Playback - Fall 2008 - (Page 14)

A Legacy of Love When did you first develop a fascination with music? My mom is a church organist and so our home was full of such music, but little pop music and no rock ’n’ roll to speak of. I would love going to my uncle’s house, pulling out his 45s and playing Elvis, the Beach Boys and Chuck Berry. I soon discovered that knowing meaningless information about music was a great way to gain respect from older people. As a result, I studied liner notes like I should have studied my schoolwork. An interview with the man behind the microphone, NAMM Historian Dan Del Fiorentino. music magazines and established a jazz database for the Internet. Then I was given the chance to help run the library for NAMM. What do you love most about this industry? The people! The people I’ve met are by far the most passionate folks on the planet! All I’ve ever needed to do was just listen to them and without trying, I too became passionate about this industry. What did you do with that knowledge from there? I was 13 when I hosted my first radio show and 16 when I became Program Director for KCEA radio in the Bay Area. This led to my love of interviews because I could use recorded conversations with performers to introduce the music. It was a wonderful experience. All I had to do was call and I could talk to folks like Lena Horne and Cab Calloway! Looking back over the last eight years, what are you most proud of? So why did you leave radio? I’m proud of archiving the stories of those important to this passion-driven industry! Being there to see tears of pride on the faces of those interviewed! Sending a DVD to a family member who didn’t know their late father or mother was interviewed and whose voice and likeness is now recorded for their family to treasure. To know that I’m playing a role in the preservation of great people and events in music! While I was in radio, I discovered that being around the history of music was what drove me the most, so I went to school to learn more about research. After college, I landed a few jobs establishing scientific libraries; however, each night I would go home, call a jazz player and record an interview—even when I had no radio show to play them on. I just loved documenting stories. I wrote a few articles for

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Playback - Fall 2008

Playback - Fall 2008 Contents From the President NAMM Events Music in the News Voices of Our Past, Present and Future: NAMM Oral History Program Celebrates a Major Milestone Commercial Retail Reps in the Field NAMM@AARP New Domestic Members Washington Watch International NAMM Foundation Music Notes Resources Viewpoint

Playback - Fall 2008

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