Stages to Success

Grant Cooper, former Music Director of the West Virginia Symphony, like many entrepreneurs, is a man without a plan, but with a nimble attitude.  Hear how a young trumpet virtuoso from New Zealand reached for the stars and ended up on the podium of major orchestras, composing new works, editing and producing in the recording … Continue reading Episode 022 – Conductor Grant Cooper: Mathematics/ Electrician/ Trumpet – Quite a Business Card! →

On Monday morning, April 13, 1992, basements of old downtown Chicago commercial buildings mysteriously began filling with water.  Unbeknownst to these building owners, an old underground system of railroad delivery tunnels had been punctured by a crew working on pilings on the Chicago River.   Before it was done, an estimated 250 million gallons of water … Continue reading Episode 021 – Honey, I Think We Have Some Water in the Basement →

Charleston, West Virginia Symphony concert-goers of the 1950’s may have been surprised to see a 13 year old boy playing bass clarinet at concerts. Over the next four years, young Larry Combs would gradually graduate to the first chair in the section, at the ripe old age of 17. Larry would go on to Interlochen, … Continue reading Episode 020 – Who the Heck is that Kid in the Clarinet Section? →

Two star-crossed Armenian immigrants met in Evanston in the nineteen-teens. They brought together a trade from the old country, Turkey, a booming demand for their trade in the United States, and mixed in a bit of good-old real estate entrepreneurship. They built the business and the buildings that became Koshgarian Rug Cleaners in La Grange … Continue reading Episode 019 – There’s Something About Mary: From Rugs to Riches →

Sometimes a gifted individual steps out of the limelight and turns his energies to teaching, and discovering a methodology that leads others to greatness.   Joe Torre of the New York Yankees is a prime example in sports.  Stanley Hasty was such a clarinetist and teacher.  For 2 decades, he worked his way around the country … Continue reading Episode 018 – Stanley Hasty of the Eastman School of Music – One of the Clarinet Jedi Masters →

When you visit the Loop in Chicago, you’ll probably take a picture at the iconic Bean ( actually called Cloud Gate).  If you’re watching the business section in the papers, you’ll see a gigantic new sports complex that’s been constructed in the Pullman neighborhood.   You’ll also see a new Method factory recently constructed, and Whole … Continue reading Episode 017 – Doing Good, and Doing Quite Well: David Doig →

In 1977, the Chicago Symphony hired its first Asian musician, John Bruce Yeh, in the clarinet section.  Twenty-one years later, Robert Chen took over the concertmaster position, arguably the most notable position in a symphony orchestra.  Since that time, the CSO, along with orchestras across the U.S., has seen an explosion of numbers of Asian … Continue reading Episode 016 – The Inv-Asian of the American Symphony Orchestra →

Jim Haertel, a modest multi-family investor from Milwaukee, couldn’t forget the beautiful Pabst headquarters he’d seen in his 30’s.  Hear the story of Jim’s  $50,000 down payment and  his obsession with saving a couple structures in the gigantic Pabst Brewery  30-building assemblage.  His effort was the genesis of the   repositioning of  an entire submarket of … Continue reading Episode 015 – Hey Jimmy, Get Me Some Pabst →

If you attended concerts by the Cleveland Orchestra in the early 1950’s, or concerts by the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra from the mid-1950’s to the early 2000’s, you undoubtedly were listening to Harry Taub playing in the violin section.  In Buffalo, you would have frequently heard him playing the violin solos from the concertmaster’s chair, since … Continue reading Episode 014 – Just Who are the Heroes in a Symphony Orchestra? →

Two men in their early twenties, Jay Michael and Alex Samoylovich, grade school friends and  first generation Americans,  pooled their resources, moxie, and families to shape the most radical micro-living concepts.  Their Chicago company has innovated wholesale changes in how mixed use development, retail, and apartment living fit together.  Listen to Alex tell the story … Continue reading Episode 013 – Alex Samoylovich: – An Homage to Jay Michael, An Entrepreneur Who Spurred a Lifestyle Change in Real Estate →