“A couple of years ago,” says Dennis DeLucia, “Remo invited six ‘marching’ endorsees to attend a two-day meeting at the factory. He always want to know what you were doing, how you were doing it, where you were going with it.”

“He had a ‘curiosity’ state of mind and a ‘research’ state of mind. “Remo was always concerned about how drums could be used for human development, personal growth, and health,” says Christine Stevens, who has led training sessions in the Remo HealthRhythms program since 2001. But once he had shown off the new drumhead, or hand drum, or percussion accessory, or described a new venture related to wellness or community drumming, he wanted feedback. But he could typically be found in the Remo booth, and he usually had one or more new products to promote, which he did with the pride of a new father. Remo Belli didn’t have to go to PASICs and trade shows he had plenty of employees who could promote and sell his products. Additional reporting by Lauren Vogel Weiss

Remo drum