NAMM 2009

[Guest]

Hello,

is anyone going to be at NAMM this week?

Looks like church organs are going to be a rarity: only three companies are going to be there: Viscount, Allen and Rodgers.

Uhm... What happened to all the others? Some of them must be in big big troubles... AFAIK Ahlborn is KO and firing most employees!

Cheers 

[Clarion]

Re: NAMM 2009



[quote user="nardofor"]Uhm... What happened to all the others? Some of them must be in big big troubles... AFAIK Ahlborn is KO and firing most employees. [/quote]

What do you mean by Ahlborn is KO?

Anyone know what aKO is??

[Menschenstimme]

Re: NAMM 2009

Keeling over ???

[nullogik]

Re: NAMM 2009



I knew about this a couple of weeks back but didn't want to say anything because it was just a rumour at the time.

What I've been told is that Ahlborn Galanti are winding up their operations. They will fulfill all outstanding contracts, so those that have paid for their organ will get theres, however they are not accepting new orders. Rumour has it that they aren't really folding up for good, but more like putting the company in "stasis" and that they might start up operations once the financial climate and the organ market is more favourable perhaps in a couple of years - but this is just a rumour

Its not good news for Ahlborn dealers who've been left high and from what I hear they are pretty narked off about it.

Viscount organs who are somewhat related to Ahlborn Galanti apparently will continue trading unaffected.

[Guest]

Re: NAMM 2009



With KO I mean Knock Out: Ahlborn Galanti fired most of the employees and personnel. Actually they could re-employ them lately taking advantage of national welfare policies, but that's a question mark.

BTW: Viscount is not related in any way to Alhborn except that their HQ is located in the same area (as most italian musical factories, such as Farfisa, PARI.E and the likes) 

Regards 

[radagast]

Re: NAMM 2009

[quote user="nardofor"]


Hello,

is anyone going to be at NAMM this week?

Looks like church organs are going to be a rarity: only three companies are going to be there: Viscount, Allen and Rodgers.

Uhm... What happened to all the others? Some of them must be in big big troubles... AFAIK Ahlborn is KO and firing most employees!

Cheers

[/quote]

I saw that Rodgers' owner, Roland is showing a modeling piano, the V-Piano:

http://namm09.musicradar.com/news/ro...toric-v-piano/

[MarkS]

Re: NAMM 2009

[quote user="nardofor"]


With KO I mean Knock Out:Ahlborn Galanti fired most of the employees and personnel. Actually they could re-employ them lately taking advantage of national welfare policies, but that's a question mark.

BTW: Viscount is not related in any way to Alhborn except that their HQ is located in the same area (as most italian musical factories, such as Farfisa, PARI.E and the likes)

Regards

[/quote]

I would have assumed that Mauro Galanti and Daniele Galanti are related.

[arie v]

Re: NAMM 2009

MarkS wrote the following post at 01-17-2009 2:21 PM:

nardofor:

With KO I mean Knock Out:Ahlborn Galanti fired most of the employees and personnel. Actually they could re-employ them lately taking advantage of national welfare policies, but that's a question mark.

BTW: Viscount is not related in any way to Alhborn except that their HQ is located in the same area (as most italian musical factories, such as Farfisa, PARI.E and the likes)

Regards

I would have assumed that Mauro Galanti and Daniele Galanti are related.

Hi,

Mauro and Daneile Galanti are first cousins. Viscount and GeneralMusic are however totally separate companies.

AV

[MarkS]

Re: NAMM 2009



Thanks Arie. That's what I guessed; the Viscount website mentions Marcello leaving his brothers to found ICE.

Could some employees find their way to Viscount--or perhaps even part of the business migrate?

This certainly explains the Ahlborn-Galanti advertisement in the latest American Organist, with a three-manual offered for under 30,000 US.

[Guest]

Re: NAMM 2009

[quote user="radagast"]

I saw that Rodgers' owner, Roland is showing a modeling piano, the V-Piano:

http://namm09.musicradar.com/news/ro...toric-v-piano/

  

[/quote]

 

How strange they don't say anything regarding technology, they only say "...without requiring samples", it sounds misterious to me. Wondering if it's really phy modelling... I like the cabinet, though I never trusted Roland products as I always dislike their taste in matter of timbres, sounds, samples, etc...

From the advertisements looks like it'll have both acoustic pianos and vitange electric ones, right?

Another thing I'm quite sceptical about is their "V" policy. The V-bass, V-accordion, V-synth, etc. have no connection at all besides being most of them digital instruments emulating a specific instrument (instead of emulating many different instrument).

[radagast]

Re: NAMM 2009

[quote user="nardofor"][quote user="radagast"]


I saw that Rodgers' owner, Roland is showing a modeling piano, the V-Piano:

http://namm09.musicradar.com/news/ro...toric-v-piano/

[/quote]

How strange they don't say anything regarding technology, they only say "...without requiring samples", it sounds misterious to me. Wondering if it's really phy modelling... I like the cabinet, though I never trusted Roland products as I always dislike their taste in matter of timbres, sounds, samples, etc...

From the advertisements looks like it'll have both acoustic pianos and vitange electric ones, right?

Another thing I'm quite sceptical about is their "V" policy. The V-bass, V-accordion, V-synth, etc. have no connection at all besides being most of them digital instruments emulating a specific instrument (instead of emulating many different instrument).

[/quote]

You didn't mention the V-guitar. The reason for the "V" designation is because it denotes technology that is very compute intensive, so they are not likely to produce sounds of many different instruments but focus on a limited set of sounds, and to do themas well as possible.

[Guest]

Re: NAMM 2009



Hello friends!

I was at the NAMM for a day... Looked so empty... No queues for the coffee, dealers and companies were fewer than ever...

Though everyone knows that after the event demo instruments are sold on discount, I never saw companies putting "on sale 50% off" signs over them... Bad luck, I was looking for bargaining the price for one or two good organs but I came too late.

Besides that, not many news from the market...

[arie v]

Re: NAMM 2009



Hi,

NAMM is traditionally the time when music retailers escape the mid winter blues for some R & R (or fun in the sun), make decisions on what lines to carry, make deals, etc.

A buddy of mine who went, said the smartest folks in the music biz may well have been those who chose not to exhibit. For the amount of money it costs to be at NAMM (or Frankfurt Musikmesse), a sales rep can make a lot of phone calls, knock on some doors, give better deals on initial orders, etc.

I understand that the piano, keyboard, and organ section was particularly quiet. Why anybody still shows up showing church/classical organs there is beyond me. If the idea is to say you are still in the business it may make sense, but from the point of view of finding and signing up dealers, and selling some product it is mostly a waste of time.

I was told that attendance at NAMM this year was down about 30% from last year. Mostly due to the fact that times are tough economically. A lot of music merchants probably could not afford to go this year.

AV

[Guest]

Re: NAMM 2009



Sure sure, IMHO cutting down on fancy things like exhibitions could be not bad at all, in order to avoid spending lotsa money, but also centering your business around the core: the instruments, the music and the musicians, and leave all the glossy posters and smiling ads out. After all the way global market broke down is cause people do focus on fancy and smokey things, forgetting the substance...

This whole situation could give very well a tough but useful lesson...

MB