Facing the music
and the changing tempo

By Lauren Fritsky
Times Staff Writer

The walls no longer displayed guitars for sale, and stacks of musty music books sat not on stands but on a counter, ready for disposal.
But one item, a random drum set, still stood intact as Justin "Jay" Bruno surveyed the remains of his business, Howard Herbert’s Music Center in Holmesburg.
It’s the attention devoted to every student who ever sat behind such a drum set that kept business booming at the center until it closed March 6, ending 54 years of service to the Northeast.
"It’s been the atmosphere of the place," explained Bruno, 65, who is retiring from teaching. "Everybody that’s come in has been important to me."
Last week, many of Bruno’s past and present students dropped by the school at 8725 Frankford Ave. to say goodbye to the well-known instructor.
Co-owner Robert Herbert, whose parents, Howard and Mary, opened the original school on the 7500 block of Frankford Ave. in 1953, says he’s closing the store because it’s time to move on.
"It was a mom-and-pop store. We tried to stay that way. (But) business has changed," said Herbert, 43.
The site will become a real estate office.
The music school moved to its current location in 1979. Herbert began operating the business with Bruno, an accomplished drummer who has performed with such acts as the Righteous Brothers and Peggy Lee, in 1995.
Howard Herbert and his brother Dave performed around the country as a musical act called the Howard Brothers. Howard Herbert met Bruno, a Port Richmond native, while performing for singer Bobby Darin in the 1960s. Bruno would teach at Herbert’s school when he wasn’t on the road performing.
While the center sold musical instruments and equipment, Howard Herbert’s business became a local landmark for its quality music instruction. The school gave private lessons to mostly Northeast residents ranging from 6 to 80 years of age, and allowed bands to practice there at night. At the time it shut down for good, the school was teaching about 300 kids each week.
One of them, Justin Rupert, said the main requirement to study with Bruno was discipline.
"If you don’t practice, he’s gonna get tough on you," said Rupert, 15.
Even Bill Senatore, who first came to Howard Herbert’s Music Center in 1967, remembers Bruno’s tough-love approach when teaching drums.
"I’d do it with my right hand and he’d be like, ‘No, no, no, you’ve got to do it with your left hand!’" said Senatore, now 52. "I said, ‘It’s hard that way.’ We always thought that was unfair, because (Bruno) used his left hand."
Holmesburg resident Kiyoshi Nishiji, a self-taught drummer from Japan, credits Bruno with saving his music career.
When Nishiji arrived in Philadelphia in 1988 after a successful career as a drummer in Japan, he decided to give up music. In 1992, his wife took him to Howard Herbert’s, where Bruno asked him to play something on the drums.
"I thought I wasn’t good enough," said Nishiji, now 47. "I played and he said, ‘What are you doing, man? You’re a genius.’"
Nishiji went on to perform with the now-defunct band IROQ and then pursued his career in New York, followed by studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he helped start the Tower of Power Ensemble. He has an independent CD out and regularly performs around the tri-state area.
"He’s my official first teacher," Nishiji said. "Bruno has been the biggest influence on me, both in general and musically."
Bruno, who taught such known drummers as Armand Grimaldi, who worked with singer Natalie Cole, and jazz musician Tony Vigilante, was part of a staff of about 20 teachers at the school, Robert Herbert explained.
One of those other teachers was Ritchie DeCarlo, a drummer for the rock band LeCompt who studied with Bruno.
"I can’t believe he’s retiring," he said of Bruno. "Any drummer that came out of the area that’s worth talking about studied with him."
Howard Herbert’s Music Center never had a problem attracting customers and students, said Robert Herbert. "We never advertised. Everything was pretty much word of mouth. Everyone knows us. The kids know us. We’ve been a part of the community for so long," he said.
Wearing sunglasses, a leather jacket and leather hat, Bruno chatted with colleagues and students inside the center last week. In addition to his instruction at Herbert’s, Bruno helped start the drum line at Father Judge High School nearly a decade ago.
Bruno, who began playing the drums when he was 8, said he worked with anyone as long as they were serious about playing. In return, he afforded them a safe environment to create their music.
"There’s no BS. You come in and do your stuff," Bruno said. "But the reason I had so many drummers who played really well and succeeded was because it was a relaxed atmosphere."
Bruno will undergo double knee surgery before accepting a position at the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico, where he will oversee the American jazz program. He plans to keep in touch with his students through e-mail.
But the music won’t fade so fast for his remaining students.
DeCarlo, who is described as Bruno’s protégé, will open his own school, the RDC Music Center at 4601 Ditman St., on March 19. More information can be obtained on DeCarlo’s Web site at www.myspace.com/ritchiedecarlo
Herbert and Bruno are referring former customers to Pat’s Music Center, at 7302 Frankford Ave. ••
Reporter Lauren Fritsky can be reached at 215-354-3038 or lfritsky@phillynews.com