About Blue Ridge Music

          In June of 2005 Warren Wellford (local brass musician and owner of Wild West Construction) and Karl Klassen (formerly of Light's Music Center) got to talking about possibly opening up a small Music Store to help fill the need for students and teachers who relied on Light's for over 45 years.  Springfield has not had a music store for quite a long time, and Brenda Olson, owner of THE DOG HOUSE, was willing to open up her garage and let us do some minor remodeling next door so the local music instrument rental and repair market would have some extra expertise to rely on. 

       We contacted Pacific Winds of Eugene and asked Willy his opinions (as he has been a favorite music store supplier and a good friend).  Then, in late July it was time to make some important decisions about the future.  Would this idea actually work? By the end of August we both had purchased enough repair shop tools and rental instrument stock to start up on a very small scale at this great location on Main Street.  Also, I asked Lynn Nelson, local string repair tech for the mid Willamette Valley to help out, and after Labor Day weekend it was time to get things going for the school year. 

       Several teachers in our area have been very supportive, and with Steve Robare, Tony Hernandez, Tim Vian, Joe Ingram, Daniel Powell, Bob Kempf, Matt Woodford, and Jonathan Light giving us lots of new business, it is going very well in just over 15 months of operation.  I personally want to thank these people, and ALL the great new customers who have endeavored to actually find us and get this store going.    

       So, why the name Blue Ridge?  My family is located back in Roanoke, Virginia, deep in the Shenandoah Valley between the Appalachian and Blue Ridge Mountains. Growing up there was an adventure, especially hiking the Appalachian Trail.  The Blue Ridge Parkway is a great place to visit, especially in October, when the Autumn colors are at their peak.  So the name Blue Ridge Music reflects the love of my birthplace, my family, and it's rich historical significance that will always be close to my heart.   The heart of Dixie runs deep in my veins, and so does lots of good memories.   

     I also want to say hello to all of my friends from the Class of 72 at Patrick Henry HS in Roanoke.  My band director, Mr. R. Davidson Burgess, taught our group from Junior High all the way till we graduated.    "Dave" Burgess really made band a fun and rewarding experience, so much so that I continued on to get a degree in Music Education from the University of Georgia.  Then after moving to the Eugene area in 1979, I started searching for groups to play with.  Swing Shift, The Eugene Symphonic Band, The Oregon Brass Society, and several others are taking up just about every evening's free time.  It's been a lot of fun and this is quite the learning experience. We now see that courteous and reliable customer service keeps the customers coming back.  Please stop by during regular business hours:  Mon - Fri  9:30AM to 5:30PM and on Saturdays by appointment (please call in advance).  I also run a small construction company and keep both businesses running full time all year round.  Thanks for visiting!

Karl, Warren and Lynn in December 2005