Much beloved industry veteran Danny Rocks has passed away. Rocks was an accomplished music educator, performer, and mentor who also found success in music publishing, working first at G. Schirmer, Inc. and then joining Alfred Publishing in the early '80s and eventually advancing to become vice president of sales for the company. Danny retired from Alfred in 2006 to form The Company Rocks where he worked to help individuals and organizations improve their communication skills. Danny was a tireless advocate for both music education and the music industry and he was a frequent contributor to MMR and our sister publication SBO. Details of his passing remain scarce, but a quick glance at the comments posted to Danny's Facebook page leave no doubt as to the affection and respect so many had for him: https://www.facebook.com/danny.rocks.1
A press release was sent out this morning from NASMD regarding Danny's passing:
The music industry mourns the passing of a true renaissance man, Danny Rocks. Danny studied music at Temple University in his hometown of Philadelphia, and began his career on Broadway as a pianist in pit orchestras for musicals, eventually conducting the matinee performances of "Fiddler on the Roof" starring Zero Mostel. Danny became an independent print music salesman representing dozens of publishers, criss-crossing the country by car and putting his encyclopedia memory to good use. He joined the staff of G. Schirmer and that eventually led to an invitation to become part of the Alfred Publishing family. There he was a tireless advocate for music education and his international reputation grew. RPMDA honored Danny with its highest honor, the Dorothy Award, given for a lifetime of achievement and service to the print music industry, in 2011.
