do it again.
But lightning hit. I was with my
wife at a restaurant. A band was
playing and a guy in the band
knew me and knew I played guitar for 40 years. He asked me if
I could come up to the stage and
play. I said I didn’t want to, but
he insisted. I said I hadn’t played
in 10 years. But he handed me a
guitar and made me come up to
the stage. Six songs later, I was
hooked again. It got me stirred
up about making pedals. The key
for me to inventing products is
that “necessity is the mother”
phrase. I made guitar cords, for
example, because I always had
lousy guitar cords.
M&SR: You mentioned
earlier that you visited many
dealers one by one early on.
Does that still provide you
with an advantage, since many
of those dealers or their families are still around today?
Laiacona: Let me tell you…
When we first started MXR, I
had no money. Nobody had any
money. We would build 10 units
at a time, when we could make
enough money, build 20 units at
a time, and so on. I would literally
go out and visit dealers with $50
in my pocket. I had an agreement
with my parents that I could use
their gasoline credit card if I paid
it back when the bill came at the
end of the month. That meant I
had to sell enough boxes to pay
for the gasoline. I would try to
visit five or six dealers a day. At
the end of the day, I’d ask the
employee if he minded if I slept on
his couch in his living room that
36
december 2010
night. I told them I wouldn’t touch
anything and would be out by 6
a.m. They would look at me as if I
were crazy at first. But, eventually,
they’d say “Yes.” I literally slept
in hundreds of people’s houses
across the United States. To this
day, we still laugh about it. These
retailers are my best friends. We
still remember each other and
where we came from. I can call
up almost any music store in the
United States and say, “This is
Michael” and they know exactly
who it is. I don’t have to tell them
my last name.
no longer buy copper wire. The
snakes we made could become
obsolete.
M&SR: Why did you name
the company Whirlwind?
Laiacona: That was actually
a mistake. When I left MXR and
started my new company, I wanted
to import products from Europe,
as I mentioned earlier. I wanted to
import nice acoustic guitars. I met
with builders there who made really
nice guitars. I told everyone I knew
I wanted the company to be called
World Music. I went to an attorney
and wanted to apply for a business
license. I had to put the name of
the company down. The name
was rejected because there was a
World Music company in New York
City. So I had to come up with a
name that sounded like the name I
already told everyone about. We sat
around the table one night and said,
“How about Whirlwind Music?” It
sounded like World Music. That’s
how it all happened.
M&SR: Can you tell us
what we’ll see at your booth
during the NAMM show next
month?
Laiacona: We’re coming out
with a couple of new pedals for
the NAMM show. One pedal is a
clean boost for guitar called the
Bomb. We’re also coming out
with a pair of pedal equalizers
called the Perfect 10. And we
have a new box called the Byrd
Box, which can make a player
sound like a lot of things.
M&SR: You also mentioned earlier that you made
a transition to digital, which
you began about 10 years ago.
How difficult is it to make that
change?
Laiacona: It’s extremely difficult, especially considering we
didn’t know anything about digital.
We had no idea about digital audio
at the time. It’s all about a “fear
factor.” I remember someone
walking into my NAMM show
booth one day and asking if I had
heard about a new thing called
digital snakes. Everybody wanted
to get rid of the big snake cable
that went from the stage to the
mixing board. It’s a real hassle to
roll up at the end of the night. It’s
filthy. Everyone wanted something like a mic cable. Something
really small, easy and light. A
digital snake became like nirvana
for people. I had an inkling in my
mind that digital was possible.
You saw it with wristwatches,
cameras and TVs. Life was going
toward digital. We started reading
into everything we could about
digital. We had people studying.
In 1998, we became licensees
of CobraNet technology. It was
the technology for MediaMatrix.
CobraNet wanted us as a licensee
because we did a lot of large-scale
installations. I said, “OK, but there
are some changes I want to see
first.” CobraNet agreed with my
ideas. We had joint collaboration
and changed the methodology
of CobraNet. So, in about 2000,
we came out with our first digital
product, the DCS88. In 2002, we
came out with the E Snake (we
actually showed E Snake at the
2001 NAMM show). That product
is high in the domain of digital
products. We were driven by fear:
fear that, if we didn’t get involved
with digital audio, people would
37
mi sp y
Guitar Shopping
in Westchester, N.Y. and Western CT
I woke up in a room I didn’t recognize, with the taste of bonded
scotch in my mouth and the sound of a woman humming a Tears
For Fears song in the bathroom. “Head Over Heels,” I believe. It
took me a minute to get it all in focus. But, of course, I did.
The Chief called. He always calls at the worst times. Then
again, all times are bad. I’m either sleeping or enjoying my time
with those of the female persuasion. What was the job this time?
I was going to look for a guitar in Westchester County, N.Y., and
sprinkle in a store in nearby Connecticut.
I told the lady I was going out. My job comes first. (Yeah,
right!) She wanted to know when I’d be back. I said, as always,
“When the job is done,” and threw in, “Don’t worry, baby. Shopping for guitars always gets my libido going.” And out I went.
Guitar Center
2141 Palmer Ave.
Larchmont, N.Y. 10538
As my fellow sleuth, Philip Marlowe, put it, Guitar Center was
located in a dark part of town where small businesses “crawled
off to die.” It was surrounded by Chow Dog Pet Supplies and
Buy Rite liquors.
I had my story in place, all right. I was shopping for a guitar
for my 16-year-old nephew, a classic rock fan, who had moved
into the intermediate stage, somewhere between early Dave
Davies and mid-period Eric Clapton. The problem was, I almost
didn’t get to use it. Nobody in this big, modern, well-stocked
store paid me any mind as I walked in and looked like I needed
help. The store was well staffed. The place was bursting with
electric axes, from The Fender Squier to The Gretsch Country
Gentleman. But the help treated me as if I was crawling with
bed bugs from nearby New York City.
I picked up a Fender Tele 813 and only when I started to play
“Down by the River” did I get any help. Finally, a guy with a ponyMusic & Sound Retailer
tail—a man I’ll call “Dan”—deigned to talk to me.
He was sort of a bad combination of not very friendly and trying
too hard to sell the expensive stuff. I told him about my nephew (I
called him “Dan” just to tweak him) and the salesman went right
for pricey things. Dan recommended the Fender Solidbody Electric for $879.99. I asked about an Ibanez A573B. Dan said it wasn’t
“serious enough,” and suggested a Solidbody Electric Gibson
Explorer, which sold for $1,099. It went on like that. After a bit, I
said to Dan that I’d continue looking on my own.
And that I did. I played a Les Paul, a couple more Teles and
the Gretsch line. The sheer volume of the store is undeniable.
Many varieties of all the major brands. You can play without being hassled or questioned. But therein lies the problem.
I saw several customers—everything from a guy in a business suit playing Mike Bloomfield licks to some teens playing
Nirvana songs—and no one had a salesman even glancing their
way to see if they needed some help. I looked around the big
store. No one even said a word as I made my way to leave. So,
neither did I.
I was so depressed by the cold shoulder at Guitar Center that
I went and had a drink at a nearby bar. In fact, I had three. It was
early, so I opted for beer. A Sam Adams, a Guinness and then a
Blue Moon for a lighter brew. By that time, I remembered the
girl’s name and hotel number. It was Sherry. I went back and
she was done with her shower. She made me forget my troubles,
which was good.
Sam Ash
178 Mamaroneck Ave.
White Plains, N.Y. 10601
Sam Ash was like Guitar Center in a parallel universe. Unlike
The GC, there was no parking in front. You have to do that about
half a mile away. It’s a long walk. And if you leave with a heavy
39
electric guitar? A longer walk.
But, the sales help is anything but
indifferent. In fact, two salesmen
approached me right as I walked
in. They both stayed with me for
most of my time at Sam Ash. I
loved getting assisted, but felt the
double-team was too much. One
salesman would’ve been plenty.
If you remember the sales
clerks in that flick “High Fidelity,”
you might get some of the idea of
the vibe at Sam Ash. These two
guys, we’ll call them “Ned” and
“Dirk,” tried to get me to lower
my guitar standards at every
turn. I told them the story about
my intermediate-level nephew,
and how he was looking for an
intermediate axe.
I’d suggest a Fender Telecaster and Ned would say, “Oh,
he sounds more like he should
be playing a Brownsville LC33
Electric,” which sells for $149. I
talked about Les Paul and Dirk
said, “Oh, he’s probably not ready
for that yet. How about the Dean
Playmate EVO J guitar?
Sam Ash had a huge supply
of electric guitars. The place
was as clean and brightly lit as
an operating theater. You can
sit on stools and play to your
heart’s content. But what’s up
with the snarky service? Maybe
I was feeling paranoid, but, as I
walked around the huge main
room, I saw a bunch of young
guitarists (the same age as my
phantom nephew) either looking for help or getting the same
flip help from the uber-hip sales
force. As I walked around a bit
more, Dirk caught my eye one
last time. He pointed to the wall
and winked. If I’m not mistaken,
he was showing me a Squier
Affinity Mini Caster.
Sam Ash had great products,
but I felt overwhelmed.
I had a hangover still from
the night before. I went and
had some coffee. I called up
Sherry. She was back at The
Ritz Carlton, after a swim and
facial. OK, it wasn’t the Ritz
Carlton, but I didn’t want to give
you the name of the dilapidated
hotel. We’re rating guitar stores,
not hotels. I asked Sherry if
she’d join me for lobster in their
dining room. I’d been pushed
around by dumb slugs too
much. I needed some elegance.
Good food. A swinging blonde. I
had all three.
The next day, though, my
luck, heretofore as bad as that
of an amateur grifter, started to
turn. I’d heard about a place in
Connecticut named Greenwich
Music and the word in the
places I’d hung out in recently,
from the “Ritz Carlton” to
Nickie’s Pizzeria, was good. So
I decided to head over the state
line and make it into Fairfield
County. It was closer than you
might imagine.
Greenwich Music
1200 E. Putnam Ave.
Riverside, CT 06878
Now Greenwich Music is a
bit of a misnomer. The store is
actually in Riverside, not Greenwich, Conn. But that’s just
about the only thing wrong with
this joint. True, this smallish
store doesn’t make itself visible
enough from the busy road
below. And since it shares space
with a doctor and a few other
businesses, it could use a few
more parking spaces. But that’s
40
where the carping stops.
There was only one person
helping out that day; I’ll call
him “Joe”. I walked in the store,
about the size of a one-bedroom
apartment, and got a friendly
greeting. I looked at a guitar or
two hanging on the wall. But before I could even cast my eyes
about wistfully, Joe was there
saying, “Something I can help
you with today?” No sarcasm.
No letting me flop around,
either. I thought, “Man, I think
I’m going to like it here.”
Joe couldn’t have been more
concerned or avuncular. More
than my Uncle George, even.
He began to outline the electric
guitars that might appeal to a
16-year-old aspiring rocker.
First up was an Epiphone Les
Paul Standard, which went for
$549. This was pretty much the
guitar when I was growing up
and Joe assured me that it still
was.
He also let me play and carefully described the Epiphone
Limited Edition Slash Les Paul
Standard Guitar. This axe, at
$349, showed that Joe was willing to be flexible when laying
down the parameters for my
price range.
“Now, if you’re looking to go
up a bit in price,” he said, “Godin makes a very good electric
guitar, too.” He showed me a
Godin Redline Black Black H2
RN, which retails for $779 and
has a sexy double cutaway look
to it. Next to this was a Godin
Classic Leaf Top Trans Blue
Flame RN, which sells for $749.
Everything Joe showed me,
I was allowed to play and ask
questions about: the pickups,
the gauge strings that were
best, what sort of amp might
give my nephew the best sound.
There was no hard sell, but
Joe didn’t walk away and roll
his eyes, either. He was just
hands-on enough to make me
feel he wanted my business,
yet just patient enough when I
picked up the guitar and played.
Just like yesterday.
Now, if the guitars I tried
were not enough, Joe also told
me about what was due to come
in.
“In a few weeks,” he said,
“we’re going to be getting a
couple of Taylor guitars. Now,
I know that Taylor is known
primarily for their acoustics,
december 2010
but you may want to check them
out. The low-end models may be
a bit pricey—they start at about
$900—but they make a nice guitar. I’m here seven days a week.
So, if you want to think about
this, no sweat. I like talking about
this stuff.”
I left the Greenwich store and
went to have a glass of champagne. After all the drinking I’d
done to drown my sorrows, I had
something to celebrate this time.
I had one more place to go.
Bramson’s Music
280 N. Bedford Road
Mt. Kisco, NY 10549
The next day, after a breakfast
of crepes and mimosas with my
girl, I got into my car and drove
to Mt. Kisco. It was Bramson’s
Music, to be exact. The store was
situated on a busy street, but had
plenty of parking on the side of
the store. Bramson’s is easy to
spot and even easier to like. The
minute I walked into this large,
brightly lit place, I got a friendly
greeting from the man behind
the counter. I’ll call him “Jerry.”
It was the sort of hello that said,
“Take a look at some axes and
just nod if you need some help.”
I did.
In terms of the electric guitar,
the store was a bit heavy on Fenders. I looked at a Stratocaster 0144600-309 Standard that goes for
$499. I played the opening chords
from Layla and, before I knew
it, Jerry had sidled up to me and
plugged me into an amp. It was
the kind of touch that endeared
him to me.
“Now,” he said, “if you’re not
sure you want to go that high,
what about this?”
He then showed me a Starcaster,
which consisted of a Black
Starcaster guitar, with a maple
neck and fretboard, a small amp, a
guitar tuner, gig bag and other accessories. It usually retails for $229,
but Bramson’s is selling it for $199.
As with Greenwich, it wasn’t so
much the guitars this gentleman
showed me; rather, it was the service. Jerry was like a good parent
when you’re at your first day of
nursery school: close enough to
know he cares, but far enough
so that you have a little space to
assert your independence.
Jerry showed me the Epiphone Les Paul Standard, but also
took the time to plug the axe in,
so I’d know how it would sound
cranked up to a 16-year-old’s
level. He mentioned, too, that
his store was adjacent to a music
school, with a big knowledgeable staff of guitar teachers who
can turn a “teenage player into
a grown-up monster.” I know
he meant that in a musical, not
emotional, way.
Speaking of emotional, I
would’ve brushed away a tear
of happiness if I weren’t such
a big, tough guy. Out I went to
the lot. I got into my rented car
and drove off, this time into the
sunset.
Decision Time
Although it was pretty close, I
had to go with Bramson’s Music
Store. The size, cleanliness and
comfort of the place, as well as
the hands-on customer help and
the fact that there is a music
school attached, made this one
a squeaker over the worthy
Greenwich Music. Sam Ash
was a quality experience, but I
thought the store overdid it and
I didn’t feel comfortable. Guitar
Center’s service was just not
strong enough this go round.
I was hoping I was strong
enough to go out with my latest
lady that night. Hey, even MI
Spy gets tired. Well, maybe I
can take a nap before I leave.
Time to set up my next location.
I’d definitely like to go to the
NAMM show next month. But
maybe the Chief will give me a
different place to shop….
A P P R A I S A L S C E N E I N V E S T I G AT I O N
Tell your family
what you’ve got…
or maybe not?
B y R e b e c c a Apodaca
It is important for us to keep
track of our personal instruments
and collectable industry memorabilia and to have appraisals
done. Start an inventory list. Use
a simple Excel program to list
the instruments you have. We
all track our business inventory,
but do you have one for your own
personal collection?
When a music store owner
dies—A while ago, we did an appraisal for an estate settlement of
a retired music store owner who
had passed away. We were called
to view four to five instruments to
see if they were worth anything
before they “put them in the trash
bin with the rest of his junk,” as
I was told. Unfortunately, this is
how some of our family members
and certain other professionals
view musicians. The professional
trustee and the lawyers had
already reviewed his “real” assets
and this was just a few leftover
pieces. We met the trustee at a
storage unit.
Classic Band Instruments—
I saw about 20 band instrument
cases that were from the 1940s
to ’60s. I told the trustee, “This
is more than four or five instruments. You have four alto saxes,
two trombones, piccolos, a flute
and it looks like a Bari-sax there
in the back.” She was amazed.
She said, “You know what types
of instruments are in the cases
before opening them?” That is
when I realized our industry has
unique knowledge. This is something we do daily as we look over
our inventory. After reviewing
the instruments, we realized they
were classic professional instruments, including a rare Conn
Bass Saxophone. She had bags
of musical accessories she was
throwing in the trash bin until
we stopped her. There were 20
to 30 mouthpieces from his store
in their original boxes valued
at $2,500. She said he repaired
instruments. When I asked what
had happened to his tools and
How
Steals Your Guitars
parts, they looked very sheepish
and said that they had dumped
everything except the instruments I was appraising.
Fair Market Value is the value
required for estate settlement appraisals2. The unplayable instruments were appraised at $15,000.
Investing $7,000 in repairs, they
would be valued at $36,000. The
professional trustee and attorneys had no idea.
Start an inventor y list—An
inventory list should include current date, instrument type (they
might not know a clarinet from
a cornet), brand, model, serial
number, invoices, manufacturing
date and any features, including
what you paid for them. Also list
if there is any celebrity status to
them and include the story or
proof. Most appraisals are based
on what they would sell for now
or cost to replace, not what you
paid for them. Decide now what
will happen to those instruments
if something happens to you. If
you do not have a family member
to whom to leave them, schools,
museums and foundations will
accept donations of musical
instruments. NAMM has the
Museum of Making Music, which
includes a library that is always
looking for certain instruments
and catalogs from the past. There
is the Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation, the Katrina Musicians, the
Nashville flood victims or local
senior centers. Place a printed list
with your important papers and
let someone in your family know
where this information is …or
maybe not.
Family greed rears its
head—The other side of the coin
is the family that called us from
another state saying their 40-yearold brother-in-law had died on
Saturday. It was Monday morning
and they were already looking for
an appraiser. They said they were
flying to his location to make
arrangements and asked if we
could travel and meet them at his
home. I told them we could meet
them on Wednesday. They were
glad because the coroner would
be done removing the body on
Tuesday. He had been dead for
a week in his home. The sisterin-law said he was “some kind of
nut who thought he had a great
guitar/amp collection,” but they
hadn’t spoken to him in years and
they were hoping they could “sell
what he had to have it over with.”
We put on our medical gloves,
masks and coats to protect
ourselves, because the cause of
death had not been determined.
A corpse, 23 amps and a
Nick Lucas guitar—Surrounded by the remaining smells of a
corpse and three cat litter boxes,
we found 23 vintage amps and 18
guitars, including a Gibson Nick
Lucas model guitar (the same
model Bob Dylan used3) worth
more than $20,0004. The instruments were removed, inventoried
and valued. We were asked to
aid in selling the amps, as the
1
death was a financial burden to
the mother. I received another
phone call saying they had found
an entire storage unit full of
instruments. After I valued the
amps, I sold about $5,000 in one
weekend. In trying to relieve a
grieving mother, I made the error
of letting them know that one of
the guitars alone would cover all
their expenses.
The next day, the man’s
brother called wanting the
remainder of the instruments
and was canceling the appraisal.
They were driving them back
to their own state and he would
handle it all. When we met with
the brother and his mother, the
brother immediately asked me,
“Which one was the expensive
guitar?” I didn’t speak. He tried
a second time by saying, “Which
one is the special guitar?” I told
him, “All your brother’s guitars
were special to him.”
Contact us for formatted inventory sheets at [email protected].
Please contact us if there is an
instrument you would like us to
research. If we use your story,
we will send you an A & D Music
T-shirt. www.admusic.net.
1 Ryan Fawley, Operations
Manager
2 Internal Revenue Service
3 www.gibson.com/en-us/Life
style/Features/legendary-gui
tars-bob-407/
4 Vintage Guitar Price Guide
2009, Greenwood A., Hembree G.
43
business & mar k eting
Failure to Plan
is a Plan for Failure
B y C a r l M a ndelbaum
In the immortal words of Todd
Rundgren, “Hello, it’s me.” Last
time, I presented you a brief tour
of the Almond Tree Marketing
8 Step Marketing Program. This
month, I’d like to explore Step 1:
Make a Marketing Plan in a bit
more detail.
I believe you can’t realize your
full potential without creating and
implementing a marketing plan.
Make a New Plan, Stan
Smart marketers develop their
marketing plans according to a
proven road map, including these
elements:
• Competitive advantages and
positioning
• Intimate understanding of
your target audience
• Goals that are quantifiable
• Appropriate marketing programs
• Budget, timetable and responsibilities
• Accountability and measurability
Each element of the exercise—
from realistic setting of goals to
fanatical measurement of performance and results—defines an
effective marketing plan and its
execution. Let's review each of
the key elements.
Competitive Advantages and
Positioning: Competitive advantages are advantages that one
business has over its competitors,
allowing it to generate greater
sales or margins and/or retain
more customers than its competition. Knowing your competitive
advantages goes a long way in
determining how you’re going to
position your business.
Positioning in marketing terminology is nothing more than what
you stand for in the mind of your
customer. Ask yourself this question: Do you, your employees and
your customers clearly comprehend and believe what you stand
for as a brand and as a business,
and is that positioning unique and
sustainable within your marketplace versus those against whom
you compete?
Keep in mind that you don’t
have to run an expensive ad
campaign telling the world who
you are and what you stand for.
It’s more about the internal,
experiential touch—what customers feel when they walk into your
store and what they relay to others about that experience.
Understand Your Customer
Intimately: Unless you’re selling
hamburgers, fries and soda—
something with mass consumer
appeal—most retailers can’t be
everything to everybody. Your
job is to identify that grouping,
niche or cohort that is primarily
interested in your product and
choose marketing tactics that allow you to zero in on that defined
target audience.
Set Forth Quantifiable
Goals: Establish goals that must
be met and that provide a return
on your marketing investment.
Some goal examples might
include:
• Growing sales revenue
• Enhancing profitability:
Analyze product margin and
concentrate on those products
that deliver the greatest profitability. In most cases, it involves
implementing an effective pricing
strategy or overhauling your
existing one.
• Generating leads and increasing customer count
• Adding new products or
services
The key is to quantify or specify a target. Without the target,
there can be no accountability.
Choose the Appropriate
Marketing Programs: Not
every marketing program or
activity will make sense for your
business. Nor will you have sufficient funds to execute every
available tactic in the marketing
arsenal. Therefore, select those
programs that make sense in
terms of meeting your budget
requirements and being compatible with the tone and style of
your business. Some examples of
marketing programs and activities include:
• Print ads
• Low-cost broadcast ads, like
on cable television, to support
promotional events
• Direct mail, including catalogs and newsletters
• Online activity, including web
marketing, web storefronts and
e-newsletters
• Consumer expos
• Promotional event sponsorships
• Partnership marketing with
non-competitive products and
services that cater to the same
marketplace
• PR and media coverage
• Delivering speeches and
seminars or lessons
• Community/not-for-profit
involvement
• Effective in-store merchandising
• Yellow Pages advertising
Set Forth a Budget, Timetable and Responsibilities:
Plan out a 52-week program and
schedule your activities according to what makes sense for
your business, marketplace, and
product or service.
Build In Measurability and
Accountability: These items
usually fall by the wayside because marketers have an inability,
or an unwillingness, to measure
the results of their efforts. Every
marketing dollar spent must be
measured in terms of return on
investment (ROI). If a program
or activity doesn’t yield a profit,
you need to know why so that
you don’t repeat the failure in
subsequent years. Track your
information religiously. Always
ask customers how they heard
about you. Track coupon redemptions and calculate the sales
revenue that can be attributed to
the individual redemption. Ask
your media representative to
provide a post-buy analysis, such
as how many people saw your ad.
Always include a call to action in
your ads, coupons, visits to your
website and all other marketing
collateral.
Good marketing planning is
nothing more than understanding
the basics, setting goals, establishing priorities, and executing
with discipline and appreciation
the value of marketing dollars
and the need not to waste them.
This might seem like a daunting
task when faced with day-to-day
operations of running your own
business. Many companies opt to
outsource their marketing planning. An outside party comes in
and examines your business, and
then assesses the best programs
and activities for you, mapping out
everything discussed in this article. No matter how you go about
it, it is imperative that you have
some kind of plan in place.
Next month, I will tell you how
to develop your brand. I would
like to hear from you. Do you have
any suggestions on marketing
topics you’d like to discuss? This
column is for you and about you,
so I hope you will give me ideas.
Please do not hesitate to contact
me directly at carl@almondtree
marketing.com or my direct line,
800-471-0801 ext. 805.
45
veddatorial
It’s Beginning to Look
a Lot Like Christmas
B y D a n Ve d d a
Everyone, it seems, is thinking about the Christmas season
this year—not just retailers.
Customers chat me up regularly,
asking how business is, if I think
the economy’s recovering and
if I believe people will buy for
Christmas this year. In a way,
it shows how lost some people
are—they’re asking the guy
behind the counter at the music
store for assurance, while pundits
and analysts chew over the
economic news everywhere you
turn. I suppose it’s like the old
saying, “If you want to know what
the weather is, look outside.”
My usual answer is that I think
there will be a Christmas season, but, for me, the success of
the season has more to do with
outside forces than consumer
behavior. I have to have merchandise to sell, and it has to be the
right products at the right time
at the right price. My access to
product isn’t just governed by
my cash and credit resources;
it’s also linked to the resources,
capital and planning of my suppliers. That’s enough to make me
lose sleep, given the results I’ve
seen from the supply side of our
industry recently.
For example, some suppliers were already out of certain
products in October. More
often—and perhaps worse—they
hadn’t gotten the shipments that
will carry them through the year,
and often, they were overdue.
That tells me that suppliers either
stocked conservatively and ran
out early (way early) or hesitated
to pull the trigger and have to sit
through the vagaries of overseas manufacture, shipping and
customs flow. It’s unsettling how
many reps have told me that the
product I’m after won’t be in until
Nov. 30. Even if that’s an accurate
date, it will be Dec. 7 before I see
the goods. Try telling that—believably—to a parent who wants
to put the item under the tree this
year. It’s so much easier to buy
it from Amazon, Best Buy or the
chain store down the street that
certainly got their goods in plenty
of time.
Now, some dealers in our industry would see this as a conspiracy
to squeeze the small dealers by
providing goods to the big boys
while cutting us off at the knees. I
will admit that some of that might
be in play, not through a Machiavellian plan but because that’s the
way that it’s been done for the last
few years. I’m used to finding suppliers that sell primarily to smaller
dealers, and I’ve been able to
manage the last couple of Christmas seasons. What’s different this
year, I think, is that more suppliers are pinched. Some have been
out of staple items like valve oil
and practice pads. Whether that’s
through bad planning, manufacturer issues or their own cash-flow
problems is immaterial—they’re
out, and it’s like the grocery store
being out of milk.
I’ve heard from other suppliers who claim to be well in stock
with great fill rates. Perhaps, but
when I tried to tap one of them
for an order I needed, it took the
rep more than a day to return a
voicemail. I lost time and, since the
supplier was an additional shipping
day away, I lost the sale. Perhaps
these guys are well in stock
because their customer service
is lacking. Too soon to tell, but I
can’t afford to take chances with
them…unless it’s the only hope.
Of course, that’s my fear for the
season this year. Scrambling to
find product means dealing with
sources who might only sell COD,
have higher prices, greater shipping distances and with whom I
might not have a working relationship and rapport. That points to a
less profitable Christmas season
even when consumers want to buy.
Who among us can afford to be
less profitable this year?
I’m lucky, inasmuch as I have a
lot of customers who support local
business, who have known me for
years or who are perhaps more
relaxed when it comes to getting
musical equipment for Christmas.
A lot of our holiday sales are not
delivered by Santa. They’re not
even surprises, since the players
are often actively involved in the
selection of a step-up instrument.
Even so, I will be spinning to try
to make everyone happy this year,
and I know that we’ll miss some
opportunities. I just hope that we
can pick up enough of them to call
it a good season.
The deeper issue, though,
is the health of our industry in
general. I’m not the only person
wondering how many of our suppliers and jobbers will be around
next year…and in what form.
Certainly, there are retailers
near the tipping point, as well.
It’s sad that it comes at a point
where there’s an actual increase
in music makers, because many
are powerless to capitalize on the
very thing that would help.
I also think it’s an indication that we can’t continue to
expect the same “business as
usual” procedures, products and
promotions. Music making is
growing, varied and impossible
to pigeonhole into the categories
we’ve defined over the years. The
ukulele craze is a prime example
of the market doing what it
wants. It didn’t spring from video
games, market development
promotions or any of the so-called
“traditional” channels of school
music, combo or others. It just
happened, and it happened in a
product category that was neither
new nor pervasive. During the
mad scramble to capitalize on it,
even non-industry stores clocked
in, like one ice cream store
touted in our trades that suddenly
became a “uke mecca” because it
saw the opportunity and seized it.
That’s the danger—if we’re
weakened, or overly focused
on the same old problems, we’ll
miss the chances to grow, leaving
someone else, industry or not, to
step in. Today it’s a few ukes…
but what next?
Join me at the NAMM Idea
Center in Anaheim for a discussion of what I think is one
solution—“The New Face of the
Community Music Store,” on
Saturday, Jan. 15, at 2 p.m. In the
meantime, e-mail your ideas to
[email protected].
47
The
Retailer's Mall
For advertising rates and deadlines...
Call Rob Iraggi 516-767-2500 x519
or email at [email protected]
Beautiful Rolltop Desks,
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48
For advertising rates
and deadlines...
Call Rob Iraggi
516-767-2500
x519
or email at
[email protected]
december 2010
The
Retailer's Mall
SINCE
1972
What’s it worth?
FRETTED
INSTRUMENTS
Buy • Sell
• Trade •
Consign
Call 800-528-3611
elderly.com
We buy, sell, trade, consign
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www.mandoweb.com
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49
Retailer's Mall
Ad Index
Company
Pg
ACE PRODUCTS GROUP
C-III
AMERICAN DJ
C-IV
BARCUS-BERRY 21
BEHRINGER
5
BRACE AUDIO
13
CASIO
7
CHAUVET LIGHTING
8
CHEM-PAK
12
CRAFTER GUITAR
19
DR STRINGS
6
FISHMAN TRANSDUCERS
33
GATOR CASES
36
GCI TECHNOLOGIES
37
GE MONEY
41
Please email
[email protected] to inquire.
Visit www.aerial7.com for more
about the company.
For advertising rates
and deadlines...
Call Rob Iraggi
516-767-2500
x519
or email at
[email protected]
VICE PRESIDENT
OF PURCHASING
Sweetwater, the nation’s premier retailer of pro audio gear and musical
instruments, is seeking a seasoned music industry executive for the position of
vice president of purchasing. We are looking for a team player with senior-level
management experience to work in concert with our Director of Purchasing to
guide our successful and respected Purchasing Department to even higher levels of
efficiency and performance. This position encompasses analyzing sales data and
ROI trends to shape assortments and purchasing decisions, managing inventory
turns, negotiating buys, and developing strong long-term relationships with our
vendor partners. The successful candidate will possess top-notch communication
skills and a keen understanding of how to generate maximum profits through
inventory management. Strong computer and analytical skills are musts. Salary
will be commensurate with experience and capabilities. Relocation to Fort Wayne,
Indiana is mandatory.
Please send resumes to: [email protected].
GROVER MUSICAL
INSTRUMENTS
24
HOUSE BAND GEAR
3
KALA BRAND MUSIC CO
12
KNAGGS GUITAR
20
taylor
(continued from front cover)
ClassifiedAdPurVP_MSR.indd 1
10/28/10 3:34:00 PM
MARATHON PROFESSIONAL 40
MUSIQUIP
11
NAMM
14-15
NEMC
23
OMNISISTEM
22
ONBOARD RESEARCH
53
PEAK MUSIC STANDS
52
PEAVEY
34
PHONIC
17
SAMSON TECHNOLOGIES
30-31
SHS INTERNATIONAL
53
SIERRA GUITARS
16
THUNDERBALL
MARKETING INC
28
THUNDERBALL
MARKETING INC
44
TKL PRODUCTS
C-II
TONEGEAR
25
VOCOPRO
9
WHIRLWIND
42
While every care is taken to ensure that
these listings are accurate and complete,
The Music & Sound Retailer does not accept responsibility for omissions or errors.
50
“But foreign markets have
always been tough,” added
Swerdfeger. “In this modern era,
information travels at the speed
of light. People in other countries look at the U.S. and see the
service and the community brand
experience. They wonder why
they don’t get that.”
Swerdfeger said that service
and community are exactly what
Taylor is about. Going direct in
Europe allows people in those
countries to live similar experiences.
“When you look at Taylor, you
think of all of the road shows we
do, the festivals where we appear
and many other places where we
hang out with customers, talk
about guitars and let people play
guitars. We’re known for our
impeccable customer service. So
what was the next logical step as
Taylor continues to grow
and becomes a market leader? The answer is to bring
our brand experience to Europe
in a firsthand way. Consumers
can call us, in their own language,
and get service and support. It’s
a big step for Taylor, but it’s exciting. We’re fired up about it.”
Posh Spot
The new Taylor European
headquarters is located conveniently between Schiphol Airport
and Amsterdam’s city center. The
building is new and will house
Taylor’s European sales and marketing, logistics, repair, customer
service and warehousing. The
lease has been signed, all of the
“Ts” crossed and the European
headquarters will be open when
we ring in the new year. “We
chose The Netherlands for our
European headquarters because
it truly is a crossroads in Europe,” Swerdfeger said. “So many
people visit that area, whether as
tourists or to get to many other
places around the world, including the United States. We wanted
the headquarters to be located
in a hip, artful city. At the same
time, that region is well known
for logistics.”
Finding the right employees
who know the Taylor product
well and could provide top-notch
service is a bigger challenge. “To
me, the No. 1 priority and difficulty is the people,” said Swerdfeger. “I can’t look in a dictionary
and give you the definition of a
Taylor person, but I can certainly
tell you when I’ve seen one and
december 2010
worked with one. Many members of the Taylor staff, including myself, David Hosler, VP of
customer service and repair, and
Diane Magagna, our director of
international sales, have traveled
throughout Europe extensively
during the past several years.
We’ve been developing relationships by having coffee and
dinners, conducting road shows
and more. We didn’t have a plan
then to open our own European
headquarters. It’s just who we are
and what we do.”
Language is another obstacle when you open a foreign
headquarters. But Swerdfeger
quipped, “We’ve become really good at hand gestures and
picking out the good things
on a menu, no matter what the
language is. It’s all about good
friends, good food and great guitars. It goes in that order. Talking
about guitars in Indianapolis is
no different from talking about
guitars in Ghent. Guitars are the
same worldwide. People love the
same music and the same tones.
We love guitars and the people
who play them. To be able to
bring that level of support and
passion is infectious.”
End of an Era
Taylor’s contract with Fender
runs through Dec. 31. Swerdfeger
had nothing but the highest praise
for Taylor’s relationship with the
Arizona-based company. “We had
a great three-year relationship
with them,” he said. “Fender has
been selling direct to Europeans
for many years. They have a great
infrastructure there. At the time
we chose Fender, we replaced 24
individual distributors with one.
Each country had its own pricing,
model selection and availability.
With Fender, we could offer our
customers a warehouse full of
guitars and level pricing. We built
service centers in four of Fender’s
regional offices. We shared a lot
of our expertise with Fender to
help them service customers even
better. They shared a lot of their
distribution expertise to help us
through our transition period. We
met a lot of great people through
Fender and I’m sure those relationships and friendships will last
a lifetime.”
Swerdfeger added, “Everything
Fender did was great. We value
the friends we made there and
the job they did. We want to make
sure Fender is supported as much
as possible through the end of
the year. We want Fender to do as
much business as they can.”
Back at Home
Taylor’s changes are for Europe only. There will be no changes in the United States, where
Taylor already sells directly to its
dealers. “We have an incredible
relationship with all of our retail
partners in the United States,”
Swerdfeger said. “Thanks to
them, we’re having a record year
in revenue in profit. And they are,
as well. They are making a great
margin and sell-through has
increased. We couldn’t be happier
with our domestic retailers.”
awards
(continued from page 33)
a Music & Sound Award.” —Stefan
Mueller and Norbert Saemann
Best Percussion Accessory:
Tama Speed Cobra Pedal
(HP910LS/HP910LSW)
Gibraltar iPod/MP3 Player
Stand Mount
“The Gibraltar team is honored
to be nominated and recognized
for our new iPod/MP3 Player
stand mount. Our top priority is to
develop products that are useful
for the drummer/musician. This
iPod/MP3 mount is another great
example of an innovative accessory
made that we created in response
to their need to incorporate more
technology into their setup.”
—Ken Fredenberg, director of
percussion marketing, KMC Music
PureSound Custom Pro Snare
Wires
Vic Firth Stick Caddy
“Drummers have been asking us to
create a stick holder, so we listened
to their concerns and developed an
improved stick holder. To have the
drummers recognize these product
improvements with the fantastic
initial sales, and now this Best
Percussion Accessory nomination,
is very exciting and shows our
response to their suggestions was
well received.” —Mark Dyke
Primacoustic KickStand Bass
Drum Microphone Stand
“Wow! What can I say? Who would
have even thought that an isolation
device used to help eliminate
noise would be selected by the
drumming community? Very cool!
As James Taylor’s sound engineer
commented after trying the
Kickstand: ‘Why didn’t I think of
this?’ It is easy to use and makes a
big sonic difference.”
MBT LEDGIGPACK
L.R. Baggs Anthem
Mapex Black Panther Snares
—Peter Janis, president,
Radial Engineering
Best Instructional Book/Video:
The Rock House Method Gus G.
Lead & Rhythm Techniques 2
DVD Set
“For the fourth consecutive
year, we are humbled that Rock
House is nominated for the Best
Instructional Book/Video. With
so many great companies in our
industry producing really innovative
products, it’s very rewarding
even to be considered for such a
prestigious award. Thank you to
Brian and all the staff at M&SR
for your unwavering commitment
to excellence and support of our
industry.” —Joe Palombo
Alfred On the Beaten Path:
Beginner Drumset Course
“Wow! I feel so honored that On
the Beaten Path: Beginner Drumset
Course has been nominated for the
Music & Sound Awards! I worked
very hard on them and am so proud
that they are part of Alfred’s worldclass percussion catalog. It’s my
intention that these books do as
much to inspire as they do to teach.
If these books help attract, inspire
and retain more students, I’ll have
done my job!”
—Rich Lackowski, author
The Rock House Method Jeff
Loomis Extreme Lead Guitar 2
DVD Set
Mel Bay Advanced Lead Guitar
Concepts
eMedia Piano & Keyboard
Method 3.0
“We are delighted to be nominated
for this award. For more than 15
years, we have dedicated ourselves
to producing the highest quality
instructional music software, and
this nomination assures us that
our efforts are recognized and
appreciated by our peers and the
public. Thank you!”
—Adrian Burton, founder
Best Floor Effect:
Fishman Aura Sixteen
“2010 has been an exciting and
remarkably successful year for
Fishman. We’re honored that
dealers have nominated us in five
different categories in this year’s
Music & Sound Awards. We hit a
home run with the Loudbox Mini. It
proved to be a perfect combination
of power, size, features, quality and
price. Thanks to our dealers, it was
the most successful product launch
in Fishman’s history, selling out
from the moment it began shipping
in early September. As we approach
our 30th anniversary, we’re prepared
to push the envelope even further
with our most innovative products
Modtone
StutterKill
ever. We’re not done yet. We’re just
getting warmed up!”
—Larry Fishman
Boss ME-25
“We thank the retailers for
nominating the Boss ME-25 Guitar
Multiple Effects Processor. We’re
thrilled that retailers see the value
of the ME-25 with its renowned
COSM amp-modeling technology,
Boss-quality effects and affordable
price point.”
—Paul Youngblood, vice president
Line 6 POD HD500
Electro-Harmonix Ring Thing
Single Sideband Modulator
Modtone Effects StutterKill
“We are very honored to have our
new Modtone StutterKill pedal
be nominated. This pedal was a
combined idea of several musicians
who work here getting together and
coming up with a practical, useful and
affordable pedal that every guitar/
bass player can use in their rig.”
—Guy Petty, SHS Audio
Best Music Software/
Multimedia:
Peavey AmpKit LiNK/AmpKit+
Alfred Michael Jackson
Songbooks
“Michael Jackson has left the world
an amazing gift…his songs. His
musicianship, lyricism and passion
for music will forever stay with his
51
legion of fans. Alfred is honored to
be a part of keeping Michael’s legacy
alive with our printed songbooks,
and we are thrilled to have been
nominated for a Music & Sound
Award for this collection. —Ron
Manus, CEO,
Alfred Music Publishing Co., Inc.
eMedia Music Piano & Keyboard
Method Version 3.0
MakeMusic Finale 2011
“On behalf of everyone at
MakeMusic, I’d like to say how
delighted we are that Finale 2011 has
been nominated as the Best Music
Software/Multimedia Product. We’re
very proud of how intuitive, efficient
and flexible Finale has become at
putting music on the printed page.
It’s great to have these advances
recognized.”
—Diane Hummon,
senior vice president of marketing
SoniVOX Playa Hip Hop Strings
Movek myMix
Nady MGT-16
we feel we have accomplished with
the new bags. A sincere thanks
goes out to all of our dealers who
nominated MBT Cases.”
—Craig Toporek, product manager
Gator Cases TSA ATA Keyboard
Cases
Marathon Professional Black
Series Flight Cases
& Rack Products
Best Bag/Case:
“We are honored that we were
MBT Cases MBTAGBH
selected as a nominee for the Music
Acoustic Guitar Bag
& Sound Awards. We are one of
“We are honored to be nominated in
this category. Our goal at MBT Cases the few companies that sell this
is always to provide a quality product particular case series. So, in order
for us to be ahead of others, we are
at a great value, and that is just what
making our cases a lot more durable
but less expensive.”
—David Saghian, managing director
TKL Products Line
SKB KB-88 Kurzweil Bag
Best DJ Product:
Focusrite Novation Dicer
Pioneer CDJ-2000
Rane Sixty Eight DJ Mixer
“The Rane Sixty-Eight is the ultimate
club mixer, combining renowned
Rane hardware design with industryleading Scratch Live software.
Armed with studio-grade phono
preamps, USB and S/PDIF inputs,
the Sixty-Eight allows a blend of
analog and digital audio sources like
never before.”
—Dean Standing, director of sales
Allen & Heath Xone: DX
“It’s very exciting to have XONE’s
premier digital DJ product
nominated! Good luck to all.”
—Joe Jack Giacopelli,
Native Instruments
NI Control-X1
“We are very honored to be
nominated for Best DJ Product.
At one point, the Traktor Kontrol
X1 even turned out to become the
bestselling DJ product in the whole
global market, which confirmed us
in our vision. Its ideal integration
with DJ software, both with and
without timecode control, has really
enhanced the versatility of many
DJ set-ups. We appreciate your
support!” —Staff
Best Lighting Product:
MBT Lighting LEDGIGPACK
52
MXL V177
“The LEDGIGPACK’s popularity
didn’t surprise us. Having four
colorful, portable LED lights that fit
into their own slim road case made
it the perfect fit for our dealers and
mobile performers. Thank you for
nominating MBT Lighting!” —Roy
White, product manager
Chauvet Eclipse
“It’s always gratifying to be
nominated for a Music & Sound
Award. The Eclipse offers the
cutting-edge combination of a laser
and an LED aura at a very attractive
price. We are thrilled that our
dealers recognize it as a leader in its
class.”
—Berenice Chauvet, vice president
American DJ Revo 4
Irradiant SSDL-3201RGB
American DJ Tripleflex
Best New Manufacturer:
Oriolo Guitars
“Our mission is to put the fun back
in playing the guitar. I believe that
the ‘look and feel’ of an instrument
is all part of the playing experience.
Art and music go hand-in-hand, and
every one of our guitars, basses and
ukes have our own distinct design
sense. Leo Fender already brought
us the Strat and the Tele. Les Paul
already created the ‘Les Paul.’ I
never understood why so many
people felt like they had to imitate
their creations. I actually start from
a cartooning direction when drawing
and designing our instruments...
something that I could imagine Felix
the Cat or Richie Sambora jamming
out on. Again, our heartfelt thanks
for such a prestigious honor.”
—Don Oriolo, founder
Knaggs Guitars
“When you start something new, you
never really know where it’s going.
We are very surprised, honored
and humbled by this nomination,
especially considering that we’ve
only been allowed to work with a
limited number of U.S. retailers thus
far. We appreciate the support we’ve
been receiving from so many people
and would like to thank everyone
who has been rooting for us. We
take this nomination as proof of
having created appealing designs
and we look forward to sharing our
Novation Dicer
instruments with guitar aficionados
and players of all levels in the years to
come.” —Joe Knaggs and Peter Wolf,
founders
Movek
“It is an honor to be noticed in an
industry that moves so rapidly
and has given rise to so many
groundbreaking innovations. We are
excited by the unique combination
of emotion and technology that fuels
our business; the fuel that pushes us
to achieve, and drives us to places we
only dreamed of in the not-so-distant
past. Our goal is to create products
that are simple to use and creatively
inspiring, yet incredibly powerful
in functional capabilities, and we
are thrilled to be recognized for our
efforts. Thank you!”
—Mathias von Heydekampf, founder
Eigenlabs
Sanyo
Product of the Year:
Taylor GS Mini
Fishman Loudbox Mini
Fender Green Tuner
Dixon 100% 24-Ply Bubinga
Snare
“Dixon Drums is ecstatic to hear our
100% 24-Ply Bubinga snare received
a nomination for Product of the Year.
Bubinga has increased in popularity
over the past few years, and is the
tonewood of choice to create many
fine drums. Dixon decided to take it
up a notch, thicken up the shell to 24
plies and give the drum monstrous
and unmatched tone. We are honored
to create first-rate products that
drummers truly love and appreciate.”
—Jim Stanek, Percussion Product
Manager, KMC Music
Sennheiser SKM 5200-II
Representative of the Year:
Paul Holdgate, Hoshino
Billy Bohanna, Musicorp
“It is definitely an honor to be
nominated, especially with all of the
talented salespeople we work with
every day. I am fortunate enough
to work for the best company in the
industry, and I think I have the best
account base in the country. Thank
you to everyone who nominated me.”
—Billy Bohanna
Mic Finnerty, KMC Music
december 2010
Yamaha Rock Tour
Sabian Vault Artisan Series
Primacoustic KickStand
Shure’s PSM900
“The honor and privilege of this
nomination from such a prestigious
publication is equaled only by the
honor and privilege of working with
some of the finest dealers in the
country; supplying some of the best
brands in the industry; and working
with the best support staff in
wholesale at KMC Music. It’s easy
to do your best when you work with
the best.” —Mic Finnerty
Bob Valyou, Fishman
Troy Richardson, The
Revolution Group
“I am truly honored to be
nominated for Sales Rep of the Year
for a second time. It really says a
lot about how much relationships
matter in our industry and what a
truly great bunch of people we all
have the pleasure of working with.
Going out on my own to start my
own company, after the biggest
economic downturn in our lifetimes,
was indeed scary. I wouldn’t have
been able to do it if I didn’t trust
that the people here believed
in me. Since then, I have been
overwhelmed by the support and
encouragement I’ve received this
year.” —Troy Richardson
Outstanding Community
Service Award:
Musicorp
“We are humbled to be recognized
in this category. The Musicorp
employees have cultivated a
company culture that centers on
community service, and that is
rewarding in itself. They have
generously contributed to causes
such as Project Cool Breeze, Special
Olympics, the Charleston Animal
Society, local school supply and
food drives, Toys for Tots and the
PLAY program, which rewarded
local music students with free
instruments.”
—Catherine Polk,
Director of Marketing
Curt Mangan Strings
“We want to thank our amazing
Curt Mangan string retailers. This
nomination is heartfelt for all of us
here at the Cortez, Colo., factory.
Our goal is always to provide
premium, boutique-quality strings
at a production price and to be
‘independent-retailer friendly’ on
every level.” —Curt Mangan
C.F. Martin
KMC
“The entire KMC Music family
is honored to be recognized as a
Music & Sound Award nominee
for Outstanding Community
Service. KMC strives to help local
and national charities, along with
causes that are important to our
division communities, dealers
and consumers. This is often
accomplished by donating guitars,
drums and other instruments
to educate the musicians of
tomorrow. We are proud to share
the gift of music with Guitars
In The Classroom, Nikki Sixx’s
Running Wild in the Night and The
Motivational Edge, among many
other worthy organizations locally
and nationally.”
—Nikki Nearing, marketing & communications manager, KMC Music
Taylor
We are all very fortunate to be a
part of the music industry and I
am very thankful for having had
the opportunity to work with so
many great people in my years
with Musicorp. I greatly value
the close relationships that all of
us at Musicorp have built with
our dealers, suppliers, coworkers
and product endorsers, and I
look forward to our continuing to
strengthen those relationships in
the future.”
—Dan Roberts, vice president
Larry Fishman
Seymour Duncan
“I’m honored to receive the
Lifetime Achievement Hall of Fame
nomination, especially on our 35th
Anniversary. It’s really meaningful
coming from all the dealers we’ve
worked with for years. That’s why
I feel this is really for everyone
in our company….Dealers know
how we’ve tried to be helpful and
respectful toward the people who
represent us, with fair terms, quality
products and our 21-Day Real-World
Guarantee. You’ve helped us help
musicians. And for that, I thank
you.”
—Seymour Duncan
Ed Miller, KMC Music
“It is truly an honor to be nominated
for the Music & Sound Lifetime
Achievement/Hall of Fame. Sincere
thanks to the staff of KMC Music,
our dealers, vendors and music
industry peers for considering me
for this prestigious award.”
—Ed Miller
Editor’s Note: Best New
Manufacturer does not necessarily
have to be a company founded in
2010. It could be a manufacturer
new to MI in the United States in
2010 or one that burst onto the scene
in 2010.
Manufacturer of the Year:
Taylor Guitars
Hoshino
Fender
Yamaha
DR Handmade Strings
“After 21 years of making handmade
strings, the nomination of DR
for Manufacturer of the Year in
the Music & Sound Awards
is a testament to the faith and
trust retailers have in us. It is an
acknowledgement from our peers
and customers that our efforts,
research and superior customer
service have been recognized in
the industry. It is also a validation
of DR’s efforts to make quality
American products. DR’s quality
and growth as a company is
honored by this nomination. We
are honored to be included in such
esteemed company.”
—Anthony Corona
Lifetime Achievement/Hall of
Fame:
Bob Taylor
Dan Roberts, Musicorp
“I am deeply honored to have
been nominated for the Lifetime
Achievement/Hall of Fame award.
53
FORMIDABLE FEMALES
Sonia Vallis
Owner and President, LPD Music
I nter national
B y M i c h e l l e Loeb
Sonia Vallis might be an only
child, but she grew up with a
sibling that has now become like
another child to her. That sibling
is LPD Music International. Her
father, Harry Bernstein, founded
the Michigan-based company in
1963, importing instruments from
Mexico and selling them to music
stores. From a young age, Vallis’
father expected her to help out at
the company he founded.
“When I was in my early teens,
my dad would bring home work
for me on Friday nights, and set it
on the dining room table. I’d wake
up Saturday mornings and be
greeted by the stacks of invoices
to stuff, labels to apply on flyers,
etc. And during summer breaks,
I’d go to work with him and pull
orders in the warehouse,” said Vallis. “I thought he was being unfair,
because I wasn’t paid to do these
things, and it prevented me from
being with my friends. I didn’t
understand it as a kid, but, looking
back on it now, I’m glad he did it.
He had a great work ethic and this
was his way of making sure I had
that work ethic, too.”
Despite her early involvement
with LPD, Vallis was resolute in
her desire to go out on her own
and make a name for herself outside of the family business. Call it
a case of sibling rivalry.
“Growing up, my father spent
a lot of hours at the company, so
I didn’t see him much. He would
come home from work late, when
I was going to bed, and I would
leave early in the morning for
school. On vacation, I remember
sitting in the hotel lobby for an
hour or more while he was on the
phone checking on the business,”
she recalled. “I probably resented
the company a bit for taking my
dad away from me. I felt that I
54
took the backseat.”
So Vallis left her family behind in
Michigan and pursued a career as
a management consultant, but fate
had other plans for her. Her father
had a terrible rollerblading accident in 1994 that left him almost
paralyzed. So she put her career on
hold and came back to Michigan to
help run the family business.
Company Woman
Vallis was greeted with some
skepticism among LPD employees when she first came on board
as the company’s HR manager.
Not only was she a woman in her
20s, but she was also the boss’
daughter.
“People didn’t know me, my
background or my work ethic.
They didn’t know I had two degrees that were relevant to what
I was hired for,” said Vallis, who
earned a Bachelor of Science in
Psychology and Management
from Central Michigan University
and a Master of Science degree in
Industrial Organizational Psychology from Springfield College in
Massachusetts.
Eventually, she gained the
respect and trust of the employees at LPD but, in the process,
she feels like she lost some of
the personal relationship with
her father. “Our relationship took
on a different role,” Vallis said.
“We were good partners, but we
lost touch of the personal aspects
along the way. It seemed every
conversation turned to business.”
As she grew with the company,
Vallis moved into the role of
general manager and, ultimately,
owner and president after her
father succumbed to lung cancer
in 2007. Vallis’ psychology background and past work experience helped prepare her for the
leadership role she was destined
to take.
“I held a variety of jobs prior to
LPD. I was a waitress, a salesperson and a counselor. These
experiences taught me how to
deal with people, to adapt quickly
and to be flexible because one
answer doesn’t fit all situations,”
said Vallis, who has adopted the
same attitude toward her employees. “You have to recognize that
everyone has different needs
and responds differently. So what
motivates one person doesn’t
always motivate another. I try to
keep that in mind when dealing
with my employees.”
What others at LPD don’t know
is that Vallis has been advocating
for them long before taking on
ownership of the company. When
she first started there, “People at
the company thought I was being
brought in as a spy,” she said.
“The funny thing is that I was
actually working on ways to make
LPD a better place to work. I increased their insurance benefits
and the number of personal days.
I started having company picnics
and holiday parties. We didn’t
do that before,” Vallis continued.
“My dad thought I was trying to
change too much too soon, but
my psychology background made
me more aware of the people side
of the job, when management
sometimes wasn’t.”
Doing It All
Now that Vallis is the owner,
this people person misses
face-to-face interaction with her
employees. “When you’re a business owner, you have to wear
many hats and you aren’t always
afforded the time to deal with
your employees on an individual
basis,” said Vallis. “Your focus
changes to more detailed paperwork or more project-oriented
tasks. So I don’t get as involved
with the day-to-day activities as
I was when I was the general
manager.”
There is one person at the
company she’s closer to, though.
She met LPD’s vice president,
Tom Vallis, on the job and, today,
he is her husband and the father
of her two children. While Vallis’
mother was home to take care of
her while her father ran the business, Vallis and her husband are
both equally involved with both
the company and the kids, making for a difficult balancing act.
“It’s hard to run a business
together with your husband
when you also have young kids.
We focused on our careers and
had children later in life,” said
Vallis, whose daughters are 2
and 6. She also has two teenage
stepsons from her husband’s
first marriage. “It would be nice
if one of us had a 9-to-5 job, but
we’re good about splitting chores.
Whoever has more energy will
take them on or, if one of us has
to work late, the other will pitch
in. I’m lucky that my husband is
very involved with the kids.”
No matter how hard it is to
strike the right balance between
work and home, the experience
only makes Vallis a stronger and
more capable boss to her family
of 20 LPD employees. “Being a
boss, mom, wife and daughter,
and with the variety of jobs that
I’ve held, I’ve had many roles.
Each has given me a different
perspective from all levels,” she
said. “I feel that makes me more
well-rounded and gives me a
greater understanding of people,
which hopefully makes me a better leader.”
december 2010

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Transcription

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