On June 13th, Kaman Music joined Fred and Dinah Gretsch as they commemorated 120 years of "That Great Gretsch Sound" with a special celebration dinner at the Hartford Club.

As guests arrived, each was personally greeted and thanked by Fred and Dinah Gretsch. Following dinner, Kaman Music President, Bob Saunders spoke of the Gretsch/Kaman relationship and presented the Gretsch's with a distinctive award - a beautiful Gretsch drum shell featuring each of Gretsch's badges through the years. Paul Damiano, Kaman's VP of Sales and Marketing and the Kaman Percussion Team presented Fred and Dinah with an award to celebrate the expanded box kit offering that Gretsch and Kaman have developed together. Modern Drummer Editor, Rick Van Horn was also on hand to present Fred and Dinah with an award to commemorate the milestone anniversary.

Fred and Dinah presented several awards to the Kaman team, including a beautiful snare hand-selected from the Gretsch Vineyard for product manager Tim O'Neal. Kaman Corp. President Paul Kuhn; Director of Percussion, Ken Fredenberg; Artist Relations Manager, Kim Graham; and Latin Percussion Senior VP, David McAllister also received special awards during the evening. Following the awards and cutting of the cake, guests were treated to an evening of music from renowned Gretsch artist, Vinnie Colaiuta and special musical guests Randy Waldman, and Larry Croft.

Special thanks to Fred, Dinah and everyone at Gretsch Drums for sharing the evening with their friends and extended family at Kaman Music. Here's to another 120 years of "That Great Gretsch Sound"!