I began playing piano at the age of 3 and moved on to the theater organ by the time I was 10. I began giving organ lessons by 16 and eventually earned a scholarship to Julliard, but passed on this opportunity to take some courses locally at St. Louis Institute of Music and join the Navy instead - seemed like the thing to do at the time. I still play regularly on the weekends and my musical career has taken me from studio recording to touring and I've enjoyed every minute of it!
As a child, my father owned a counter-top production company so I grew up around manufacturing and eventually worked my way through various companies until I became Chief Engineer/Designer for Koken Manufacturing. They've been around for well over 100 years and are best known for producing the old ornate barber chairs that have become quite collectible through the years.
During a 5 year hiatus from playing music I began to collect organette's as a hobby and soon had a collection of over 30. The only problem was, most of them didn't work! So I began collecting information from other collector's and eventually acquired the cumulative work of the late Carl Semon and began learning all I could on restoring these forgotten machines. Carl was an engineer also, and his meticulous notes and passion for organette's has been a wealth of information. Sadly, I never got the chance to meet him but I'm fortunate to have the opportunity to carry on this lost tradition.
Restoring has now become a full time job and when I think I've seen them all, something new (or should I say old?) shows up to surprise me. Typically, it's much easier to restore an untouched machine, but un-doing repairs that well meaning amateurs have made through the years can become a nightmare.Someorganettes need only a standard restoration and some can require major re-building to bring them back to life. Either way, it's always nice to hear a voice that's been silent for so long. After the introduction of the phonograph most organette's became homes for mice in someone's attic or barn, or simply thrown away. Few exist in excellent condition today, but thanks to the Internet more and more are surfacing and the once silent music from the past is being heard again!
So that's it in a nut shell - I've officially become a forensic restorer*, bringing life back into a forgotten piece of our musical history as best I can. Feel free to contact me any time - I'll be happy to answer any questions I can!
