Canadian Music Trade - December/January 2018 | Page 11

Music 8 Now Exclusive Canadian Distributor for La Bella Strings (L-R) MUSIC 8’S ALEJANDRO SCHERB, LA BELLA’S Quebec-based RICHARD COCCO & MUSIC 8’S CARLOS TORRES Music 8 has been chosen as the exclusive distributor of La Bella strings for Canada. La Bella offers a wide variety of strings for all instruments, including guitar, banjo, ukulele, oud, and all orchestral instruments. The arrangement is a product of a long-standing friendship between Music 8 President Alejandro Scherb and La Bella Presi- dent Richard Cocco. “It has always been a pleasure working with Cocco,” says Scherb. “We have known each other for years, and now to be exclusive distributors is something very special.” “La Bella is always one of my favourite and best-selling prod- ucts,” adds Carlos Torres, Music 8’s sales manager. For more information, contact Music 8: 514-622-3992, [email protected], www.music8.ca. (L-R) ARTIPHON CO-FOUNDERS MIKE BUTERA & JACOB GORDON Hal Leonard Now Distributing Artiphon’s Instrument 1 Artiphon, a consumer electronics company based in Nashville, has announced that Hal Leonard is now distributing its flagship product, the Instrument 1, to U.S. and Canadian music stores. The Instrument 1 is a multi-instrument that lets users “strum like a guitar, bow like a violin, and tap like a keyboard or drum pad.” Artiphon first conceived the Instrument 1 in 2011 and launched it on Kickstarter in 2015, where it raised over $1.3 million to become the largest crowdfund for a musical instrument in the site’s history. “Hal Leonard likes innovative products that can create new music experiences and therefore create new customers,” says Hal Leonard VP of MI Products Brad Smith. “The new generation of digitally savvy performers, producers, learners, and students will want to explore this. Dealers have to be there with new product offerings, and this one is sure to get new business and excitement.” For more information, contact Hal Leonard: 414-774-3630, [email protected], www.halleonard.com. CANADIAN MUSIC TRADE 11