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David Samperi is also a native New Yorker who grew up in Greenwich Village and attended the High School of the Performing Arts in New York City . He studied with Elizabeth Mann and William Grass at the Boston Conservatory and received a Bachelor of Music degree from SUNY-Purchase. He has also studied with Gary Schocker. When David is not expertly repairing flutes and finishing piccolos, he is researching and dreaming about high-performance cars.  Elizabeth Ruppe, Marketing DirectorBeth is definitely not a New Yorker but a proud native Texan. She earned Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from Brigham Young University and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from University of North Texas . She joins the Weissman team after teaching full-time at BYU for five years. Dr. Ruppe is also a member of the Madeleine Trio and the Utah Regional Ballet Orchestra.
 Our Clients
I can recommend Mr. Weissman, and for those of you who play the picc, he makes great headjoints. I use them myself. Best Wishes, Jimmy.
Dear Jeff, Thanks so much for letting me try out the flute for so long. I'm really happy with it—you are to be congratulated on the Weissman model Haynes! Love,
History of the JB Weissman Music Company In 2001, JB Weissman Music Company celebrated 25 years in business. Starting with a simple repair service, our company has become the largest professional flute shop in the United States . JB Weissman Music is the only dealer in the United States which represents all of the "Big Five" flute companies: Brannen, Haynes, Miyazawa, Muramatsu and Powell. We are the exclusive New York dealer for Haynes, Miyazawa and Muramatsu as well as the exclusive East Coast dealer for Brannen. Jeffrey B. WeissmanJeff grew up in a very musical family--his mother was a dancer with a great love of music, and his father was an avid fan of jazz. Jeff followed in the footsteps of his older brother in learning the guitar but did not begin playing the flute until high school. Taking a few lessons from his high school band director, Jeff was a natural and quickly joined the high school band, orchestra and pit orchestra. Jeff was the type of young man who always wanted to know how everything worked, so when he started playing the flute he naturally took the whole thing apart!! The flutes in his own high school were in desperate need of repair, so he began to fix flutes as a service to the school. As his skills improved, he bought used flutes and reconditioned them as a way to earn money for more tools.
Jeff also studied with John Wion, principal flutist of the New York City Opera, who helped give Jeff direction in pursuing a career in music. Finally, Jeff also studied with Andrew Lolya, principal flutist of the New York City Ballet. In Jeff's words, "Andy was my mentor, someone I held in the highest of regard, someone who became a friend." Jeff became one of the youngest tenants of Carnegie Hall when Andrew Lolya invited him to share his studio. This warm relationship came to an end upon Mr. Lolya's death in 1999. The Flute Farm!! While in college, Jeff formalized his repair business by forming a company under the name of "The Flute Farm in Fresh Meadows." His services were immediately in demand, and his clients included New York flutists from major symphonies, studio musicians and Broadway musicians as well as local teachers and students. One of Jeff's first flutes was a Haynes that he purchased from a teacher, a common practice at the time. Twenty-five years ago, if you wanted to purchase a new professional flute, you placed an order with Haynes or Powell and waited . . . sometimes up to three years! The National Flute Association was in its infancy and only a small number of flutists attended the annual conventions where the major manufacturers exhibited. No single dealer offered new professional flutes in stock from all of the major flute companies. As his repair business grew, Jeff started selling flutes and began to represent a few select manufacturers including Miyazawa, Jupiter, Altus and Emerson. As his company's reputation grew, Jeff became sought after by top flute companies, and JB Weissman Music gradually came to represent all of the well-known flute manufacturers. Jeff was the first dealer to build an inventory of top-of-the-line flutes available in stock for immediate purchase—an idea unheard of 25 years ago when the Boston flute manufacturers routinely maintained waiting lists three to four years long. The success of JB Weissman Music is founded on the widest selection of instruments in the flute industry and unparalleled service. JB Weissman Music is currently the only dealer to represent all five of the most prestigious flute manufacturers: Brannen, Haynes, Miyazawa, Muramatsu and Powell.  From the beginning, Jeff's credo was personalized service. As clients counted on Jeff to improve their instruments, he began to re-carve embouchure holes and voice instruments to bring them to a higher level. His innate skills prompted a desire to produce his own instruments including piccolos and headjoints. Early in his career, Jeff placed a special order for a piccolo. He waited impatiently for the instrument and frequently asked the builder why it was taking so long. Finally, the builder responded with a sarcastic reply, "Well, how long do you think it would take you to make a piccolo?" Jeff's response was, "I don't know. I'll let you know!"
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Jeff Weissman, President and Founder
Robert Holmes, Sales Consultant
After high school, Jeff attended York College in Queens and toured Europe playing flute and guitar with the nightclub act City Lights, a well-known vocal act in the 1970's. As he continued his flute studies, he was fortunate to study with Harold Bennett, principal flutist of the Metropolitan Opera, a legendary player who inspired many flutists. In Jeff's words, "Harold had a velvet sound, warm enough to melt a glacier. No one had a sound like him." Mr. Bennett had a side business fixing flutes--usually his own students' flutes. He took Jeff under his wing, and soon Jeff was helping Mr. Bennett with flute repairs.
Jeff purchased Mr. Seaman's remaining supply of verawood and then set about to research the concerns. He expanded his research to many types of exotic woods and began a period of experimentation and development. Jeff was determined to create an instrument as exquisitely beautiful in its appearance as its tone. He developed and designed new dimensions for the piccolo and incorporated more options, styles and modifications than any other piccolo company.
lip plates. Together, Jeff and Chris developed organic fiber fusion, a special natural process that prevents cracking and increases the density of the woods by up to 22%. Their mission was to create the warmest-sounding piccolos with superb projection and responsiveness. Today, many of the world's most prominent classical and jazz flute players choose to play on Weissman/McKenna piccolos and headjoints.