Summer NAMM 2007 | By Zach Phillips & Jenny Domine
Summer Redefined

A scaled-back Summer NAMM 2007 accentuated the show’s strengths, including a constituency of serious buyers and laid-back atmosphere to talk business

The film This Is Spinal Tap has a moment of high comedy where, in the midst of Spinal Tap’s waning popularity, its manager reasons that the band’s audience isn’t shrinking, it’s becoming more selective. Jokes aside, the same could be said of Summer NAMM. And as the recent convention demonstrated, a smaller show with a more selective audience isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Summer NAMM 2007, held at the Austin Convention Center in Austin, Texas, from July 27–29, brought in 12,845 total registrants. That was a drop from last year’s numbers of 17,207, which were already down compared to 2005’s show in Indianapolis. Everything from tough business to a lack of direct flights have been cited as causes. Still, the sparse attendance gave those who journeyed to Austin pause to consider why they came in the first place and, in the process, crystallized the value of a summer meeting.
Many exhibitors mentioned traffic being on the slow side, but just as many said they noticed a more serious constituency of retail buyers than in recent years. (See Exhibitor Diary on page 98.) With 80 new exhibiting companies, and few big ones absent, Summer NAMM 2007 also gave retailers a chance to scout out new, boutique brands without having to give their existing suppliers as much face time.

Some mid-level brands, like Composite Acoustics, used this as an opportunity to stand out. The company highlighted its GX Performer series acoustic guitars, which are made of carbon fiber and feature an extreme cutaway.

“Traffic was very good [for us],” said Lance Bospflug, president of Composite Acoustics. “With our booth location, everybody that came to look at acoustic guitars walked by our booth two or three times.”

NAMM University also delivered its expected roster of helpful educational sessions, many of which drew impressive numbers. “I had at least five members come up to me and say, ‘Actually, I came here for NAMM U.,’” said Danny Rocks, a consultant for NAMM University. “We have had great numbers, great attendance, great participation. Our theme this year was ‘You Have the Answers,’ or ‘It Worked for Me.’ All we need to do is get our members vocalizing what has worked for them and get other members to say, ‘I could adapt that or make that work for me.’”

“Many dealers told us they enjoyed the slower-paced quality time with their suppliers and peers to build relationships that are important and necessary for future business endeavors,” said Joe Lamond, president and CEO of NAMM, in a statement following the show.

Lamond underscores a point that’s crucial to the identity of the summer show going forward: It’s an inherently different convention than winter NAMM, in its pace, vibe and purpose. And for those who can make it, Summer NAMM still has value.
Guitars Cater to ‘Me’ Culture

John Maier, CEO of TC Electronic, likened this year’s summer NAMM meeting to “a regional guitar show.” While there were plenty of other industry segments represented in the exhibit hall, guitars and guitar-related product had the most striking presence.
Our culture’s lust for customization hit new heights at the Peavey booth, where the company had set up a kiosk to show a new feature at its Custom Shop Web site. Customers can now put the image of their choice on a Peavey electric guitar. All that’s required is that they go to the company’s Custom Shop Web site and upload a graphic sized at least 300 dots per inch. The retailer of the customer’s choice fulfills the order.
“The company that we work with, when they developed the technology, their first customer was Brunswick,” said Tony Moscal, Peavey’s general manager, marketing. “You can actually customize bowling balls. And they have been incredibly successful with this. It’s a ‘me, me, me’ culture.”

Customization carried over into accessories, as well. For its latest cases, Gator interviewed students at local middle and high schools to find out what they valued in backpacks and instrument cases. The result, the Messenger bag series and i series of cases, incorporates a spot for an iPod, an earbud grommet, a keychain holder and a ton of pockets. The i series even features a battery-powered power amplifier and speakers, so students can listen to music from their bags.

“It’s a case turned into boom box,” said Mark Stone, vice president and general manager of Gator. “For the first time, it’s bridging fashion with cases.”

Vintage Stomp Boxes ...
Also in the guitar segment, effects pedal manufacturers made the old new again. Several opted to bring vintage sounds and reissue pedals to NAMM instead of debuting the latest tones. For instance, Boss introduced the RE-20 Twin Pedal, a reincarnation of the company’s classic Roland RE-201 Space Echo. It simulates the 201’s 12 different modes, and models its tape flutter and magnetic head saturation. Plus, the RE-20 adds a tap input pedal.

Ibanez launched a 2007 version of its Tube King distortion pedals with AC circuitry instead of the 9-volt circuitry of the original. Seymour Duncan rolled out the Shape Shifter Tap Tremolo. The analog pedal recreates the tremolo of 1950s tube amps, but its rate and shape control also let users dial in more experimental sounds. Electro-Harmonix showed its latest round of vintage-styled wares with three analog modulators: the Stereo Polyphase, Stereo Pulsar and Stereo Clone Theory.

Additionally, gig-fx pared down its Mega-Wah into the more affordable, mono Kilo-Wah. Along with its classic “cry” setting, the Kilo-Wah features three other wah sounds.

... and Audio Stomp Boxes
The effects pedal also traveled outside the guitar arena and became the delivery system of gear that’s traditionally of the audio and recording market. Vocal processors, for instance, which have long been the domain of studio rack units, migrated into floor-based boxes.

TC Helicon opened the show with a press conference to announce the shipment of its two new VoiceTone stomp boxes. VoiceTone Create features 99 preset effects specifically for vocalists, including combinations of reverb, tap tempo delay and distortion, among others. VoiceTone Correct offers pitch correction, as well as adaptive tone and dynamic shaping. Both pedals will street for around $250.

“It seems like the [lower] price point, the feature set, the ability to mix and match pedals and have your own personal setup is really what [musicians are] asking for,” Maier said. “We could have easily put these pedals in a rack.”

DigiTech also debuted Vocalist Live 4, a vocal harmony and effects processor — and a big brother to its Vocalist Live 2. The floor unit analyzes guitar chords and creates vocal harmonies around them. Users can chose from a third, fifth, an octave above or below, or unisons to create up to a four-part harmony.

In related audio news, Belkin, a company known for computer products, unveiled its first entry in the MI market, TuneStudio. This four-channel mixer has an iPod dock, so users can record up to four different instruments or audio sources directly to an iPod. The unit lists at $250.

DJ company representation was on the slender side at the show, but a few stalwarts still maintained a presence. American DJ rolled out a generous-sized booth and showed its American Audio PXW-18P subwoofer. Numark also came out and brought its Alesis and Akai brands. Among the items at its booth, the Alesis Performance Pad was a stand out. It’s a tabletop- and kit-mountable drum pad with a built-in drum machine, featuring 233 sounds. It lists for $399.

The Variety Show
As Mapex’s Joe Hibbs said, the trend in the drum industry is “there seems to be no trend.” This manifested at Summer NAMM as a world of new product filled with acrylics, giant bass drums, three-ply shells and tons of small goods.

According to Hibbs, Mapex’s artist relations and product development manager, drums have to appeal to a large and diverse customer base. “The trend is to offer variety,” he said. “People always want something special. Our job is to try and offer that.”
Ludwig created a buzz with the new Legacy Classic line, which features reinforced three-ply maple and poplar drum shells. “As long as I’ve worked at the company, people have been asking when we were going to bring back three-ply shells,” said Gary Devore, Ludwig’s sale coordinator.

Peace Drums offered kits made of 100-percent bubinga. “It has a nice attack,” said Marcus Esquer, who handles U.S. sales and artist relations for Peace Drums. “It’s great for rock bands because they really project.” Esquer added that bubinga and acrylic have been popular materials lately, especially among rock drummers.

Larger bass drums were popular at Tama, according to Product Manager Terry Bissette, while Katy Chen of Taye Drums pointed to smaller kits that “look tiny, but sound big.”
Roland’s new HD-1 offers beaterless, integrated pedals for digital drums. These cater to dorms, apartments and smaller spaces. Mark Cubranich with HansenFutz also introduced the Futz Practice Pedal, an electric pedal, citing “trends in practice tools, convenience and portability” as the reasons behind the pedal’s design.

Pat Brown, director of sales for Pro-Mark, was pleased with the show despite the smaller crowds. “We heard all kinds of horror stories on the supply side and the buyer side,” Brown said. “Our division a long time ago decided we would focus on the people who were coming and not worry about the people who weren’t coming.”

“When you go to a show like this, it’s like taking a gig at a club,” Hibbs said. “You know the club is not going to be packed, but what you do is you go to that club and you play. You play the best you’ve ever played because that is what your job is. That’s the same with a show like this. You come here to take care of the people that show up.”

The Convenience, Cost Game
Band and orchestra vendors are working hard to provide higher convenience and lower costs for student musicians as they return to school this fall.

Robert Polan, D’Addario’s Rico product manager, demonstrated how the company’s new Rico Padded Sax Strap, Rico Reserve Reeds and humidity controlled Rico Reed Case represent a demand for quality in the tools of student music making.

“I think that students and educators are looking for a higher and higher quality reed,” Polan said. “Which is why we put out the Reserve product. Some of the features we offer give a lot more consistency.”

Polan said he went into Summer NAMM with modest expectations and a smaller booth, but he was pleased with the results. “We are meeting more woodwind dealers than we expected, and we are answering a lot more questions about woodwind products.”
Antigua Winds’ Daryl McCain also pointed to the success of his company’s student-orientated XP series as an indicator of the growing demand for higher-quality and cost-effective student instruments.

“For music education, cost is always an issue, and a lot of manufactures, ourselves included, have tried to address this with lower-cost instruments,” McCain said. “The thing about instruments [with lower cost] is that they tend to suffer in quality.”

Antigua addresses the cost vs. quality dilemma by offering instruments in the higher end of the student price range with a full warranty and better quality. “It may cost a little bit more in that category, but in the long run, it will be much more cost-effective,” McCain said.

Mike Ebert, sales associate for Saga Musical Instruments, has also noticed an upgrade in affordable Saga violins. “Quality in Chinese manufacturing over the last 10 years has gotten so good that you are seeing violins in the $150 price range for an outfit that looks so good and sounds good for the money,” Ebert said. “Their fit and finish has just gotten better in the last few years.”

Guitar Carries Over to Print
Exhibiting print music publishers tailored their new offerings to the guitar-centric nature of Summer NAMM. Many highlighted multimedia items designed to educate six-stringers.

Hal Leonard showcased the latest addition to its Guitar Play-Along series, a book-and-CD set for Pink Floyd’s classic Dark Side Of The Moon album. With an MSRP of $14.95, it comes with a CD featuring the guitar solo and a separate backing track, so guitarists can play along.

As a side note, Hal Leonard also exhibited Art Strings Publishing’s Music Art of Karen Cannon. The best-seller in this series of music-centered prints, which Hal Leonard distributes, shows Mona Lisa with a Gibson Flying V beside her head.

Mel Bay rolled out several new titles in its Learn To Play... series of instructional DVDs, including Iron Maiden Guitar Techniques, Stevie Ray Vaughn Guitar Techniques and Pink Floyd Guitar Techniques. Each DVD teaches viewers how to play five key songs from the particular artist.

Alfred Publishing had a literal guitar presence at NAMM, sharing its booth with affiliated girl-guitar maker Daisy Rock. Appropriately, Alfred debuted How To Succeed As A Female Guitarist, a book discussing common mistakes women make when picking up the guitar and insights on being a female player in the music biz.

Music Inc.’s PR correspondent at Alfred, Rich Lackowski, also penned his first book, On The Beaten Path: The Drummer’s Guide To Musical Styles And The Legends Who Defined Them, which was on display.

And for players of that bluegrass sister to the guitar, Music Sales launched The Complete 5-String Banjo Player, a guide to banjo by Tony Trischka. The massive method includes an audio CD with demo tracks.

Pianos that Rock
Technological advances and an edgier image are playing a larger role in defining the piano industry.

Baldwin Pianos adopted some of the rock ’n’ roll attitude of its parent company, Gibson. “Just like Gibson has a custom shop, Baldwin has a custom shop,” said John Ripley, a Baldwin product specialist. “We can make a piano any color or any design you want. In just a few weeks, we will feature a zebra piano, a leopard print piano and a tie-dyed piano.”

Baldwin has been aiming more recently to attract the boomer generation that grew up with rock ’n’ roll, according to Ripley. “It’s not your grandma’s piano anymore, ya’ know? It’s our piano.”

Nobody speaks better to rock ’n’ roll pianos than Hammond and its Leslie speakers. Though foot traffic through Hammond’s booth was slow, Jay Valle, the company’s sales manager, said he believes presence is key.

“This year, I can’t say it’s worthwhile in terms of sales, but the people are great,” he said. “On the the other hand, our sales overall are excellent. We’ve sold out a number of products as it is. So we are kind of here as a token — for image and visibility.”

Yamaha’s latest keyboard, the PSR-OR700 offers non-Western scales, so users can blend contemporary popular grooves from the East and West. The company also touted its compact, lightweight NP-30 as the grand piano you can carry under your arm.

Tim Laskey, president of Wyman Pianos, has noticed quiet but substantial changes at Wyman that reflect positive growth in the overall piano industry. “We’ve noticed a turning of the corner, so to speak, in the last month, month and a half,” he said. “We have seen improvement in our direction, and that’s good. The first part of the year has been slow, but we are anticipating a pretty good fall.” MI