Music & Sound Retailer November 2020, Vol 37 No 11

THE NEWS MAGAZINE FOR MUSIC PRODUC TS RETAILERS

November 2020 Volume 37, No. 11

STATING AN OPTIMISTIC CASE

Despite difficult times, accessories, bags and cases manufacturers continue to show strength

Home Is Where Pro Audio Is ALTHOUGH THE END-USER DYNAMIC HAS SHIFTED, QUARANTINE CREATIVITY HAS BOOSTED THE PRO-AUDIO MARKET

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GAMA Looks to the Future

Although 2020 has been perhaps the most challenging year for many in MI, there have been opportunities, especially when it comes to stay-at-home guitarists who have more time (and perhaps more money) available. With this in mind, how does the future look? The Retailer reached out to Skip Beltz, president of the Guitar & Accessories Manufacturers Association (GAMA), and Glen McCarthy, GAMA board member and executive director, Teaching Guitar Workshops (TGW), to learn more.

We started by asking about the changing landscape regarding guitar end users, with the pandemic triggering an influx of new players of all ages. Beltz responded that GAMA ser ves its members as best as it can with the resources it has.

“Thankfully, NAMM contributes to help our GAMA cause, and that is mainly our Skip Beltz Teaching Guitar Workshops,” said Beltz.

“Outside of TGW, we tr y to be ambassadors to the music industr y by helping to connect MI people to each other through our communications and ongoing efforts to bring other great organizations that help guitar players to light and do what we can together. This recent time has been hard for all of us in the MI industr y, and we have tried to overcome the changes in our environments and provide solutions like the rest of the industr y has.”

Looking to programs GAMA will offer in 2021, Beltz first recalled the association’s successful programs this year. “We offered our TGW classes this year virtually, and it was a glowing success,” he said. “We plan to transition into next year with similar and improved plans in case we can’t have in-person classes next year. We are lucky to have smart, enthusiastic industr y veterans on our board [of directors] that are ver y resourceful.

We overcame this year with a great solution and like many, will continue with our eyes open to opportunities and changes that will keep us evolving.”

Added McCarthy, “TGW is developing sites for the summer of 2021. Although nothing is certain, we are scheduling and plan to hold live and in-person classes. The energy that is in a classroom cannot be replicated in a Zoom meeting. TGW found the virtual classes implemented in summer 2020 were successful, and that format will continue. It is a good option for teachers that prefer to not be in a classroom. Whether live or virtual, taking a TGW gives resources for teachers to start a guitar program and/or expand an established program.” More information about Teaching Guitar Workshops (TGW) can be found at guitaredunet.org/about-2.

Despite difficult times, GAMA’s main goals will not change significantly. “Our main goal is to bring together and grow the guitar community by promoting greater access to learning and playing guitar,” stated Beltz. “We want to ser ve the guitar community and be a resource. We also want to create a space where, for a short time, we can talk together about our main objective, and that is helping guitar players.”

With most trade shows not taking place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it can be difficult for trade groups to get the word out.

However, Beltz said word-of-mouth is working, as are inter views in trade publications like the Music & Sound Retailer, as well as making sure the latest information can be found at its discoverMUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

Glen McCarthy

guitar.com and guitaredunet.org websites.

We concluded the inter view by looking for ward. Is GAMA optimistic for what we hope is a post-COVID 19 era? “Yes, we are,” Beltz relayed. “As with any other issue, we have to be resilient and force positive change. The MI industr y recognized ways to operate in spite of this pandemic. It opened up opportunities that we may not other wise have gotten a platform to, and with such quickness. We turned to technology to help spread music, live music, online. It was already happening, and it became a main way of music expression through this time. [It’s] an opportunity.

Make the most of it.”

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THE NEWS MAGAZINE FOR MUSIC PRODUC TS RETAILERS

VOLUME 37, NO.11

COVER STORIES 20 Stating an Optimistic Case

Despite difficult times, accessories, bags and cases manufacturers continue to show strength.

42 Home Is Where Pro Audio Is

Although the end-user dynamic has shifted, quarantine creativity has boosted the pro-audio market.

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FEATURES 27 Tribute

The Retailer offers a special tribute to former writer Rebecca Apodaca.

28 Five Minutes With

“It’s been challenging in many ways! But we are working our tails off and pivoting, literally on a daily basis, to take advantage of new opportunities and create different formats of product to respond to musicians’, teachers’ and students’ needs during these challenging times,” says Hal Leonard’s Doug Lady.

30 MI Spy

MI Spy made his/her second in-person visit since the pandemic hit, with a trip to Syracuse, N.Y., at a time when COVID-19 infections were low and the bonechilling cold had yet to rear its ugly head.

34 Shine a Light 27

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We “get on the bandwagon” with a visit to Bandwagon Music & Repair, which first opened its Nashville doors only four years ago with the goal of making musical instruments.

39 Under the Hood

Taylor Guitars’ Grand Theater (GT) is not simply just a new guitar launch. Instead, it is a new mid-sized platform that utilizes what is sure to be another new Taylor staple: “C”-class bracing architecture.

46 The Final Note

Ernie Ball’s Brian Ball not only loves guitars. The former collegiate tennis player is a huge sports fan, including UFC, NFL, NBA and golf.

COL UM NS 32 In the Trenches 16

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One surprising result of the pandemic has been the extent to which inventory has become unavailable, states Allen McBroom.

36 Veddatorial

People still want to play music, and if we can make them aware of our ability to help in that endeavor, we’ll benefit, says Dan Vedda.

38 Grassroots Marketing

Be flexible, be creative and be yourself. These are the three ways to market during a pandemic, reveal Miriam and Mike Risko.

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EDITORIAL

You Really Got Me First, I want to share the sad news that MI industry pioneer and former writer for the Music & Sound Retailer, Rebecca Apodaca, passed away on Sept. 25. She always loved reading my editorials, so I am dedicating this one, as well as this entire issue, to her.

As for the topic of this month’s editorial, sadly, I am writing about another tragic bit of music news: The passing of the legendary Eddie Van Halen, who succumbed to throat cancer at age 65 last month.

EVH was a rock god who was voted the greatest guitarist of all time by Guitar World magazine in 2012.

I agree. He was the guitar GOAT. Many of the songs he played on were the most iconic of all time: “Jamie’s Cryin’,” “Beautiful Girls,” “Runnin’ With the Devil,” “Panama,” “Hot for Teacher,” “Right Now,” “Dance the Night Away,” “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love,” “Unchained,” “Jump” and “You Really Got Me” to name a few, as well as his incredible work on Michael Jackson’s “Beat It.” “I’m always pushing things past where they’re supposed to be,” EVH said in 2015. “When ‘Spinal Tap’ was going to 11, I was going to 15.”

Social media tributes poured in after his death.

“Eddie Van Halen was one of the nicest guys I ever worked with, and we shared so many laughs together.

His influence on music and especially the guitar has been immeasurable. He was an absolute legend. Eddie, I’ll see you on the other side, my friend,” wrote Ozzy Osbourne.

“Heartbroken and speechless,” said Sammy Hagar.

“My love to the family.”

But EVH was not just a guitar god who was loved and respected by his peers. In fact, other than perhaps

The Beatles, his impact is likely the greatest MI has ever seen, and he has inspired generations of guitar players.

Growing up in the 1980s, everyone wanted to play like EVH, even if nobody could pull it off. He singlehandedly lifted guitar sales during the 1980s and 1990s. He was so popular that his signature models still sell well today.

Several MI manufacturers worked with EVH and have great stories to tell. (That is what makes our industry so great. What other profession gives people unfettered access to luminaries like EVH?) One executive told me last year that EVH was so kind to him that he insisted the exec call him after taking plane flights so he could be sure the exec had arrived safely.

I never got the chance to actually meet or chat with EVH. But I will always remember the one night in the mid-2000s when I went to the Fender booth at The NAMM Show and was told a big celebrity would be playing that night. Excitedly, I arrived at the party later in the day after the show floor closed. Armed with my trusty digital single-lens reflex camera, I was closer to EVH than social distancing guidelines would have allowed today. I easily took about 150 pictures of the rock legend with the hope I could use a couple of them for a subsequent issue of the Retailer. What I remember the most about that night was the magic that emanated from EVH’s guitar. It was unlike anything I have seen before or after.

Eddie, you truly will be missed.

November 2020 Volume 37, No. 11

NEW TO THE COMPLEX FAMILY The HHX Complex Series continues to innovate.

The 17" and 19" Complex O-Zones deliver a dark explosive attack and are some of the most aggressive effects cymbals SABIAN has crafted to date.

The 21" and 23" Complex Medium Rides have a dual hammering process that brings out a sweet rich complex tone that allows the stick to sit nicely on top of a warm dark complex undertone. This is topped off with a strong raw heavily hand hammered bell for distinct complex cut.

BRIAN BERK Editor bberk@testa.com ANTHONY VARGAS Associate Editor avargas@testa.com AMANDA MULLEN Assistant Editor amullen@testa.com DONOVAN BANKHEAD ROBERT CHRISTIE KIMBERLY DEVERELL JEFF KYLE JR.

JANICE PUPELIS Art Director STEVE THORAKOS Production Manager CIRCULATION circulation@testa.com FRED GUMM Digital Art Director

ELLEN LEVITT MICHELLE LOEB WILL MASON ALLEN MCBROOM

ROBERT L. IRAGGI Advertising Director riraggi@testa.com RICKY PIMENTEL Art/Production Assistant rpimentel@testa.com ROBIN HAZAN Operations Manager rhazan@testa.com VINCENT P. TESTA President/Publisher GABRIEL O'BRIEN MIKE & MIRIAM RISKO TIM SPICER DAN VEDDA

Editorial and Sales Office: The Music & Sound Retailer, 25 Willowdale Avenue, Port Washington, New York 11050-3779. Phone: (516) 767-2500 • Fax: (516) 767-9335 • MSREDITOR@TESTA.COM. 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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by Retailer Publishing, Inc., 25 Willowdale Ave., Port Washington, NY 11050-3779.

Periodicals postage paid at Port Washington, N.Y. and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Music & Sound Retailer, PO BOX 1767, LOWELL MA 01853-1767.

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NOVEMBER 2020

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Wentworth Music Surpasses $250K in Support of Hospital Wentworth Music in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada has raised more than $250,000 in the past 13 years in support of the Kelowna General Hospital (KGH). Through its student rock concert productions, the Wentworth team of students, teachers, staff and community partners have raised a total of $258,428.45 and donated over 164,000 hours of their time to help children and their families.

“To know that we’ve made an impact like this through music is the most amazing feeling in the world!” said Noel Wentworth, vice president of education and media at Wentworth Music.

“I’m so grateful for the support everyone has shown us over the years.”

Since 2008, proceeds for these concerts have gone towards projects such as the creation of the Foundry youth mental health clinic and the construction of Joe Anna’s House, a home away from home for families with children undergoing treatment at the KGH. But the majority of the funds have gone to the KGH’s pediatric ward.

“To see the sacrifice and support parents give their children in a time of need is life-changing,” stated Wentworth. “We’ve all done our best to find ways to help.” Money raised from the most recent concert production went toward providing new sleeper

chairs to be put in patient's rooms. The chairs provide a solution for parents to be by their child’s side through the night instead of sleeping on a stretcher.

Although the pandemic may prevent full-scale concerts, the Wentworth team is working on ideas to keep their tradition alive. “Streaming live or prerecorded footage of our students performing in groups may be the solution moving forward,” said Wentworth. “Like everything, you just have to find ways to remove the obstacles.”

Ford, Luke Combs Team With Guitars 4 Vets

Ford and country music star Luke Combs are teaming up with Guitars 4 Vets to donate $25,000 worth of custom guitars to help expand a program that provides veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with the opportunity to experience the healing power of music.

“Ford has supported the military and veterans for nearly a century, and Luke Combs has paid tribute to the brave men and women of our armed services,” said Mark LaNeve, Ford vice president, U.S. marketing, sales and service. “Working with Combs and Guitars 4 Vets is a great way to continue helping veterans as part of our Proud to Honor initiative.” Proud to Honor is the military initiative by Ford Motor Co. to raise awareness, strengthen existing programs and create an even more meaningful connection with our service members.

Letter to the Editor To the Music & Sound Retailer:

I just wanted to take a moment to let you know how much I enjoy your magazine. I've always been a fan of MI Spy and dreamt one day you would evaluate our store. Well my dream finally came true, and I was so happy to be part of your magazine this month (October issue), and even happier that we were selected as the store you would purchase the item you were shopping for from. Being primarily a band and orchestra store, I always imagined you would shop us for a clarinet, trumpet or violin. I was very happy to see we were able to compete with our digital piano selection. I told my employees this morning at our 10 to 10 meeting how important every interaction is, be it in-person, virtually or on the phone. We are always one step away from a great customer experience. Thank you again for including us.

We are deeply honored.

Frank Pampenella PM Music Center, President 8

NOVEMBER 2020

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In Memoriam: Mark Brunner Mark Brunner, vice president of global corporate and government relations at Shure, died on Oct. 1. Shure president and CEO Christine Schyvinck announced the news in a statement, writing: “It is with a heavy heart that I announce the unexpected passing of Mark Brunner on Oct. 1. Mark was more than our vice president of global corporate and government relations. He was family to so many of us at Shure and in the industry.

Mark joined Shure in 1989, and he touched the lives of everyone he worked with. Mark was a trusted advisor, a mentor and, most importantly, a friend. Our thoughts are with Mark’s family at this difficult time.”

Brunner held several key positions at Shure, including director of advertising, managing director of the musical instrument and touring sound business unit, and senior director of global brand management. He was instrumental in helping Shure build an even stronger reputation among associates, customers, industry influencers and the public.

Brunner also served as president of The Professional Audio Manufacturers Alliance (PAMA) from 2011 to 2013. On behalf of PAMA, Greg Beebe, chair of the board of directors, stated, “With the passing of Mark Brunner, we have surely lost one of the leading and most impassioned and valued voices of our industry. Mark always had a remarkably positive attitude. He was a mentor, a sounding board, an advocate of best practices, a good friend and generous supporter to all who knew him. He was the voice of reason and truly made a difference. Our loss is shared by the entire music community, as he has left an indelible imprint on this industry.”

In Memoriam: Richie Jones Jr. Mississippi Music announced that Richie Jones Jr. was killed while riding his motorcycle on the way to church in October. He had turned 48 the prior week. Jones Jr. began playing drums professionally when he was 12 years old for teen clubs and skating rinks. While gigging, he developed skills in production and worked for Morris Brothers Music in Jackson, Miss., which led to his interest in music retail. He was hired by Mississippi Music in 1995 and soon took on the task of developing the Flowood, Miss., store’s combo department. After serving as a salesman at Mississippi Music for more than 13 years, in 2005 Jones Jr. was asked if he would be willing to manage the store. In addition to his role at the music store, raising his family and volunteering in his community, he was an active and passionate musician, playing for his church’s Contemporary Christian band as often as he could.

Bateman Beyond

Keith McMillen Instruments appointed Eric Bateman as president and general manager. Bateman brings more than 20 years of experience in pro audio and MI, including 13 years as second in command at PCM Marketing, a manufacturers’ rep firm whose brands include Shure, Mackie, TC Electronic,

Behringer, Ampeg and more.

In addition to a proven track record of successfully bringing products to market and growing year-over-year dealer sales, Bateman is also a lifelong musician and audio engineer, specializing in drums, synthesizers and vocals on stage and in the studio. He per forms regularly as the drummer in a ‘90s cover-band, Alternative Ending, and as the lead vocalist and Ableton live looper in an original synth “popera” band, Star Ser vice.

“KMI is a truly exceptional team of thoughtful, smar t and genuine people,” said Bateman. “The products it develops add new dimensions to musical expressiveness. I am humbled and thrilled at the oppor tunity to lead it into the next chapter of innovation.”

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Audio-Technica’s Cajka to Retire as CEO, Replaced by Aoki

Audio-Technica (A-T) announced that AudioTechnica US president and CEO Phil Cajka will retire March 31, after being with the organization since 1981. Cajka, who has led A-T US since his appointment as president and CEO in 1996, has continually advanced Audio-Technica’s position in the industry with unprecedented growth, launched groundbreaking products, increased A-T’s dealer network, led the company to expand into new markets and guided the company’s participation in numerous high-profile industry events, stated A-T. Phil Cajka Effective Aug. 1, Manabu Aoki, who held the position of Audio-Technica Corp. Japan general manager, International Division, is the new A-T US CEO. Cajka and Aoki have had a close working relationship over the years, and Cajka will remain as president

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Manabu Aoki

until his retirement to help ensure a smooth leadership transition.

Prior to joining Audio-Technica, Aoki served as President of JVC Professional Europe Ltd. and vice president of JVC Europe, headquartered in London.

During his tenure, Cajka saw Audio-Technica US introduce innovative market-driven products, creating initiatives to further strengthen Audio-Technica’s brand name equity and position in the industry while more than doubling the company’s size, building strong customer relations and expanding the company’s footprint in the US. During this time, A-T kept its focus on technology, quality and customer relations, establishing the Audio Solutions Department, a resource for dealers and end users seeking clear technical or product advice and application assistance.

“Exemplifying a true leader, Cajka treated everyone on the A-T US team with the utmost respect, from managers whom he had worked with for years to the newest employees. This philosophy became a mindset among A-T management and staff and to this day is a major part of A-T’s company culture,” stated A-T. “Audio-Technica has been one of my life’s passions, and I am honored to have worked with everyone at A-T US and our parent company in Japan. I am extremely proud of what Audio-Technica now stands for, and I am preparing the company for its next phase of growth,” said Cajka. “I am very confident in our management team, and having worked with Mr. Aoki for years, I know he is the best choice to lead the company into its next chapter of success. After being with A-T for almost four decades, this is the right time for me to pass the baton and move forward to the next chapter of my life.”

The Music & Sound Retailer interviewed Cajka in March 2016. We asked at the time what has kept him motivated for 35 years at the company and 20 years as president and CEO. “The thing that has really kept me passionate about my work throughout that time is my love of music,” Cajka answered. “Over the years, I have had the great fortune of meeting and talking with a number of very talented artists, engineers and other audio professionals. It’s always fascinating to hear them discuss their work, to observe them working and to see the role Audio-Technica products play in their creative process. Seeing how A-T is valued by these people motivates me not only to ensure that we maintain the high-quality standards of our products, but also to innovate and introduce the next line of products that can have a positive impact on the music and audio industries. No one was ever going to invite me to be their session drummer, but I’ve found another way to contribute. It’s something for which I’m forever grateful. There’s just something special about being part of an exciting brand like A-T. Working with the people here and our customers … it never stops being fun.”

NOVEMBER 2020

PEOPLE

Triumphant Return

Jen Tabor has returned to guitar strap manufacturer Souldier with an emphasis on enhancing the company’s U.S. operations. After a year and a half as the brand director for Levy’s Leathers, Tabor will shift focus to Souldier’s job creation and community outreach in the Midwest.

Tabor founded Souldier guitar straps in 2005 and quickly grew an international following with the concept of rethinking guitar straps and music accessories using vintage materials and recycled seat belts.

A pioneer of the early 2000s craft movement, Tabor built dealer and direct-to-consumer relationships to develop Souldier into a rock n’ roll lifestyle brand with a catalog of instrument straps, dog collars, camera straps and everything from headbands to stick bags.

“When customers asked for a product or made suggestions, I listened,” Tabor said. “Nothing has been off limits, and we aim to continue to respond to our customers’ needs and requests.”

This year marks Souldier’s 15th year in business, and the

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company is focused on moving forward with the mission that launched the brand: to create sustainable goods for the music and fashion industries, build a community, and be good stewards of the opportunities and generous support the music industry has afforded Souldier.

Big Ben

Seymour Duncan named Ben Arsenault its director of operations. Arsenault graduated magna cum laude from Berklee College of Music with a degree in music production and engineering. At Seymour Duncan, he plays to his strengths, focusing on international logistics strategy, demand forecasting, inventory analysis and planning, omni-channel fulfillment strategy, project and compliance management, process improvement and systems optimization, and sustainability. Arsenault has played guitar for 26 years (the Fender Jazzmaster is his obsession), has made crate-digging a lifelong hobby, and has been a fan and customer of Seymour Duncan since he was 13.

MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

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This Is ‘The 1’

Following Taylor Swift’s surprise “Folklore” album release, Hal Leonard has both piano/ vocal/guitar and “Easy Piano” editions of the matching folios in print. The Hal Leonard songbooks feature all 17 songs from the album, including the first single “Cardigan,” as well as “Betty,” “August,” “Epiphany,” “Exile” (featuring Bon Iver), “Illicit Affairs,” “The Last Great American Dynasty,” “Mad Woman,” “Mirrorball,” “The 1,” “Peace,” “This Is Me Trying,” and more. halleonard.com

Found in Space

No Kidding Around

Levy’s has set its sights on the next generation of musicians with its Kid's Strap Series. With designs like shooting stars, dinosaurs, and skull and crossbones, Levy’s wants the younger generation of rockstars to have a strap that reflects their personality. Levy’s kid’s straps are available in 12 unique designs and are the perfect size for kids between the ages of 5 and 14, stated the company. levysleathers.com

Ace of Bass

Drum Workshop Inc. (DW) introduced the Collector’s Series Space Carbon snares. The versatile properties of carbon fiber have given the composite material a legendary reputation among notable drummers across several musical genres; its impressive strength-to-weight ratio combined with a non-porous, glass-like reflection make it the perfect snare material to deliver brightness, articulation, volume, projection and dynamic range, stated the company. Utilizing upcycled, high-grade carbon fiber from private-sector space manufacturing, the snares are available in DW’s most popular (6.5 by 14 inches and 5.5 by 14 inches), as well as new Piπ (3.14 by14 inches) sizes. Assembled by hand at the California Custom Shop, Space Carbon snares can be ordered in any available hardware color option; choose from chrome, satin chrome, nickel, black nickel and gold. dwdrums.com

BASSBOSS released the SV9 single nine-inch powered monitor, a mix of studio-quality audio clarity, deep low frequencies, high output, wide dispersion and long throw.

It can venture outside the studio environment with its rugged finish, convenient handles and grilles, and a substantial amount of power. For small groups, the 90-degree dispersion and extended throw allow audiences to experience the music deeply, even with comfortable distancing, stated the company. The Birch plywood enclosure is strong, solid and easily portable. The nine-inch woofer features a large voice coil and a rubber surround for high power handling and smooth response. The 1,200W RMS amplifier offers abundant headroom, and the proprietary BASSBOSS processing ensures exceptional sound quality and reliability. The 18mm Baltic birch cabinet construction contributes to rich, smooth sound for any room or occasion, the company added. bassboss.com

Hit the Right Chord

Yamaha introduced the 76-key PSR-EW310 and 61-key PSR-E373, the newest additions to the company’s line of portable keyboards. These instruments, which replace the PSR-EW300 and PSR-E363 respectively, boast capabilities derived from the company’s flagship Genos digital workstation and PSR-SX keyboards. Eleven Super Articulation Lite Voices (SALite) used in conjunction with the Articulation button provide greater control over and realism to Voices, including String Scratches and Guitar Slide notes, stated the company. Additionally, upgraded DSP effects let the player add Real Distortion to a guitar voice or Real Reverb to a piano to shape, enhance and impart color to the sound. Other improvements over the previous models include upgraded Wave Samples from the PSR-S670, as well as more “regional” styles from Vietnam, Indonesia, Africa, America, Europe and Latin America. usa.yamaha.com

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NOVEMBER 2020

I Believe in Music...

And the people who bring music to the world.

I believe there has never been a more important moment for our industry to gather, to conduct business, to inspire each other, to inspire music makers and to support those in our music family in need.

That’s why Yamaha is excited for Believe in Music Week.

Tom Sumner President, Yamaha Corporation of America

Industry Meetings and Media Preview January 18 - 20 | Marketplace January 21 - 22 | Believe in Music TV January 21 - 22

PRODUCT

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Grover Musical Products introduced two ukulele accessories, the U98 Series and U99 Series. The Original Grover Sta-Tite machine heads are now available for the Ukuleles with an 18:1 gear ratio for precise tuning, still with the classic styling and butter bean button of the original Grover machine heads, stated the company. The U9818N comes with a .994-inch-long (25.2mm) post, while the U99-18N has a slightly shorter post length of .827-inch (21mm). Both models are available in a nickel finish. grotoro.com

A Shocking REVELATION

MXL Microphones introduced the REVELATION MINI FET. Inspired by the company’s REVELATION and new REVELATION II tube microphones, MXL set out to create a microphone that has the same intimacy and warmth of a tube mic, but built around a FET circuit with a smaller footprint. It utilizes a 32mm, centerterminating, gold-sputtered capsule combined with a low-noise circuit to provide pristine sound in a range of applications, stated the company. It focuses on the midrange and lower frequencies, which sets the mic apart from basic entry-level condenser mics, the company added. Additionally, the inclusion of a three-stage pad (0, -10dB, -20dB) provides the flexibility needed for recording high-SPL sources, such as horns and kickdrums, stated the company. mxlmics.com

Great margins.

Made in the USA. Good for your soul. souldier.us

Photo by Ola Geir Raftevold courtesy of VintageGitar.no

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Competitive Edge

Dean Guitars introduced the Edge Pro Select basses, designed to give bass players the extra advantage of a tight low end. Available in four-, five- and six-string models, Dean’s Edge Pro Select basses are designed by modern bass players for modern bass players, which is apparent in both material choice and construction, stated the company. Dean’s uniquely designed Edge body is made from swamp ash with either walnut or burled poplar sides in natural satin finishes. The simple aesthetic is balanced by dome black knobs and black hardware that add a finishing touch of edginess. Edge Pro Select bass guitars offer a bolt-on neck with dual-action truss rod to ensure stability for the five-piece maple walnut neck, which offers superb note articulation, stated the company. The four- and five- string models have a traditional 34-inch-scale neck, while the six-string beast utilizes a 35-inch-scale length to balance intonation and string tension for the lowest and most unique tunings. deanguitars.com

Trifecta

D’Addario Accessories launched the Tri-Action Ukulele Capo, which is designed for all-sized ukuleles. The capo reduces the force required to open and close the capo, allowing users to dial in the perfect clamping tension for their instrument and eliminating the need to retune during use, stated the company. The capo’s micrometer tension adjustment applies direct horizontal pressure for even clamping tension regardless of neck profile. The lightweight construction can withstand the toughest playing or touring schedule while adding negligible additional weight or obstruction to the instrument. daddario.com NOVEMBER 2020

PRODUCT

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H.E.R.'s Choice

Turn on the Jets

Fender Musical Instruments Corp. released the H.E.R. Signature Stratocaster in collaboration with the multiple Grammy-Award-winning rhythm and blues singersongwriter. A project more than a year in the making, the all-new H.E.R. Signature Stratocaster has been designed to the artist’s specifications with a distinctive look and exceptional tone; it features Fender Vintage Noiseless pickups, a one-ply anodized aluminum pickguard and an alder body finished in stunning Chrome Glow inspired by the artist’s favorite nail polish color, stated the company. fender.com

- For LED spotlights or for speakers - Distance rod can be placed in 3 different positions on the base plate

The new modular stand system Create your desired speaker or lighting stand system with flexible components. The large heavy steel base 26706 provides a firm footing while the integrated three threads allow distance rods to be mountedat various positions. The new extension rod 24623 rises to a maximum height of 94.5“. An integrated base handle, convenient cable management and four felt-covered feet further enhance the stand system. An additional weight 26709 for the base provides for more stability and flexibility.

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Orbit Concepts released the JetPack Drop System, a combination of the JetPack Drop roller and JetPack Snap backpack.

Together as a single unit, end users have all the capacity of a large roller bag, stated the company. However, there’s also the ability to separate them into two streamlined parts for a meaningful division of gear. Equipment can be kept in the Drop, while laptop and essentials are housed in the Snap. Or equipment can be stored in the Drop for a gig, and users can pull the Snap out to use as a fashionable day bag during the week. jetpackbags.com

Commander-in-Chief

VocoPro announced the Commander USB-Guitar system, a dualchannel wireless USB guitar and headset mic system. It is intended for music teachers and students to make the most of virtual music lessons with easy setup and clear connections, stated the company.

The system allows both music teachers and students to communicate and perform simultaneously via its two-channel receiver. One transmitter will plug directly into the guitar or bass, while the other transmitter will be a headset microphone so the teacher and student can perform lessons hands-free and wirelessly. Since the transmitters are plugged directly into the guitar, there will be no background noise, stated the company. Effects can be added easily by simply plugging the wireless guitar transmitter into the output of the last effects device in the signal path. The system’s approximate run time is about six hours per charge. vocopro.com NOVEMBER 2020

PRODUCT

Mainframe Hack

Electro-Harmonix introduced the Mainframe sample-rate reducer and bit crusher, which enables the user to create “old-school” digital audio sounds and fine-tune their digital artifacts. The Mainframe is equipped with many controls and features, such as sample-rate reduction ranging from 48kHz to 110Hz; bit-depth reduction ranging from 24-bit to one-bit; selectable High/Low/Band-Pass filter to shape the artifacts of the bit crushing and sample-rate reduction; sample-rate tuning mode, allowing end users to set the sample rate to match the

z z u B

key of a song or continually adjust the sample rate based on what end users play on their instrument; programmable preset or expression pedal setting allows users to save their sound or control any combination of the Mainframe’s knobs with an external expression pedal; and secondary knob parameters that allow users to fine-tune settings. ehx.com

Genuine

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Music Nomad’s three-piece Premium Piano Care Kit includes a bottle of Piano ONE, a bottle of All Purpose Key ONE and a microfiber cloth. Piano ONE, organically formulated to clean, polish, wax and protect gloss pianos, is a one-step answer for achieving a showroom shine.

This formula is infused with white Brazilian carnauba wax to deliver a transparent, protective shield on the finish. Safe on all semi- and high-gloss finishes, it features UV protectants and anti-static agents. All Purpose Key ONE cleaner is everything you need to maintain your piano keys in one easy step by simply spraying and wiping, stated Music Nomad. This formula is safe on all piano keys, and a single spritz cleans fingerprints, dust and smudges. The included 12-inch by 12-inch microfiber cloth contains 90,000 cleaning microfibers per square inch. musicnomadcare.com

MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

© 2019 PRS Guitars

Take Good Care

The new string and cable lines from PRS Guitars are just the latest addition to our wide range of high-quality parts, accessories and wearables. To see what makes our strings and cables special check out our accesory store at www.prsguitars.com/shop or visit an authorized dealer near you.

19

STATING AN OPTIMISTIC CASE Despite difficult times, accessories, bags and cases manufacturers continue to show strength

By Brian Berk Often, the sales of accessories/ bags and cases are affected directly by the products they improve, such as guitars and percussion products. This was of course the case in 2020. However, while sales dropped for many during the worst days of the COVID-19 pandemic, shortly after the lockdowns were lifted, products like guitars sold effectively thanks to play-at-home musicians. So did manufacturers of accessories, bags and cases ride that wave? Are they seeing sales improvement even as the coronavirus pandemic continues? And what does the future hold for this all-important MI segment?

Answering these questions and more are our panel of experts: Jeremy Payne, national account manager, The Music People Christopher Roberts, product manager, The Music People Mark Blasko, managing partner, operations, OMG Music A joint response by Max Lintner, director of research and development and digital sales and Hilary Brown, director of marketing, Kyser Jolil Ula, creative director, ProX John Hsiao, CEO, Odyssey Cases

20

First, let’s start with if our panelists have seen a change in sales due to COVID-19. Are accessories/bags/cases sales dependent on traveling musicians, or have stay-at-home musicians picked up the slack?

“We absolutely have seen changes in sales due to COVID-19,” responded Payne.

“Initially, when the pandemic hit, like most businesses, our customers were forced to close down.

Couple that with a public that was afraid of the unknown, and business slowed down substantially.

However, since the late spring and early summer, business has really picked up. First, online retailers emerged with huge spikes in growth (with many brick-and-mortar retailers still being closed or limited in how they could do business). Brick-andmortar has staged an impressive comeback, and things, more or less, are leveling off or growing in different areas. Accessories are an area that remained strong.

While some folks might not be able to justify purchasing a new instrument right now, accessories are a nice way to bring life and excitement back into playing.”

He added, “We do see trends that indicate people are making music at home more than ever, which is important on so many levels.

With that said, our friends and family in live music performance and production are hurting, and there’s no replacing that revenue and importance with other segments of the market.”

“Just like everyone else, we too have suffered some loss in sales,” noted Ula. “It has been a tough time for everyone, but we are grateful to receive orders from nationwide dealers. We’ve seen a tremendous surge in online shoppers from some of our major distributors, thankfully.

Most of these sales come from DJs doing livestreams or [who are] luckily enough to be in a state that allows them to play in front of a live audience.”

“After the initial shutdown, we have seen quite an uptick across most categories. It started with consumables, such as strings and picks, but quickly migrated over to other accessories, like MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

guitar straps and cases,” answered Blasko. “While travel and touring for musicians is currently limited, you now have a huge group of hobbyists that have been introduced to or rediscovered the guitar to pass the time while at home.”

Lintner and Brown said they have seen an increase in online

sales. “Like everyone, we didn’t know what to expect back in March when lockdowns started happening,” they said. “But we immediately noticed an uptick in sales through all online platforms. It seems stay-at-home musicians have taken up the slack. Or, it’s quite likely the fact that people staying home is

leading to more people starting to play an instrument or starting to play their instruments more than they have in the past. More time trapped indoors equals more free time equals more time for playing an instrument.”

“We have definitely seen adjustments in our sales trends since the pandemic, both within

21

Jeremy Payne, national account manager, The Music People

"Accessories are an area that remained strong. While some folks may not be able to justify purchasing a new instrument right now, accessories are a nice way to bring life and excitement back into playing."

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the MI industry and outside,” said Hsiao. “Because Odyssey is so diversified in our product offering, and we’re built here in the USA, we have been able to stay nimble during these times. All musicians, producers and DJs need to protect their equipment, so we have continued to see a good mix of artists purchasing our products. The mobile musicians seem to be finding creative ways to perform, while the bedroom musicians seem to be homing in and perfecting their craft. It’s a really interesting time.”

As a follow-up to the first question, we asked our panelists if they have had to change their product mix because of different end users buying their products.

“No. Every guitar player, regardless of style or proficiency level, needs a capo, thankfully,” responded Lintner and Brown.

“Conversely, we have had to reevaluate our marketing mix.

We’ve experienced an organizational paradigm shift in terms of how we best serve our players and artists. Emotions are running high, people are feeling displaced, and many musicians, retailers and music venues are without livelihoods. It’s our duty to cultivate and create new opportunities, and reciprocate the same support, along with service, that these businesses and artists have granted us since the very beginning.”

“No, we have not necessarily had to change our product offerings,” relayed Hsiao. “Instead, Odyssey has continued to follow the trends, between artists’ needs and new hardware releases, and released new cases and bags to support, or reintroduced existing products.”

Noted Blasko, “Not as much changing the mix as it is bumping the levels of inventory across the board to meet demand.”

“Our DJ line of cases has always been sought after for its tough protection, versatility and build quality,” said Ula. “Our live production cases, trussing, and most of our eventbased products have gone down in sales for a while due to COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions. But with the countr y reopening, we’re slowly starting to see events come back and sales to follow.”

And answered Payne, “We have refocused our mix a little bit. We haven’t stopped carr ying any specific products, but we have shifted inventor y dollars around a bit to stock heavier on items that can help folks make music at home and less on live performance to some degree. That said, it is really surprising how well some of the gear that is traditionally thought of as live performance gear is selling. People who want to make music are finding creative ways to perform, and they still need the gear to do it.”

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22

One thing the pandemic has not done is halt creativity. We asked our panelists what the current best-selling products are.

“Rotosound Strings and D’Andrea picks/accessories, as they are consumables,” stated Blasko. “Also, both companies have been able to keep us well stocked when there are a lot of supply-chain issues affecting other manufacturers. We also cannot seem to make Lock-It Straps fast enough since we purchased the company last year. There was pent-up demand, and the pandemic has done nothing to change that.”

“Most of our cases are in demand globally, including our Flip-Ready Hydraulic-lift cases, which are built by a company in Poland we’re in partnership with,” relayed Ula. “The ProX Flip-Ready case is a very versatile plug-and-play-style leave-in audio mixing console and DJ controller/mixer case. Just roll it into a gig, and with a single flick of the wrist, it retracts from a NOVEMBER 2020

with our dealers to insure we are always aware of their changing needs and adjusting accordingly.”

Mark Blasko, managing partner, operations, OMG Music

New Marketing Methods

"After the initial shutdown, we have seen quite an uptick across most categories.

It started with consumables, such as strings and picks, but quickly migrated over to other accessories, like guitar straps and cases." vertical storage position into a playable position with almost no physical effort.”

“Our best sellers include our XCG-4 Guitar Stand, KS7190 Keyboard Stand and MS7701 Microphone Stand,” said Payne.

“These are all bread-and-butter accessories that are needed by just about any musician. The quality price point makes them hard to beat.” He added, “Some other emerging products that have really increased in popularity during the pandemic include the MBS5000 Broadcast Boom Arm, AS800 Large Diaphragm Condenser Mic Package, and all pop blocker and desktop mic stand models. These items are all used in work-from-home and/or content-creation applications that clearly have seen a spike due to stay-at-home orders around the world.”

Said Hsiao, “Odyssey’s current top products are cases and bags for Pioneer DJ, Rane and Denon hardware, from controllers to mixers. During this time, Pioneer DJ continues to release new products, and so the demand to protect them is high.

We are fortunate to be able to quickly support our partners with new cases and bags as they hit the market.”

And Lintner and Brown responded, “Quick-Change Capos in black, sunburst, rosewood and maple. They work well, they’re guaranteed for life, and they’re beautiful.”

However, despite fantastic products on the market, some retailers have noted COVID-19 has caused backorders to be a problem. We asked our respondents how they have tackled this potential problem.

“Our team has been working diligently with our factories to adapt to the times and plan ahead to ensure that we don’t miss a beat,” answered Payne. “We have more product coming in than ever before; it’s just a matter of catching up to the increased demand. We’re happy to say that while there inevitably are stock outages, they’re short-lived with the large quantity and frequency of shipments we have coming in.”

“Most of our products are not MI-based. We did receive mostly DJ case orders during this time,” said Ula. “We are 100-percent made in the USA and regularly maintain three months’ worth of inventory,” relayed Lintner and Brown.

“This really helped us continue shipping orders while Texas shut down non-essential businesses. Our manufacturing facility was closed, but we were able to keep our distribution center open during the tough months of March through June.”

“Fortunately for Odyssey, our wide range of products have allowed us to diversity our offerings to the market, so we haven’t had too many issues with backorders,” stated Hsiao.

“We believe in our industry and, over the past 25 years, we have seen it all, good times and bad. Since we trust in our industry to bounce back, we want to make sure we’re stocked and ready to go whenever our partners, dealer network and artists need us.”

And stated Blasko: “We were fortunate in that we keep a large inventory on hand and manufacture most of our own branded products in-house, so when things opened back up, we were not reliant on the supply chain. With few exceptions, we are shipping at pre-pandemic levels and have boosted our inventory in anticipation of significant holiday demand. Brett Marcus leads an outstanding team of reps that work closely MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

But what about new products?

How will our panelists market these new launches without The NAMM Show in January?

“We will be having a virtual product launch that will be similar to the successful TMP Jamboree that we hosted in lieu of Summer NAMM 2020,”

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Max Lintner, director of research and development and digital sales and Hilary Brown, director of marketing, Kyser

"We are 100-percent made in the USA and regularly maintain three months' worth of inventory. This really helped us conntinue shipping orders while Texas shut down non-essential businesses."

noted The Music People’s Roberts. “Dealers will have the ability to learn about our exciting new product releases in a one-on-one video setting, as we would like to ensure that our dealers have a close to a real trade show experience as possible.”

“For the past three decades, Odyssey has never missed a NAMM Show, except for after 9/11,” responded Hsiao. “We know it’s a staple event in our industry, however, with digital continuing to become the standard, we have been effectively growing our digital footprint over the years with our dealer, distributors and end users. Between digital media, social, direct, customer-relationship-management campaigns and direct communications with our valued network, we should be OK with brand and product visibility in 2021.”

“Since I’ve come aboard as creative director for ProX, I’ve been driven to handle all of our own market-

Jolil Ula, creative director, ProX

"We're excited about our line of Flip-Ready Hydraulic Lift Cases. We've recently launched Flip-Ready cases for several other DJ controllers/mixers for Pioneer, RANE and Denon." lightsforlife4_12x4_37.pdf 1/7/2020 2:39:50 PM

If you purchased a Littlite in 1986, chances are it still works.

And if it doesn’t, chances are it is still under warranty.

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Gooseneck Lamps & Accessories Made in Hamburg, MI USA www.littlite.com sales@littlite.com 24

ing, development and branding,” said Ula. “Social media is a hot spot for us to connect with end users.

We have a great following of professionals we listen to when it comes to developing or improving products.”

“OMG has a new YouTube channel, OMG TV, that makes it easy to see all the new product launches as well as any relevant content regarding our brands: Rotosound, D’Andrea, Henry Heller, Lock-It, etc.,” stated Blasko.

And according to Lintner and Brown: “As mentioned, 2020 has proven that camaraderie and partnership are what we need to catalyze growth. We’re actively trying to lean on each other as a community and get creative about content opportunities and collaborations, whether that’s in the form of brand awareness or product partnerships. We’re also rethinking the possibilities of the ‘sales meeting.’ That means not only making our ordering processes as seamless as possible, but also creating meaningful and unique experiences for our customers.

No one wants to sit in back-to-back Zoom meetings. Our strategy is to make those interactions informative, engaging and distinctly Kyser. When you’re not confined to a 20-foot-by-20-foot booth, it’s a welcome opportunity to venture outside the box.”

As a follow-up, we asked our respondents if they NOVEMBER 2020

John Hsiao, CEO, Odyssey Cases can offer a sneak peek of what products they will soon launch.

“To better serve the needs of each and every artist, we’ll be experimenting more with special-edition products and limited-run product collections, with a long-term goal of tailoring the classic Kyser product assortment to suit every player and personality,” said Lintner and Brown.

“We are very excited about bringing Twisted Wood Ukuleles to the U.S. They are a Canadian lifestyle brand that is sold alongside Martin Guitars up north. It’s a beautiful instrument line that will create exciting opportunities for our dealers,” stated Blasko. “We’ve also acquired U.S. distribution for The Rock Slide. And expect more Lock-It and Henry Heller strap designs, as making guitar straps is our bread and butter.”

“We’re excited about our line of Flip-Ready Hydraulic Lift Cases,” relayed Ula. “At first, they were made for live audio brands like Allen & Heath, MIDAS and Behringer. We’ve recently launched Flip-Ready cases for several other DJ controllers/mixers for Pioneer, RANE and Denon.”

“At On-Stage, we pride ourselves in keeping up with the times, as we are always identifying new areas for growth,” relayed Roberts. “We are excited to enter a rapidly growing podcasting market, as we released our AS700 USB Mic, VLD360 LED Ring Light and VSM3000 Green Screen Kit during the TMP Jamboree 2020.

Based on the feedback that we have received so far, we plan to expand this product line, as well as tap into some new and exciting markets in 2021.”

“The team here at Odyssey is constantly developing/releasing new products, but most recently, our new Odyssey Vulcan Series of waterproof, dustproof and impact-proof cases has been highly touted,” responded Hsiao. “More importantly, our business is built around supporting our brand partners, and we’re proud to be able to offer custom-designed cases or bags for every new product reMUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

lease, from Pioneer DJ to Denon, and beyond.”

And to close this story out, we looked into the future by asking if our panelists are optimistic about the future in what will hopefully be a post-pandemic world.

“Absolutely, we are very optimistic about the MI industry post-pandemic because the community is amazingly resilient,” answered Hsiao. “We have seen this over the past three decades

"The one area we can always count on is the strength of our industry and community to bounce back from anything, even a pandemic the world has not seen for a century."

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at Odyssey. The ups and downs, the trends and advancements, analog to digital, adjustments and growth, etc. The one area that we can always count on is the strength of our industry and community to bounce back from any anything, even a pandemic that the world hasn’t seen for a century.”

“I am very optimistic. It is easy to get distracted by politics, technology, social media, etc., but the pandemic shutdown has helped

so many discover what we in the industry already know: The joy of making music is transformative,” responded Blasko. “There is nothing else like it. You feel the magic, and that bell cannot be unrung.

And no one is better prepared to help people along their musical journey than the independent MI dealer. After all, that is why we are all in this to begin with!”

“Yes, we’re optimistic about the future of MI,” answered Lintner and Brown. “Guitar sales are up,

and therefore guitar accessory sales are up. We’re worried about brick-and-mortar stores, though, especially mom-and-pop brickand-mortar stores. This time has been the toughest on them, and we hope they can hold on until the post-pandemic time comes.

We know there’s nothing musicians want to do more than go browse a music shop and try out whatever guitar they want.”

“Slowly, we are starting to branch out into the MI world

due to the popular demand for at-home musicians and recording artists,” relayed Ula. “We have much in production and planned for future trade show events. We’ll just have to wait and see if they come back in 2021.”

And Payne concluded on a bright note: “Absolutely! Music is not going anywhere any time soon, and we live in a world that is able to adapt and overcome adversity. One silver lining to come out of this pandemic is that many people either discovered or reconnected with their relationship of making music.

If there are more musicmakers out there, we think the world is a more creative, intelligent and kind place. It just so happens we’re in the musical instruments industry, and the fact that there is a boom in the number of people making music will help strengthen our industry as a whole.”

CO MI NG IN THE DECEMBER ISSUE OF THE MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER:

• A Believe in Music Week Preview from NAMM President and CEO Joe Lamond • The Music & Sound Awards, Manufacturer Division, Nominees are Announced • Five Minutes With: Paul Tapper, CEO, NUGEN Audio • MI Spy Travels to Northern New Jersey • Shine a Light: High Strung Violins & Guitars • New Columns from Dan Vedda and Allen McBroom

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And We Have Much More to End the Year!

NOVEMBER 2020

TRIBU T E

By Brian Berk

REMEMBERING REBECCA APODACA

This year has not been kind to anyone, but I was shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of Rebecca Apodaca on Sept. 25, just two weeks shy of her 67th birthday.

Perhaps you know Apodaca was president of A&D Music in California, or maybe you know of her incredible work as an appraiser of musical instruments, as well as a pioneering female band instrument repair technician. She worked with professional musicians to restore and preserve thousands of instruments, including 300-year-old harps, ethnic and world instruments, and even instruments of celebrity status, such as Henry Mancini’s piano.

She switched to musical instrument appraisals in her later years and worked as an ASA IRS-certified appraiser in which she did work for such places as Christie’s Auction House, The Musical Instrument Museum In Phoenix, Oberlin College and several others. Apodaca was also a member of NAPBIRT, NAMM and AMIS. In 2019, she received NAMM’s Believe in Music award.

Her impressive career aside, I knew Apodaca as one of the nicest people in the MI industry, which is full of nice people, so that is really saying something. I remember Apodaca asking me if she could write appraisal columns for the Music & Sound Retailer in the mid-2000s, a request which I obliged. Until her death, she never stopped thanking me for giving her that opportunity.

MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

Over the years, Apodaca wrote many columns for the Retailer, eventually taking on more broad topics than appraisals. She most recently contacted me in early August regarding an interview she wanted to conduct that unfortunately fell through. However, just before that, in July, she sent me a tremendous article reflecting on the life of someone who sadly also passed away this year, former U.S. Congressman John Lewis, whom she met in 2019 at the Washington D.C. NAMM Advocacy Fly-In. In her John Lewis story (available at msretailer.com/ remembering-congressmanjohn-lewis) Apodaca said the following: “The pandemic has become the new challenge.

Music transcends all people.

Our customers need us. Music is the healing force of the pandemic. We are in the best industry that gives us the best opportunities. We need to reach out to our customers and create a new way to keep our stores open virtually.”

Apodaca sent me a follow-up email on July 21, in which her true, tremendous personality came out in a sentimental fashion. The email read: “I sure appreciate you accepting articles from me. If I think something might help, or be of interest to the readers, I send it. I want to be supportive of you, MSR and [publisher] Vinny Testa. The article I wrote was inspired by Mr. Lewis. I hope his words inspire other members in our industry or

Apodaca (second from right) is joined by Alfred Music's Jennifer Paisley, Santa Monica Music Center's Lana Negrete and Heid Music's DeDe Heid at NAMM's 2019 Advocacy Fly-In.

make them look up Lewis and what any one of us can accomplish during troubled times. I see too many city governments and businesses in my area giving up rather than trying the same thing in a different way. I know this is a scary future for you in regard to your sons. They will see how brave their dad is by him continuing to do good work.

My dad did that with us by starting the first Minority Employee Association at Hughes Aircraft, and this aided the company to get government contracts such as the Apollo Space Program, and they participated in the first manned moon landing. You are doing good work. I’m am just lucky to be near someone with your visions and strength.”

Admittedly, whenever I received a message like this one from Apodaca, it was always difficult to keep a dry eye. This was one of several emails and texts

she wrote to me.

She always found a way to throw some humor in the mix, including an April Fool’s joke earlier this year. She loved reading my editorials and offered up many compliments about the magazine.

She always made sure to send me holiday cards, and even once sent me a tie clip featuring a Sacajawea dollar (above).

Apodaca always reminded me that in even the toughest times, we have to be thankful for what we have, whether it is family, a job in an industry we love or something else that brings us joy. When I have felt my lowest during the COVID-19 pandemic, only one thing has made me feel better: thinking about how fortunate I am in life. I have Rebecca Apodaca to thank for that.

She will be truly missed.

27

FI V E M INUTE S W ITH

DOUG LADY

Senior Vice President, Hal Leonard

By Brian Berk

It is fair to say a lot has changed in the more than five years since we last inter viewed Hal Leonard senior vice president Doug Lady. We kick this inter view off by discussing the last five years, then shift to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hal Leonard’s distribution deals and much more.

The Music & Sound Retailer: We last inter viewed you for this same feature five years ago — September 2015 to be exact. Can you tell us about some of the things you are most proud of at Hal Leonard in these past five years since our previous inter view?

Doug Lady: I can’t believe it’s been five years! There are many things we’re proud of at Hal Leonard that we have accomplished since then. We have diversified our offerings with our growth in the distribution of product beyond print, which I can touch on in a minute. But even with our core print product, we have been continuously evolving. Our product-development team has been setting trends in the print music publishing area with cool, hybrid publications featuring unique codes to access accompanying online audio tracks, teaching content and videos. We also completed the acquisition of Music Sales in 2018, the largest European print music publisher at the time, which now has enabled Hal Leonard to become an 800-employee global company. Beyond just the top-line growth, we have been able to bring in even more talented people formerly with Music Sales who are contributing to our collective expansion and creative output. Now with our seven offices throughout Europe, our Hal Leonard Australia office in Melbourne and five offices in the United States, we have built this company of talented, smart and creative people around the world, who are working hard to give people tools to participate in the beauty of music-making!

The Retailer: On a personal and company basis, how difficult has it been handling the COVID-19 pandemic?

Lady: Here we go with the understatement of the year: “It’s been challenging in many ways!” But we are working our tails off and pivoting, literally on a daily basis, to take advantage of new opportunities and create different formats of product to respond to musicians’, teachers’ and students’ needs during these challenging times. Although areas like our MI business, our digital and e-commerce areas are doing extremely well, our school music business has been naturally challenged due to the various incarnations of music programs going back to school. Although we have been impacted like almost all companies around the world, we swiftly “reforecasted” our budgets early on in the pandemic. We factored in an immediate downturn followed by gradual recovery through the year. Knocking on wood, we are happy to say that we have surpassed our re-forecast each and every month since we put the plan in place in early March. So, we are hopeful that we will get through this without being impacted too severely.

28

The Retailer: Hal Leonard has inked a plethora of huge distribution deals recently.

Can you tell us about them and why they are important for the company? And can you discuss your partnerships for face masks and shields as well?

Lady: Happy to! We paused for a few months on kicking off new deals because, frankly, we were just trying to adjust to this new reality and figuring out what the market was going to demand. We felt, even if we signed a new distribution deal, it would be difficult to get much bandwidth with our customers to give it proper kickoff in those early months.

However, most recently, we laid off the pause button and resumed some of our pending deals from the beginning of 2020 — one of which is representing an incredible, quality line of cables: the German-made Cordial line. It is one of Europe’s top cable lines but have had little presence in the U.S. until now. We’re very excited about Cordial, as it fills in a much-needed offering in our technology/gear area. We also took on the beautiful, boutique line Michael Kelly Guitars, which is actually part of Samson, one of our most important distribution partners.

As far as pandemic-protection product, we have worked with our partner Gibraltar in developing new shields to protect both school music and private music studio students and teachers. In addition, for singers, we are now representing the Singers Mask — which is designed by professional Broadway singers and seamstresses — that protects spread by singers, but does not muffle their singing. And lastly, through our new Gator distribution deal, which we kicked off earlier this year, we are representing [Gator’s] innovative wind instrument bell covers and face masks for horn players. We feel it’s important to help our future music-makers so they can safely make music together whenever possible during these times.

NOVEMBER 2020

The Retailer: On this same note, these partnerships prove Hal Leonard is so much more than a publisher. But how do you get the word out about your diverse offerings?

Lady: You know Brian, we have been distributing products in the MI area for 11 years now, but we still run into dealers who had no idea that Hal Leonard was representing gear, recording, live The Retailer: The Hal Leonard PROF-IT (Preferred Retailer sound, drums and other instruments. We have had a big Online Fulfillment) Program has received plenty of praise from presence at The NAMM Show and done countless ads and MI retailers. Can you tell us the idea behind the program and marketing, but I guess we can’t stop banging the drum! what has made it successful?

(Pardon the pun.) We pride ourselves on being a one-stop Lady: Of course! We have had a dealer referral program for years; shop for MI and thankfully have an incredibly efficient however, there have been challenges handing over customers in recent distribution center in Winona, Minn., that enables us to years, with privacy issues related to credit card transfers, and just the service dealers coast to coast, and gives them the flexibility continuity of a seamless order transfer. So, we kicked off PROF-it right of ordering MI products right along with their print orders. at the beginning of COVID, which was perfect timing to help support

The Retailer: Speaking of diversity, can you tell us which segments of the business saw strength and which areas may have declined during the height of COVID-19?

Lady: Great question. As mentioned earlier, we have found ourselves “fast-tracking” some previous initiatives to support our customers during these trying times.

One is obviously enabling teachers to pivot to more remote learning. Our “Essential Elements Band” and “String” methods are already the No. 1-selling methods worldwide, but there are many existing “Essential Elements” directors that have been teaching from it for years but didn’t realize the plethora of online content and tools that they and their students had access to for free with the purchase of physical books. As I mentioned earlier, these physical books have unique codes that give teachers and students access to the Essential Elements Interactive website (EEi), which has become an invaluable tool during their rapid switch to learning online.

Are we seeing a different group of end users now buying our products? We have indeed. In addition to EEi, our new online subscription-based Essential Elements Music Class (EEMC) was just released a year ago August, but once COVID hit, there were thousands of new teachers who gravitated to EEMC for online learning for their classroom music programs. They were not only attracted to the lessons, but also to the 500-plus popular songs that keep the kids busy and entertained while they learn remotely. Also, our Noteflight company just added SoundCheck, which is an incredible assessment tool developed with the Match my Sound company and is also quite timely given these times of teaching/learning remotely. I should mention that most importantly, dealers can sell these EEMC and Noteflight subscriptions to their school customers.

MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

our dealers. We simply now handle an order from consumers, but we ask them to choose their favorite dealer when they check out. The dealer receives a commission on the sale, as well as the consumer’s name for further follow-up. Dealers have been extremely appreciative of this new program.

The Retailer: You also launched Hal Leonard Digital Books. Can you tell us about this program and how feedback has been?

Lady: I’d be happy to! This was a direct result of dealer feedback. While companies such as Amazon and Apple have been selling ebooks for the last several years, dealers have asked how they could also sell these from their sites.

Since the big guys have their own proprietary technology to sell ebooks, we decided to come up with our own system where music dealers could represent this digital content.

We kicked off Hal Leonard Digital Books in the summer, and the feedback from dealers has been incredible. Again, this The Retailer: Following up on publishing, was a “fast-tracked” have you had to make changes to your offerings project that obviously due to the pandemic? For example, the industr y was perfect timing for has sadly had to deal with the loss of Broadway musicians staying at shows for much of the year. home, with dealers Lady: It is indeed sad that no Broadway shows looking for ways to or live concerts will be performed for the immedisell teaching and playate future. However, in our voice and choral area, ing materials digitally our school chorals are now available in our Digital to their customers.

Learning Voice Class that will allow choir teachers We currently have to continue to work on vocal technique with their nearly 1,000 Digital students, even when they can’t sing together. We Books titles and are also are very excited to be working on Virtual Choir adding more every bundles that will give choirs everything they need day. This includes to prepare virtual choir videos for their programs. everything from songThankfully, the release of “Hamilton” on Disney + has books to educational given a whole new audience access to that incredible publications. work of art, so we have seen a big resurgence in our Hamilton publication sales, to no surprise. Also, in the equally hard-hit school instrumental market, we are creating more publications in our “Flex Band” series, which enables schools to work with flexible instrumentation, which is valuable with smaller and modified class sizes related to the pandemic. Lastly, we are creating more solo publications that are ideal for playing and learning from home. (continued on page 45) 29

M I SPY

ON THE LOOSE IN SYRACUSE As you know, the MI Spy has finally returned to official spy business after being cooped up at home for way too long. Internet sleuthing had its perks, but it wasn’t the best use of my particular set of skills; after all, anyone can stay incognito online. My place is out here in the field, getting a close-up look at music stores around the country.

This month’s mission took me to Syracuse, N.Y., to check out the retail scene in New York’s fifth-most-populous city. Syracuse is the home of Syracuse University, an array of nightlife and dining options, a variety of architectural styles and outdoor art, and some really good pizzerias. Obviously, these days aren’t ideal for sightseeing, but all things considered, it was a good time to visit Syracuse. The bone-chilling northeastern windchills were still a few months off, and COVID-19 infection rates were low in this part of New York at the time of my visit.

Zipping northward along the highways (including Interstate 81) on my way to the city felt great. Although, I did get pelted by three rainstorms. And my cell phone charger conked out. Also, one of my molar fillings popped right out of my mouth. But I was so glad to be back on the road that these were just minor distractions.

I was excited about the city’s nightlife and eateries, but things have changed in light of COVID-19. Syracuse was way too quiet. There weren’t the usual big crowds of people running around. However, the stores and restaurants and other businesses were slowly coming back to life, and I was able to visit some really impressive musical instrument shops.

While reflecting on the new normal of music retail, I thought about how many teens have wandered into the typical music store over the years, sitting on stools while cradling electric guitars and playing “Stairway to Heaven” or “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”

Now the rules are changing, and the music shops don’t want to encourage everyone crowding around the drum sets and the Strats anymore. I guess the times really are a-changing.

Beat Street Music 219 E. Seneca St. Manlius, NY 13104 315.682.3311

I began my search for cool guitar gear and more in the Syracuse suburb of Manlius (which would also make a great name for an 80s hair-metal band). Beat Street Music was

30

not hard to find, and I sidled my car into its small parking lot.

The store was medium-sized, but packed with a lot of nearly everything. It was wellstocked with electric and acoustic guitars, dobros, basses, ukuleles, drums and smaller percussion instruments, some amplifiers, and plastic toy instruments as well. And, if you are looking for repair pieces for tinkering on your own instruments, there are plenty available.

As soon as I appeared at the door, I was asked “Can I help you?” The salesman who greeted me was completing a repair on an electric bass, a Fender Squire, for a teenage boy who looked on eagerly. After wrapping that up, he sold the kid’s friend a drum accessory.

When the salesman was finished working with the teenagers, he spoke to me (from a safe social distance behind the counter) about the dobros and gave me an explanation of the different types that he had on display. We also chatted about the Seymour Duncan LAVA Box, a distortion effect. The store had a wellrounded selection of new and used effects.

Hanging from a hook was one of the most eye-catching ukuleles I’ve ever seen, painted with the design of the famous Vincent Van Gogh painting “Starry Night.” Regarding the uke, the salesman said, “Looks good, but also does sound good. I definitely get asked about it a lot.”

Among the other unusual but quite appealing instruments stocked here was a bowlshaped dulcimer, a Recording King lap steel (which the salesman told me about at length), a small group of banjos and a few vintage electric guitars. There was also a prominent display of Maestro Leader Batons, for when you feel like being the leader of the pack.

Because Beat Street Music does not have especially wide aisles, it was for the best that the salesman stayed by his counter. He did ask me more than once if I was interested in trying out a few different models of stringed instruments.

Overall, it was a pretty laid-back place, but not slouchy. As a nice touch, there was a box near the counter with a fairly neat stack of free music magazines for customers to thumb through. I also bought five picks for a dollar, and the box of picks held a good variety of designs and gauges from which to select.

Guitar Center 3150 Erie Blvd. E. Syracuse, NY 13214 315.446.5950

You better believe the MI Spy has popped into a sizable number of Guitar Center (GC)

stores over the years. So I can tell when a GC is an inviting place for customers, and when it is less appealing than a teenage boy’s sloppy bedroom. One of the niceties of a good GC location is when workers leave those cherryred guitar picks laying around for budding virtuosos to use. (And they are always stamped with the individual store phone number as well. That’s some quality marketing.) Now that stores are trying to be much more health and safety conscious, those guitar picks are an even better idea, because they function not only as business cards but also as more sanitary props for individual guitar buyers. Keep the pick, kid, and use it on more than one axe!

This GC is located in a strip mall with an assortment of businesses, so there is plenty of parking. The first thing I noticed when I approached were the strips of heavy-duty tape on the ground, spaced six feet apart. Apparently, they were social-distance markers for the lines from opening weekend, which was not too long before the day I’d visited.

I’m not sure if it was due to pandemic modifications, but I had a bit of confusion trying to find the actual entrance. That was a slight aggravation (and momentarily, I worried that the store was closed), but I entered through a door labeled “Exit,” and once inside the store, one of the first things I noticed was the Welcome Table: a folding table stocked with neat piles of disposable masks, gloves, hand sanitizers, paper towels and a few instructional signs. A wellprotected customer is a returning customer!

As with every other GC branch, this one had the prices neatly displayed; each of these was easily read. To the left of the entrance there was an extensive selection of non-musical instrument items such as vinyl records, gifts, T-shirts, calendars, socks and books.

Then there were the small niche rooms that featured acoustic guitars, high-priced electric guitars (some priced more than $4,000), basses, and of course the keyboard section, the drums and percussion, and other areas.

But now the smaller enclosed rooms had posted restrictions limiting occupancy to only two people (or even one person) at a time.

A man working in the keyboards section was the first person to greet me here, asking “How can I help you?” in a cheery manner. He waved his hands genially to accentuate the wide selection.

This was particular to the calendar date, shortly after New York State’s reopening plan entered Phase 4, but a few sections of the store had noticeable empty spots; for instance, the electric guitar walls had some NOVEMBER 2020

noticeable gaps. I asked a passing sales rep about it, and he said “Don’t worry, we are getting more shipments in very soon. Even come back next week. We’re getting in a lot more inventory.” He added, “Believe me, I’m glad people are coming in.

They want guitars, they have time on their hands and want to play.” He then nodded to me and continued onward.

A few customers were interacting with the staff: Two young men were discussing guitar chords, and another was having his electric guitar serviced and was asking the repairman to explain the details.

One of the most eye-catching electric guitars on display was an apple-green hollow-body in a glass showcase near the sales counter — a definite “Whoa” piece. A more unusual feature of the store was the Rumble Room, featuring basses and amps.

Like the other small rooms, it also carried a restriction now on how many customers can enter at a time. I liked its “Wall of Fame” featuring well-known bass players, which will no doubt inspire.

Like so many other GCs, this one offers music instruction, but for now the lessons are being given online, not inside the store, so the practice rooms were quiet. Overall, the GC was kept neat and orderly, which is certainly crucial now; no one wants their musical instrument shop full of people running around like a mosh pit let loose.

And although I was drawn to the Airboard, a decorated melodica with a small sign that said, “Try it!” I decided not to; now’s not the time to audition an instrument that involves blowing into a mouthpiece.

Gorham Brothers Music 118 Seeley Road Syracuse, NY 13224 315.214.3573

I had one of the funnier conversations of this trip with a music store worker at Gorham Brothers, and I will remember it for a while. I spotted a poster on one wall, for a band called Ed Gein. I assumed it was a punk band that used to gig in New York City back in the late 1980s-early 1990s, and I started talking about them to one of the guys working there. We chatted about Ed Gein until I realized that we were actually talking about two different bands. The one I knew was actually called Ed Gein’s Car and was a MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

quartet; he was talking about a trio based in Syracuse. Big oops, but we had a laugh!

When you enter Gorham Bros., you’re greeted by one poster that reads “Practice Safe Shopping” and another that says “Cover Your Face!” Each had cool, retro-styled graphics; they were propped up next to guitar and bass cases for sale at the main desk. As soon as I strolled into the store, one of the two workers greeted me; he was working on a guitar repair on the side of the store. The repair corner is like a friendly fortress, and the outer sections hold displays of various guitar and bass accessories.

I slowly strolled around the sales floor, checking out the electric and acoustic guitars, drum sets, various accessories, as well as recorded music (mostly CDs) from local bands and performers. The store stocked a hearty selection of guitar effects, including the WhiteCap. I did inquire of the gregarious worker who greeted me about pedals and he asked, “Which musical style are you focusing on?” When I mentioned jazz, he mentioned the “slapback” sound quality and reverb of a few particular effects. He offered to let me plug in a guitar and try out pedals, as long as we wiped them down before and after.

Gorham Bros. is not too far from Syracuse University, so I asked the guys if they get many students in their shop. “Not too many, but when classes were in session, we did get some.

Usually they take Uber or Lyft to come out here. One kid skateboarded over here, too.”

Just as GC offers its free cherry-red guitar picks, Gorham Bros. offers its own free picks, although theirs are green. It’s a really good store full of instruments, accessories, equipment and recorded music, but it’s laid out well, so you don’t have to worry about

tripping over items on the floor. It has hoodies and T-shirts in stock with a few variations of the catchy store graphics. And Gorham Bros. is flanked by a bike shop and a martial arts school, so that takes care of three of your basic food groups right there.

Piano and Organ Center 102 Lawrence Road E. Syracuse, NY 13212 315.454.3823

Pianos and organs a’plenty, sheet music and keyboard accessories galore: That’s what’s available at the elegant Piano and Organ Center. Outside the store was an upright piano, painted red, and ready for playing.

That’s a great way to draw some attention.

And restaurants have outdoor dining, so a music store with an outdoor demo space is a pretty good idea.

It was very quiet when I came into the store, and no other customers were yet inside. The main showrooms had several types of pianos on display in an attractive manner, and customers could walk around with ease. There was a wide variety of grand and upright pianos, new and used, from which to choose, and an impressive amount of sheet music that spans many different levels of difficulty. The back room had a few older-style organs. Prices were displayed well, on sheets of paper propped up on the individual instruments. And the walls featured framed posters of famous pianists such as Elton John.

Piano and Organ Center also had for sale a few piles of old (really old, as in early 1900s) sheet music, and I admit that I was immediately hooked on browsing through these.

One of the two staff members saw me eagerly (continued on page 40) 31

I N T H E T RENCHE S

NO SHODDY SHOES

32

By Allen McBroom At the time of this writing, our stores have been dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic for about six months. Nobody really knows how long this event will last, which makes it difficult to plan ahead. One surprising result of the pandemic has been the extent to which inventory has become unavailable. It’s not just Chinese-made products that are hard to get, but many American-made products are hard to obtain because the manufacturer’s supply lines have been disrupted. And products that were once simple to obtain, such as livestreaming accessories and $100 to $200 condenser mics have pretty much evaporated at the moment.

Even if the manufacturer or distributor has the product in stock, its shipping department may be down to one or two people, or it may be shipping only two days a week, etc. The postal service’s previous reputation as a pretty reliable method of completing a delivery has gone totally kablooey, and now shipments are being delayed or disappearing entirely. UPS and FedEx seem to be holding their own at the moment, though their websites constantly warn that delays may occur.

Some guitar brands are just plain out of inventory, as are some pro-audio companies.

One of the companies we work with has more than 25,000 condenser mics on backorder, with no estimated time of arrival. This is hard on us retailers, because we can’t sell it if we don’t have it. A lot of us are scrambling to find replacement products just so we’ll have something to sell. *Sigh* There are some bright spots, though. One is that we do have sort of a road map for navigating rocky economic waters, it we’re willing to dig around a bit in our nation’s history. The Great Depression lasted from 1929 to 1939. Manufacturers and retailers had no experience coping with a worldwide depression, and they had to figure it out as they went along. The wisdom developed then has largely been lost as older merchants retired and manufacturers were sold and absorbed by other companies.

Luckily, some retailers saved all the paperwork they amassed during the Depression (with no email then, everything was done via postal service), and we might find some good advice by studying what one company did for its retailers. As we’re looking for new products to put on our shelves, I think it would be wise to heed some advice from the Roberts, Johnson and Rand Shoe Co. In October of 1931, two years after the Depression began, the Roberts, Johnson and Rand Shoe Co. sent a letter to all their outlets and offered some advice on stocking and selling shoes. The contents of that letter must have been pretty sound advice, since Roberts, Johnson and Rand survived the Depression, and went on to sell 30 million pair of shoes during World War II. The retailer who received the letter survived also, and stayed in business until he sold the operation in the early 1960s. That retailer was located in a very small town in rural Mississippi, and he operated one of the town’s two dry-goods stores (so he was a small business with local competition, just like a lot of us).

Here’s part of what Roberts, Johnson and Rand had to say to that merchant in that letter from 1931: “To Our Customers: When things are ‘tight’ and business is hard to get, the market is invariably flooded with inferior merchandise produced to sell for a price. At such times, it takes courage to stick to sound, proven principles.

It’s not hard to picture such a condition in the shoe business, neither is it hard to guess where it will end, for winter is coming and the rains, slush and snow will test the shoddy shoes, made with NOVEMBER 2020

paper heels, counters, soles and insoles. Then will come an awakening and disappointment most bitter. This disappointment will not stop with the wearer. He will trace it back to the retailer, and he to the manufacturer.

The manufacturer who sacrifices quality for a temporary price expediency and the retailer who sells a product built on that basis may have their innings, but the day of reckoning is sure and certain. It never fails. Quality and character are the finest traits in men … and they’re mighty good to hold in mind when building and selling shoes.

The American people have never wanted shoddy shoes. They don’t want them now. They want more for their money today than ever. They are seeking quality and value as never before. Now is the time to hit your hardest licks on quality. Talk, advertise, show and sell solid leather shoes.”

The rest of the letter informs the retailer that the manufacturer is stepping up to provide quality advertising materials and suggests a local newspaper ad campaign. The manufacturer made mailable circulars, preprinted with the retailer’s info, available to the retailer for $5 per 1,000.

I’m telling you, this was a refreshing letter to read. As we’re dealing with taking on additional brands or replacement brands, we would do well to heed the warning in the letter about the dangers of selling lower-quality merchandise.

There seems to be an endless supply of vendors who hawk capos, straps, sticks and related items based solely on price. We’ve all gotten their emails: a dozen drumsticks for $8.99, poly straps for $1.35 and trigger capos for only $5.95. Other unsolicited emails extol the glory of electric guitars for $79.99 net, and so on, and so on. If you’re running a flea market booth, these may be okay items to carry, but if you’re running a music store with a solid reputation for doing good business, getting weak and buying stuff like that might do more damMUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

age to your store than COVID-19 or government mandated restrictions ever could.

People don’t want junk. They often do want a lower price, if possible, but the kind of customers we want in our store usually aren’t

willing to trade quality for price.

Plus, customers who see the lowest common denominator in a store frequently don’t return.

Hopefully by the time this sees print we’ll have a working vaccine and COVID-19 restrictions will be

little more than a bad memory.

Whether that’s the case or not, the message of that 1931 letter is still a good guiding light for merchants: Buy quality, sell quality and don’t sell junk.

Happy trails.

S HINE A LI GHT

GET ON THE BANDWAGON

By Michelle Loeb

Bandwagon Music & Repair is a relatively new entry into the Nashville music scene, having first opened its doors only four years ago with the goal of making musical instruments — particularly those in the woodwind and band or orchestral categories — more accessible to everyone in the community.

“I didn’t see any wind shops where you could test things out,” said Linden Lantz, who grew up in northern Indiana before moving to Tennessee for school. “I didn’t know this was an option.”

The desire to create the kind of music store he always dreamed of is what motivated Lantz, a certified instrument-repair technician and former band director, and his wife Jennifer, a music educator and choir director, to open Bandwagon Music & Repair, first as a repair shop and eventually as a full MI store offering sales, rentals, lessons and repairs.

Short of the business knowledge Lantz gleaned from growing up watching his father run a fuel business, neither he nor his wife are business people, which is something Lantz feels sets them and their store apart from the competition.

“Especially on the band-and-orchestra side, the stores tend to be run by a person with a business degree or someone who played in high school but isn’t a music person. A unique thing about us is that we aren’t business people; we’re music people,” said Lantz, who earned degrees in music education and conducting.

“I can not only repair the instrument, but also listen to the child play and talk to them about the physical things that have to happen to make the instrument sound good,” he continued. “I love seeing people come in and say, ‘Oh, this is what a music store should be like.’”

Bandwagon Music & Repair is a small operation with Lantz front and center, wearing multiple hats throughout the work day. His wife, who just had their third child, comes in when she can, and there are currently two additional employees: one working in the front of house and one operating as a repair apprentice under Lantz.

Because of the limitations that come from maintaining a small team, Lantz set up the store so that he can do his repairs from the middle of the sales floor. Not only does this setup allow him to interact with customers at the ready, but it also gives the store a novelty element that customers have come to really enjoy.

“The biggest thing we get compliments on is our repair facility being front and center in the store,” said Lantz, who noted that Bandwagon Music & Repair is the only in-house repair facility in Davidson County, 34

Bandwagon Music & Repair 7639 Hwy 70S Nashville, TN 37221 (615) 721-2263 www.bandwagonmusicandrepair.com Mon.–Fri. 10 a.m.–6 p.m.

Sat. 10 a.m.–2 p.m.

Linden Lantz, Owner

Jennifer Lantz (left) and Linden Lantz (right) with their three children.

Tenn. “Most stores have their repairs in the back where you can’t see it, but we have a 20-foot counter that surrounds the repair area, and people can watch me do repairs. I could be soldering with a torch and people think it’s the coolest thing.”

Interacting with customers has been a motivating factor for Lantz since day one, and it has become even more of a necessity now that his shop, along with the entire music industry, has settled into the new reality brought about by the continuing coronavirus pandemic. Lantz had closed his store completely for a few months before slowly building in modified hours. At this point, the store has returned to full business hours, with extra precautions in place to keep customers safe. These range from an in-store mask mandate to carefully marking instruments customers have played and taking them out of commission for three days before they return to the sales floor.

“I’m definitely seeing an increase in in-store traffic,” noted Lantz, “because people are craving human interaction. I relate sales tactics to NOVEMBER 2020

sales and conversation, and the conversation side has doubled because people want to stand in front of another person and talk, which is cool because you can get a deeper understanding of what they’re looking for.”

COVID-19 has had an effect on Lantz’s lessons business, which at one point had grown to almost 200 lessons per week, taught by 14 teachers. “To be at that level after only four years, we were tickled pink,” said Lantz, “but we lost a lot because of COVID. Customers got hit with layoffs and had to cut back on their expenses.”

Lantz is planning to begin in-person lessons again, with only one student at a time and only for instruments that allow for mask usage. But at this point, most of the store’s lessons are conducted via Facetime, and Lantz expects to keep that option in place long after the pandemic has subsided.

“Most of our teachers said this is more successful than they expected,” said Lantz.

“It’s a good way to not have to deal with the make-up lesson debacle. The student can just go online, even on a weekend, so it’s something we will keep as an option in the future.”

Virtual lessons aren’t the only foray into the online realm that Bandwagon Music & Repair has taken as a result of the pandemic. The situation forced Lantz’s hand in starting an online store, something he was hesitant to do at the beginning.

“The main reason I avoided it is because of time. I want to be here for the long haul, so that means we have to be tight and do what we do well,” said Lantz.

“It could easily be someone’s full-time job to upload and take the orders and ship the orders and so on. I literally didn’t have the manpower. But now I’m doing it, and it just means less sleep,” he joked, adding, “I’m surprised at how receptive people have been.”

Despite taking his business further online, Lantz is committed to the personal relationships that define his store. He calls and texts his band directors on

a regular basis, “to see how they are doing, to find out what’s going on and to show that I care about them,” Lantz said, and he makes a point of being both a welcome ear and a wealth of information for any customer who steps inside his shop.

“In the past, the customer walked in looking for something

and they would get it. Now they call, and we’re bending over backwards to make sure they feel catered to as much as possible.

And we’re gaining more customers because they will remember that love and interaction in the future,” said Lantz “The one thing my wife and I talk about is we won’t be the store

where you don’t know who the owner is. I will always be here and be available to the customers,” he concluded. “It’s easy to go to Amazon and press a button and have the item delivered to you. What we offer [customers] is the opportunity for conversation and to fill their needs as much as possible.”

V E D D AT O R I A L

By Dan Vedda

AND THE

THE

THE

2020: GOOD BAD UGLY

36

A quick update before we dive into this month’s rant: In our last episode, I groused about WebBank turning down our PayPal Working Capital loan because they were not currently lending in “certain industries.” Shortly after the article went to press, they contacted me and encouraged me to reapply. It seems their autoapproval system wouldn’t greenlight me, but a thinking human did upon review of the situation. In fairness, they did this without a prompt. Our histor y with WebBank seems to have given us the go-ahead, so I want to go on the record giving them props for being more than a soulless algorithm. That said, this experience raises two points. First, other banks, privy to the same data about our industr y, would not necessarily have relented. Second, it’s really important to have relationships and human contact, because, as I’ve said for years, The Algorithm Doesn’t Love You. But as the pandemic continues and both the election (which will be done by the time you read this) and the holiday season approach, what can we do other than hold on and grit our teeth?

Plenty. As I’ve stressed many times, people still want to play music, and if we can make them aware of our ability to help in that endeavor, we’ll benefit.

So many of the people I talk to are searching for information, and a chunk of them aren’t looking on the inter webs for it.

Chalk some of that up to the general distrust many people are feeling these days about online information, and the difficulty of getting a usable answer when you don’t really know the right questions to ask. I certainly don’t think the Russians are messing with the music industr y (unless we see a sudden uptick in balalaika inquiries), but there’s a lot of conflicting information floating around. As a result, I truly do see an increase in people calling us, almost pleading for answers that can help them make an informed choice. This has boosted our lesson program, our repairs and our overall sales, helping to fill the gap of canceled band recruitment and music performances.

But here again, how we approach the customer is crucial. I’m hearing about people being rebuffed on the phone by stores unwilling to answer questions without a sale attached. I’ve talked to customers who were told their repairs will have to be quarantined for days before even an estimate will be given. (I get the safety thing, but we should structure our protocols to allow us to ser ve the customer as well as maintain a safe environment. Come up with a PPE-driven way to at least assess the repairs, which would show your concern for safety while ser ving the customer at the same time. It’s a better look.)

Lessons continue to be a bright spot for us. Enrollment grows a little each week. Of course, ever yone wants safe lesson studios, but we also know that for some people, no studio is (or will ever be) safe. Thankfully, our customers are over whelmingly maskcompliant. Our store is not crowded, our lesson rooms are ventilated, and mask and cleaning protocols are in place.

We are still getting about 90 percent of our inquiries specifying in-person lessons. But we’re also seeing people who have tried remote lessons grow frustrated with the experience. Unlike the fatalists who believe we’ll never have NOVEMBER 2020

meatspace lessons again, I think the advantages of in-person instruction will assert themselves. (This bodes well for a time after we recover somewhat from the pandemic: There are a lot of people doing virtual lessons who already know they want in-person instruction, but they’re not ready to go there, or anywhere, yet. Get those promotions ready to launch for these better times ahead.)

Finally, this final quarter is going to be a ride. We can’t know the full insanity of the election aftermath until ... well, about the moment you read this. Potential shenanigans from either direction aside, there will still be a pandemic to deal with, and in our industr y, supply issues. I won’t feel confident taking shipment on a backorder that shows up Dec. 10. I’m expecting customer traffic, but I’m not expecting customer traffic circa 1982.

However, I personally believe that, just as we have people seeking our help now, there will always be a percentage who would rather buy local, build a trusting relationship, and have the goods in their hands, whether the local store delivers to them or whether they come in and shop. I also think those customers who do opt to shop in a brick-and-mortar store this holiday season will do it early, cautious about crowds, supplies and anything else standing in the way, be it weather or locusts. Sure, there will always be last-minute shoppers, but increasingly, the procrastinators are slicing it thinner, opting for electronic gift cards they can email at 11 p.m. on Christmas Eve. I’m not counting on someone to come in and give us a windfall an hour before we close.

I recently saw a Fast Company article by Marc Metrick, the Saks Fifth Avenue CEO, touting the viability of the retail store if we can maintain customer relationships and get the customer what they want when they need it in a highly MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

personalized, efficient manner.

Granted, this take is a little self-ser ving coming from the CEO of such a giant retail enterprise. But he also could have gotten the idea from reading my column for the last, oh, 10 years. You’re welcome, Marc.

The pandemic is horrible. The year 2020 sucks by almost any metric. But maybe, perhaps, possibly, we can resurrect something from the ashes that salvages the value of retail in some form. I too believe retail is still viable, but we will only remain so

by adapting and innovating while playing the cards we are dealt.

We have to step up for this.

Or as I’ve told some people, “When life gives you lemons, you hit them with a sledgehammer and see how far the juice will squirt.”

“

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GRA SSRO O TS MAR KETING

THREE WAYS TO MARKET DURING A PANDEMIC

By Miriam and Mike Risko

We all have marketing challenges on a regular day, but if someone had told us we would have to try to navigate marketing our small business during a global pandemic, we would have never believed it. And yet, here we are, eight months later, trying to make our way through these uncharted waters and stay afloat while marketing our music school and store.

Our business, Mike Risko Music, is located in Westchester County, N.Y., one of the most hard-hit areas of the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition to worrying about the health and safety of our family and friends and how we were going to keep momentum going, we also had to come up with a plan to continue marketing our business and attracting new customers during what was about to be the darkest period of our professional lives.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo closed all non-essential businesses on March 22. We were already doing virtual lessons before the pandemic, so we quickly moved our entire lesson and education program online. Our main goal at that time was to make sure our current students were set up for their lessons, so we were primarily focused on lessons, which didn’t leave much time for marketing.

Once reality had set in and we began to get used to our “new normal,” our creative juices began to flow again. We decided to take a positive approach to a very negative situation and adapt our marketing to this new changing landscape. Being faced with a disruption of this magnitude was going to really help us to get creative. So, we got to work with our team.

We knew if we followed the general concepts of being flexible, creative and true to our business identity, we would be off to a great start.

So how did we do this?

Be flexible — The nature of this pandemic is that it is always changing. From one day to the next, no one is sure what is going to happen. Back in March, it seemed like we would be hiding in our homes forever, but every new day has brought a new development. We set up a marketing plan that has left the door open for changes, as we expect more things to go back to in-person and then possibly bounce back to remote. Pre-pandemic, we did mostly in-person lessons, but now we offer in-person, remote and a combo of both. However you market your program, keep that in mind 38

Mike and Miriam Risko show off custom face masks that promote their business and their band.

The Mike Risko Band demonstrates proper social distancing outdoors.

The Mike Risko Band performs singing telegrams at an assisted living facility on Mother’s Day.

The Riskos partner with a local dance instructor to promote their business via Zoom.

and think about what might be coming down the road. Now when we market, we are not just marketing one type of lesson, we are marketing three, which has increased business since we have so many options for people to choose from. Think ahead as you are marketing, and don’t just think about what you are offering today — think about how things may look a few months from now.

Be creative — Now more than ever, your marketing efforts need to stand out. First, avoid any kind of hard sell (no one likes that approach anyway). We also believe traditional ads aren’t interesting and get passed over, so think of other creative ways to connect with your audience.

We made Mike Risko Music masks, mask chains and hand sanitizers, which made for great social media posts that were clearly marketing our business, but not in an aggressive way. Also, make sure that your customers know you are still there and you are OK by creating online content that sends that message to your audience. We played a few socially distant gigs in the spring, and we were happy to share the pictures to show that we could still make music.

Be yourself — Don’t change. During times like this, familiar is important. It is also important to be authentic and tell your story and share pictures. Everyone loves a good story, and this pandemic has created many new stories. Some even have silver linings. During the scariest part of the lockdown, we partnered with a local dance school down the street from us whose owner is also a Zumba instructor. We logged in on Zoom together. We played a song and he danced. We created a video that we all shared all over social media. Although it was only a one-minute video, it enabled us to partner with another local arts business, create connections with the community and let everyone know, without saying so, that we are still here waiting for them. It really hit the mark, and it was fun, too.

Although there certainly are challenges to marketing during a global pandemic, there are many new opportunities to reach and connect with your community. Your community will appreciate all your efforts and will want to support you. We are looking forward to when the world goes back to normal and we will take all the new marketing lessons we have learned and continue to expand on them. Use this time to create something new and build back better!

We would love to hear your pandemic marketing success stories! Email them to us at mail@ riskomusic.com.

NOVEMBER 2020

UNDER THE HOOD

TAYLOR GUITARS’ GT

By Brian Berk

Taylor Guitars’ Grand Theater (GT) is not simply just a new guitar launch. Instead, it is a new mid-sized platform that utilizes what is sure to be another new Taylor staple: “C”-class bracing architecture. The GT utilizes responsibly sourced Urban Ash, harvested from end-oflife trees in California’s urban canopy.

The result is a guitar that’s incredibly fun and easy to play, with a big sonic personality worthy of any pro player’s toolbox, stated Taylor Guitars. More and more players are drawn to the playing comfort of smaller acoustic guitars but don’t want to sacrifice tone; this idea spurred Taylor master guitar designer Andy Powers to develop a new guitar that delivers on both fronts, combining the playability of a compact instrument with the voice of a fullsize, solid-wood guitar.

“The last few years, we built serious guitars,” said Powers. “But the guitar is about having fun. The GT is a long time in the making. It’s a fun instrument [to play]. It is easy to play.”

The mid-sized platform falls between the travel guitar category and conventional guitars. It fits the mid-sized category in several ways, most notably its string length, which comes in at 24 1/8 inches long. The GT’s 24 1/8-inch scale length sits between Taylor’s GS Mini (23 1/2 inches) and Grand Concert (24 7/8 inches). The result is the most comfortable playing experience offered across the entire Taylor line.

“It’s just the right size [that] we refer to as Goldilocks,” said Powers. “It is perfectly proportioned. It is fully professional, but more approachable.” He added, “When you play it, it feels big. It sounds big. It’s addictive.”

The “C”-class bracing refers to the cantilevered, asymmetrical design that combines stiffness and flexibility in a way that helps accentuate the lower frequencies to produce a surprisingly warm bass response from compact dimensions. According to Powers, “C”-class architecture provides all kinds of opportunities for Taylor Guitars. Expect the design to be used in future products. “It is an asymmetrical design to create an asymmetrical voice,” he said.

“C”-class bracing borrows some of the functional benefits of Taylor’s “V”-Class bracing, including greater stability, yielding impressive volume, sustain and intonation that sonically helps the guitar punch well above its weight. “’V’-Class is intended to be very linear in how it responds over the whole register,” relayed Powers. “Every note you play has a remarkably uniform characteristic.”

MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

Powers explained how the more asymmetrical “C”-class bracing complements the GT’s compact size. “Working with this perfectly proportioned smaller body and string length, however, I wanted a more asymmetrical sonic response,” he said.

“With the asymmetrical architecture, I can exaggerate the guitar’s lower-frequency response. It’s typically a challenge to make a small body respond well on the low end of the frequency spectrum — Bob Taylor plays the GT on Zoom it doesn’t have as large a surface area to flex and move the air required. Using this altered bracing pattern, the response belies the overall smaller size, seriously upping the fun factor.”

The GT, which carries the tagline “Smaller size. Bigger sound. Serious fun,” gives Taylor a platform to use another durable tonewood for its fretboard, bridge and peghead overlay: eucalyptus (also featured on Taylor’s new American Dream Series). According to Taylor, eucalyptus offers great potential alongside ebony, and its comparable weight and density are ideal for holding frets.

“The GT delivers a mix of super-nimble handling and a high-performance response, and it’s been refined to the degree that it becomes incredibly fun for everyone to play,” noted Powers. “The guitar’s comfortably compact proportions and low string tension make the GT the easiest-playing solid-wood guitar in the Taylor line, enabling longer playing sessions without hand fatigue.”

The Taylor GT officially launched on Oct. 1. Exactly one month earlier, on Sept. 1, Taylor Guitars introduced the GT during a live Zoom event. During the hour-long event, named “Taylor’s Biggest Little Virtual Launch Event,” the El Cajon, Calif., company made sure a guitar as unique as the GT received a suitably unique marketing approach: The Zoom participants had previously received the guitar at their homes/offices to test out in a Taylor guitar case that was padlocked with instructions to wait for a special code to open the lock, which was announced during the Sept. 1 event.

The Zoom call featured performances on the GT by Powers, Taylor Guitars’ co-founder Bob Taylor and recording star KT Tunstall. Taylor gushed about the GT before his performance, explaining that the guitars he has designed are like his children, and the GT, the brainchild of Powers, is like one of his grandchildren. “This guitar has to be one of the most pleasing I have ever seen,” relayed Taylor. “This geometry is true perfection. This is seriously fun.”

Tunstall, well known for her hits “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree” and “Suddenly I See,” concluded, “There is something about the guitar that makes you want to sling it on your back and take it out all over the world.”

39

The

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(continued from page 31) plowing through the collectable music and chatted with me about the selection. He told me that the ones with orange highlights were especially valuable to collectors and gave me some background on a few of the more obscure performers and composers mentioned on the covers. He provided me with a music history lesson that was quite enjoyable. And he also told me to disregard the sticker prices, and that the sheet music was $2 each and six for $10. This was a great interaction, and the kind of thing only a retail store can deliver.

The sheet music was in the back room, where the store also had pieces from pipe organs on display. The staff member picked up a few and showed them to me, explaining that a few people had bought them and turned them into kitschy shelving units.

As with other music stores, Piano and Organ Center has small rooms for in-person lessons, but it was currently offering only online lessons, for obvious reasons. The 40

L Creates MSR 1x2.indd 1

store has several parking spots nearby and is across from and surrounded by other strip-malltype stores. I did make a wrong turn at least once, so be mindful of which set of stores you are searching for.

The Sale

I was impressed by each of the four shops I visited in the greater Syracuse area. All four were appealing, the staff members were pleasant and knowledgeable, and Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation 1. Publication Title: The Music & Sound Retailer 2. Publication Number: 553510 08941238 3. Filing Date: September 25, 2020 4. Issue frequency: Monthly 5. Number of Issues Published Annually: 12 6. Annual Subscription Price: $18.00 Contact Person: Vincent P. Testa (516-767-2500) 7. Complete Mailing Addressof Known Office of Publication: 25 Willowdale Ave., Port Washington, NY 11050-3779 8. Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Business Office of the Publisher: 25 Willowdale Ave., Port Washington, NY 11050-3779 9. Publisher: Vincent P. Testa, 25 Willowdale Ave., Port Washington, NY 11050-3779 Editor: Brian Berk, 25 Willowdale Ave., Port Washington, NY 11050-3779 10. Owner: Retail Publishing, Inc., 25 Willowdale Ave., Port Washington, NY 11050-3779 13. Publication Title: The Music & Sound Retailer 14. Issue Date for Circulation Data Below: September 1, 2020

the product offerings were interesting. But my favorite overall was Gorham Brothers Music; it had some really exciting items for sale, and I especially liked how it is right in the city of Syracuse and was also promoting the local musical scene and the history and output of its performers. That’s the level of community support you want to see in a brick-andmortar music store.

In addition to Gorham Bros., I was very impressed with Beat 15. Extent and Nature Of Circulation

12/26/2019 2:03:49 PM

Street Music as well. For a modest-sized store, the owner has crammed in so many interesting instruments with a good range of prices. It has a friendly feel and is keyed into the needs of young and seasoned musicians alike.

I do want to mention, though, that I would have liked to visit more stores. Ish Guitars is a place I would absolutely visit next time I’m in the area. It’s a NAMM Top 100 retailer, and I’m sure it would have been a great experience.

Average No. Copies Each Issue During 12 Months

No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to the Filing Date

A. Total Number of Copies (Net press run) 5,224 2,938 B-1 Paid/Requested Mail Subscriptions 4,609 2,479 B-4 Requested copies other USPS 12 3 C. Total Paid and /or Requested Circulation 4,621 2,482 D-1. Outside Country Nonrequested Copies Distributed 378 356 D-4. Nonrequested Copies Distributed 83 -E. Total Non Requested Distribution 461 356 F. Total Distribution 5,082 2,838 G. Copies not Distributed 142 100 H. TOTAL 5,224 2,938 I. Percent Paid and /or Requested Circulation 90.93% 87.46% 16. Electronic Copy Circulation A. Requested and Paid Electronic Copies 6,132 9,885 B. Total Requested Print /Electronic Paid Copies 10,753 12,367 12,723 C. Total Requested Copy Distribution/Requested/Paid Electronic Copies 11,214 97% D. Percent Paid and /or Requested Circulation Print/Electronic Copies 95% 17. Publication of Statement of Ownership: Will be printed in the November 1, 2020 issue of this publication.

18. Publisher: Vincent P. Testa, President Date: September 25, 2020

NOVEMBER 2020

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For advertising rates and deadlines...

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41

Home Is Where Pro Audio Is

Glen Roop

ALTHOUGH THE END-USER DYNAMIC HAS SHIFTED, QUARANTINE CREATIVITY HAS BOOSTED THE PRO-AUDIO MARKET

Fred Poole

By Brian Berk The COVID-19 pandemic has hit every area of the MI industry hard, without exception. Few retailers and manufacturers can fully replace the revenues they lost compared to the beginning of the year. But 2020 has brought some positives, with perhaps pro audio being one of the biggest MI segments to benefit, driven by stay-at-home musicians and online content creators.

To learn more about the current state of the pro-audio market, the Music & Sound Retailer brought in the experts: Jason Hou, CEO, VocoPro; Glenn Roop, vice president, CAD Audio; Fred Poole, general manager, North American sales and product development, Peavey Electronics; and Steve Hendee, director of U.S. sales, Yorkville Sound.

Let’s dig right in by asking the manufacturer panel how COVID-19 has affected their pro-audio business.

“While COVID-19 has definitely affected our overall sales through dealers who were closed down during the first part of the year, some of our dealers are still active, more are reopening every day, and so we are seeing sales coming back. Consumer demand for audio products is currently very strong,” said Hou. “There are a few factors driving demand,” answered Roop. “The home studio boom is back. Except, this time it’s podcasting. Everyone is dreaming of their new-sought fame as a social media star. In addition, the stay-at42

Steve Hendee Jason Hou

home, telecommuting for work and school folks are significantly driving demand for all form factors of USB microphones.” He added, “Interestingly, when you mix in a few found dollars from economic stimulus checks into this boom, folks can afford higher-end pro studio mics.”

Responded Poole, “At Peavey, we have been focused on products that work for both the stage and the home studio. Many musicians took the time to create new music during the pandemic, and nearly all of our instrument amplifiers and mixers allow for silent and easy recording thanks to proprietary features like our Microphone Simulated Direct Out technology.” He continued, “Our PV series mixers, which have always featured class-compliant USB, are perfect for podcasting or livestreaming and are well positioned for sales during the stay-at-home transition.”

“The pandemic gave creative people the opportunity to take pause and focus on their artistic goals, research gear and learn new skills,” said Hendee. “If you scroll through your social media feed from that time, you can see people showing off their COVID hair, beards, baked breads, crafts and … music projects.”

Considering pro-audio end-user clientele has shifted during these challenging times, has our panel had to market their products differently?

“We started the Yorkville Sound Podcast as a great way to talk about our gear, history and the music professional lifestyle,” noted Hendee. “We are a few episodes in and have had some great conversations. It is great insight to our products, the people who use them and Yorkville Sound as a company.”

NOVEMBER 2020

“One of the biggest challenges was taking products that have traditionally been targeted toward live sound and marketing the existing features to the stayat-home audience,” noted Poole. “The features have always been there; however, our marketing message needed to be adjusted.”

Relayed Roop, “The market is there and so hungry for product that driving marketing to them isn’t the tough part. Servicing their needs once you have them seems be key. Assisting [with] consumer applications questions is what they really need.”

“Yes, with virtual learning and meetings taking center stage, our wireless microphones and instrument systems with USB connectivity have been a focus area,” said Hou. “Also, microphones and wireless mics have new importance and messaging as our customers learn to social distance in offices and smaller events.”

Talkin’ Products

(handheld, lav or headset) for "While COVID-19 had definitely virtual-meeting and virtual-learning affected our overall sales through applications. These are cool bedealers who were closed down cause you just plug them into the USB port and you’re live. No messy during the first part of the year, wires or complicated configurasome of our dealers are still active, tion,” answered Hou. “And we’ve more are reopnening every day, just launched a new affordable and so we are seeing sales coming USB-based system instrument and wireless mic system for music back. Consumer demand for audio teachers and students to hear products is currently very strong." better when taking music lessons —Jason Hou online. Our new Streamer LIVE package consists of a very nice little audio interface with built-in effects and a microphone with a stand for everything, including a light ring. This product is very cool for people [who are] streaming to social media or just connecting on Zoom or playing online games.”

“Let’s start with the Aston Element,” said Hendee. “Not only is Element extremely affordable, but it will consistently outperform all mics in its class.

Then there is the Hughes & Kettner Spirit Nano, its first family of micro amps with the new Spirit Nano series. Based on the company’s Spirit Tone Generator technology, these three models deliver the rich sound and response of traditional tube amps. The Spirit of Vintage model serves up the full spectrum of clean sounds and rockin’ rebel crunch tones typical of the ‘50s and ‘60s; The Spirit

Let’s shift topics by looking at pro-audio products specifically. First, we asked our panelists what types of pro-audio products are showing strength.

“All of our MI amplification is showing particular strength, along with our PV series of mixers. Perhaps our most exciting new product is our brand new Aureus mixing console,” said Poole.

“Here at CAD Audio, we offer a comprehensive line of USB mics that serve just about any application the consumer would require,” said Roop. “We just launched a new series of USB mics and podcasting mics that are being well received. We are also seeing significant demand for the E100s and M179 studio mics, both of which have unique performance characteristics that resonate with these newfound consumers.”

“Our streaming packages have been extremely popular, the studio version (with a condenser studio mic) or the live version (with a dynamic mic and light ring),” responded Hou. “The world is streaming everything — and needs the right gear to do it. We’ve seen more demand for our wireless systems to sing, speak and stream as well.”

“Anything that has do to with home recording, podcasting or learning a new instrument,” stated Hendee. “ART Home Studio devices for music recording or podcasting showed strength. We have a lot of USB-related items that are plug-and-play and easy to use. We saw popularity with ukuleles and guitars from our Denver line, as this has been an optimal time to teach yourself a new instrument or sign up for online lessons. Performers got creative and created gigs outside with social-distance guidelines in place, so our EXM Mobile line and HK Audio’s Polar 10 and 12 continue to be strong for us.”

As a follow-up, we asked panelists to highlight recent product launches or soon-to-be-released products MI retailers could soon be selling.

“The U29, U49, GXL1800 and GXL1800SP all were on the drawing board pre-COVID and are currently reaching the market. Their value statement is the highest in the industry. It’s a significant shift in the performanceper-dollar ratio,” answered Roop. “The same can be said for the newest product line, The PodMaster series. The PodMaster SuperD USB is a head-turner, and podcasters are excited. Also, new for CAD Audio is a series of IEM systems, the pinnacle of which is a quad (four discrete channels in 1U) transmitter base station at a revolutionary per-channel cost of less than $125 street. The GXLIEM series has velocity.”

“We’re launching new USB-based wireless microphones

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43

Ad Index

Company

Pg

AMAHI....................................... 11 AMI FRETTED INSTRUMENTS...................... 23 ARMADILLO ENTERPRISES..................... C-II CASIO...................................... C-IV CHAUVET LIGHTING.............. 8 CHAUVET LIGHTING.............. 9 CONNOLLY MUSIC COMPANY.............................. 18 ERNIE BALL............................. 17 FENDER..................................... 7 G7TH, THE CAPO COMPANY.............................. 37 GATOR CASES.......................... 25 JJ BABBITT............................... 12 KIRLIN INDUSTRIES............... 10 KYSER MUSICAL PRODUCTS............................. 44 LITTLITE................................... 24 MANHASSET SPECIALTY COMPANY.............................. 3 MUSIC NOMAD........................ 22 NAMM........................................ 15 ODYSSEY INNOVATIVE DESIGNS................................. 33 OMG MUSIC.............................. 45 PRS GUITARS........................... 19 RC WILLIAMS.......................... 43 REVERB..................................C-III SABIAN...................................... 6 SHURE....................................... 21 SOULDIER................................. 16 SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL..... 5 TECH 21..................................... 26 VIDAMI...................................... 20 VOCOPRO.................................. 13 YORKVILLE.............................. 35 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.

of Rock head takes players on a journey through time to the era of iconic power riffs to pump out signature brown sound; and The Spirit of Metal delivers everything from beefy ‘80s metal sounds to the bloodcurdling bombast of modern metal tone.”

He continued, “And the HK Audio Polar features a fully equipped active full-range column system with user-friendly operation; 2,000-watt Class D power amplifier; high power reserves; a one-inch driver with CD horn; and high-definition audio up to 20 kilohertz and more.”

“The Aureus mixing console is one of the most exciting and anticipated products in recent years,” noted Poole. “Our new digital mixer is designed to be extremely easy to use and is perfect for houses of worship, live events, streaming or any event requiring professional features in a modern format. Remote control couldn’t be easier: any HTML5 device can be connected to control the mixer remotely, with no app required. A built-in Wi-Fi router for up to 10 devices makes it great for personal monitoring. Our 10-inch multi-touch display and 68 onboard dedicated faders and encoders make getting to almost any feature a single touch away.”

What the Future Holds

Our final segment of this feature focuses on the future. How can our panelists keep the momentum going as a pro-audio manufacturer when we get to a hopeful post-COVID-19 period?

“A strong flow of new products to meet changing demands combined with overdelivering in quality, service and support,” answered Roop.

“We are well positioned to keep the momentum moving forward.”

“New product launches,” stressed Poole. “We haven’t slowed down at all during the pandemic, and we have just launched some of the most innovative products in the industry.”

“We believe strong demand for pro-audio gear will continue into the post-COVID-19 period,” responded Hou. “Equipment updates to wireless instrument systems and wireless mics will be key for future performances since the physical distance may be different in live events as they come back.”

“We continue to look at what the beginner performer, musician and recording enthusiast are looking for to hone their craft,” said Hendee. “For example, someone starting out in home recording may need a USB Interface from ART; however,

"Demand is strong! [Although] demand for goods is evolving, [having that] demand is a terrific situation. Now it's up to the manufacturer to hit the sweet spot on product development and retailers to capture the attention of these newfound consumers. It feels like a fresh, new opportunity.

That's inspiring!"

—Glen Roop as they improve their skills and shape their sound, we encourage them to look at next-level recording accessories.”

Lastly, are our panelists optimistic about the MI pro-audio market in the future?

“Absolutely,” Hendee responded. “Music goes hand in hand with creative expression and connection. During a time of uncertainty, music prevailed, and it was delivered all around our communities: livestreams, podcasts, learning new instruments. In terms of live performances, it’s safe to say with our gigs being held in safe alternative venues outside, such as front porches and back yards, there have been some of the most amazing, memorable days and nights of music during this time.”

Poole replied, “Our customers are hungry for the return of live music. Many bands are beginning to perform again at a local level, and we anticipate a continued improvement as our country learns to deal with the current pandemic.”

“Yes, we are very optimistic for the pro-audio segment of MI moving forward,” answered Hou. “Our segment provides the tools for people to express themselves, to create and to perform. The pandemic may have temporarily changed things, but we see it as only a hiccup in the long history of music performance.”

Roop concluded on a high note: “Demand is strong! [Although] demand for goods is evolving, [having that] demand is a terrific situation. Now it’s up to the manufacturer to hit the sweet spot on product development and retailers to capture the attention of these newfound consumers. It feels like a new, fresh opportunity. That’s inspiring!”

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44

NOVEMBER 2020

FIVE MINUTES WITH

(continued from page 29)

The Retailer: Let’s switch hats to NAMM, for which you are a board member. Of course, it is ver y sad there will be no NAMM Show in Januar y, but are you excited for Believe in Music Week as a way to bring the industr y together?

Lady: No doubt I am! NAMM has done an incredible job of finding the most innovative virtual event platform called SwapCard and has come up with a very well-thought-out alternative to the in-person NAMM Show.

Although nothing replaces the legendary in-person gathering of NAMM, I am convinced this is the next best thing.

By this time, we have now all sat through countless Zoom and virtual conference meetings.

However, Believe in Music, I think, will prove to be an event like no other. There are options for companies of all sizes to present their wares, set up meetings, conduct webinars and live performances/demonstrations with artists and experts in the industry. As we know, unfortunately live concerts are on hold for now, but the benefit is that there are many artists who are available, and many are already excited about participating in the event. The silver lining is, we will be reaching many potential customers around the world who have never been able to attend in the past or may never be able to attend a NAMM Show in the future in person. However, they

can partake in Believe in Music week for free. For Hal Leonard, we will have a big presence for our publishing, as well as our MI divisions, at Believe in Music week. Hope to see you all there!

The Retailer: Let’s conclude by looking ahead to what we hope is a postCOVID world. Are you optimistic about MI’s future once the coronavirus is in our rear-view mirror and why?

Lady: Brian, thanks for the opportunity to comment on this.

Thankfully, our MI business has been incredibly strong during the COVID-19 crisis, with huge demand for wireless mics, interfaces, instruments and recording gear. Given that, coupled with this already being a fast-growing division for us pre-pandemic, we are optimistic for future growth. In fact, we are, as mentioned earlier, cautiously optimistic for our entire company getting past this crisis and enabling our dealers and their customers to get back to making music in person, together. In the meantime, music can be the great elixir in crises like these. Our recently stated vision is that we aim at Hal Leonard to “enrich people’s lives by making music.” And our mission is to be “the best global provider of tools and resources for learning, teaching, creating and making music.”

Lakers fan, and he is my all-time favorite athlete.

My wife: So she could meet Kobe too.

The Retailer: Tell us about your most memorable experience with an MI retailer (without naming them).

Ball: We had a pretty amazing launch of our Cobalt string line in 2012, and the first time I showed it to a key retailer, they gave us a seven-figure purchase order!

I couldn’t hide my excitement for what the launch was going to look like.

The Retailer: What is the best thing about the MI industry?

Ball: It’s the perfect balance of competitive but not corporate, to the point that I’m not scared to say Sublime was my soundtrack in high school…

months?! I have no idea, but hopefully not that!

The Retailer: If you weren’t in the music industr y, what would you be doing and why?

Ball: I’d love to be involved with a sports franchise, or own my own agency managing athletes.

The Retailer: Tell us about your hometown and why you enjoy living there.

Ball: San Luis Obispo, Calif.

I loved growing up in SLO. It’s the perfect marriage of wine country, coastal beach towns, a vibrant downtown, no traffic, relatively low crime and a fun college town. I’m more of a suburb guy than big city and am so lucky to be able to return and raise my kids here.

The Retailer: Who do you admire most outside of the music industr y and why?

Ball: Athletes. I LOVE sports.

UFC is a big passion of mine, as is NFL, NBA, golf, tennis, you name it.

The Retailer: What are your most prized possession(s) and why?

Ball: The 1962 Martin my dad gave me when I graduated from college. I’ll always own the guitar and remember the way I felt when my dad and mom gave the guitar to me.

The Retailer: What technology could change MI down the road?

Ball: Robotic limbs that make you play like Steve Vai in two

The Retailer: What’s your favorite book and why?

Ball: I love business books and also read a lot of Vince Flynn espionage novels.

THE FINAL NOTE

(continued from page 46) What song was most memorable for you throughout your childhood and what do you remember about it the most?

Ball: Sublime’s “40 Oz. to Freedom.” This was the anthem of our high-school parties.

The Retailer: What are your favorite songs on your smartphone/iPod? Ball: I listen to a good variety.

Lots of reggae, rock, hip-hop and funk. I love bands like Vulfpeck, Dirty Heads, Royal Blood, and some indie bands like Phoenix and Cage the Elephant.

MUSIC & SOUND RETAILER

The Retailer: What’s the most fun thing you saw/did at a NAMM Show?

Ball: The hangouts in the Ernie Ball booth in the early 2000s when we had spaceships, pirate ships and more. They usually involved tons of artists, food and kegs of beer.

The Retailer: If you had to select three people, past or present, to have dinner with, who would they be and what would you ask them?

Ball: My grandfather Ernie Ball: To see if he loved the trajectory of where the company is today.

Kobe Bryant: I’m a die-hard 45

THE FINAL NOTE

BRIAN BALL CEO of Ernie Ball Inc.

By Brian Berk The Music & Sound Retailer: Who was your greatest influence or mentor and why?

Brian Ball: Easy one: my dad, Sterling. Great leader, and amazing creative mind. I’ve learned more from my dad than almost anyone, and I am lucky to have a mentor in my dad.

The Retailer: What was the best advice you ever received?

Ball: “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll likely end up somewhere else.” I think I’ve always tried to do things that have meaning and with intent behind them. This saying has always held true for me to establish goals and aim high.

The Retailer: What was your first experience with a musical instrument?

Ball: I didn’t start playing guitar until I was 20, believe it or not! Growing up with Steve Morse, Steve Lukather and Albert Lee playing jam sessions in our living room was a little intimidating. I started playing the summer after working on the Warped Tour and absolutely fell in love.

The Retailer: What instrument do you most enjoy playing?

Ball: Probably our Albert Lee Signature Model, with two humbuckers. It’s the guitar I end up always going back to.

The Retailer: Tell us something about yourself that others do not know or would be surprised to learn.

Ball: I played collegiate tennis, and it still remains a fun competitive outlet for me at 40.

The Retailer: What’s your favorite activity to do when you’re not at work?

Ball: Spend time with my wife and kids, go to the beach, golf, play the guitar or exercise.

The Retailer: What is the best concert you’ve ever been to?

Ball: Aerosmith, Alice in Chains and Van Halen at the L.A. Forum when I was 11. Incredible show!

The Retailer: If you could see any musician, alive or deceased, play a concert for one night, who would it be and why?

Ball: Tool, Rage Against the Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam. I’m a creature of ‘90s rock!

What musician are you hoping to see play in the near future (post-pandemic)?

Ball: Hopefully when Rage Against the Machine reunites for real!

46

(continued on page 45)

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