Greenhoe Inc Information

Greenhoe Inc. was founded in 2000, but Gary Greenhoe started working on improving the trombone over 30 years ago. His unique position as a professional trombonist in the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra accords him a refined knowledge base for his designs. Gary had been the designer of the Edwards trombone and thus was very aware of the need for good manufacturability, precise design, and the necessity for a company that would build the products to his high standards. The foundation for the start of the Greenhoe Company began with the successful patent of the Greenhoe Valve. Gary had worked with many different potential manufacturers for the valve when it became evident that a truly innovative trombone manufacturing facility was necessary. The first generation of products to be designed by the fledgling company was a set of high-performance valve sections. Gary began with the enlistment of Kevin Saunders, who was a successful business development coach and an industrial designer specializing in aerospace technology. Together, Gary and Kevin combined aerospace design and manufacturing technology with the musical instrument concepts that Gary had developed. The result was a set of valve sections that were designed and engineered specifically for Bach, Conn, Shires, Edwards and Holton tenor and bass trombones. These eight separate products were then brought into limited production. With continued development and refinement, the valve systems fast became a catalyst for a new standard in the industry. As news of Greenhoe valve systems spread, it became apparent that there was a need for proper development of the complete trombone, carefully blending state of the art technology with historical handcrafted workmanship of historical designs. Gary was respectful of the history of the instruments that C. G. Conn and Vincent Bach had developed over the past century. These respective companies were the two seminal providers of the instruments that now define the trombone as we know it. Growing up playing models from both manufacturers gave him a unique perspective of the personalities of these standard bearers. The decision was made to produce an inventory of products for Bach and Conn, and to continue to support all other brands on a custom basis. The second event was the development of a relationship with the C.G. Conn Company. There is a history of over 30 years of discussions with Conn and Bach sharing thoughts on their respective designs. The opportunity was finally right in 2002, whereby Conn learned of the success of the valve sections and allowed the company to buy Conn trombones and convert them into the first Greenhoe-Conn models. As the Greenhoe-Conn trombone was introduced, the instrument was accepted by customers as a Conn with characteristics of the older Elkhart models, without the inconsistencies that were apparent in those vintages.