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| Formerly | Ludwig & Ludwig Leedy & Ludwig WFL Drum Company |
|---|---|
| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | Musical instruments |
| Founded | December 11, 1909; 115 years ago (1909-12-11) inChicago,Illinois, United States |
| Founder | William F. &Theobald Ludwig |
| Headquarters | Monroe, North Carolina, United States |
| Parent | Conn-Selmer |
| Subsidiaries | Musser Mallet Company |
| Website | ludwig-drums |
Ludwig Drums is a United Statesmusical instrument manufacturer, focused onpercussion. It is a subsidiary ofConn-Selmer.
Products manufactured by Ludwig includetimpani,drum kits, anddrum hardware. The company also makeskeyboard percussion instruments, such asmarimbas,vibraphones, andxylophones, through theLudwig-Musser brand.[1]
The Ludwig Drum Company was established in 1909 byWilliam F. & Theobald Ludwig, sons of a German immigrant to the United States.[2] William Jr. had been a professional drummer, playing with circuses and touring vaudeville shows, along with the occasional skating-rink gig. Since this work was irregular, he and his brother, Theobald, opened a drum shop inChicago; they called it Ludwig & Ludwig.[3] The company started with a concept for the design and manufacture of a functionalbass drum pedal.[4]
The company added new products to its catalog, such assnare drums andtimpani, in 1916. In 1917, Ludwig signed a deal to build rope-tensioned snare drums to supportWorld War I. Theobald Ludwig died in 1918, and William continued on his own.[4][3]
In the late 1920s, the company was sold to theC. G. Conn instrument company. William Ludwig stayed on to run the company for Conn (which also owned theLeedy Manufacturing Company at this time). Eventually, William Ludwig decided to leave Conn and start a new company of his own. He was unable to use the Ludwig name since that trademark now belonged to Conn who continued to market Ludwig & Ludwig drums.
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In 1937, William bought a factory building and started The WFL Drum Company (his initials). The company continued producing drums at a small scale for the duration ofWorld War II, but William got back to the idea of making the company a large drum manufacturer after the war ended. WFL was a competitor with Ludwig and Ludwig. Conn combined their two drum brands into one in the early 1950s, forming Leedy & Ludwig, and then decided to quit the drum business altogether. In 1955, William and his son Bill Jr. were able to buy the Ludwig trademark back from Conn, and over the next few years their company and its products transitioned from the WFL brand to being called "Ludwig" again.
Despite initial success, Ludwig's global breakthrough would occur February 9, 1964, whenThe Beatles made their historic American TV debut onThe Ed Sullivan Show.[6][7] The Ludwig logo, displayed on the front ofRingo Starr's bass drum, could be seen by the television audience of about seventy-three million people.[8][3][7] As it happens, Starr chose that brand upon joining the band simply because he liked the oyster pearl black color of the drum kit he chose.
[Ringo Starr] put our name on the front of his bass drum head ... [because] he was so proud that he had an imported drum set from America, especially from a famous company like Ludwig, that at the time of purchase he insisted on having the Ludwig name painted on the front of the head!
— William Ludwig's grandson[3]
The publicity resulted in Ludwig's sales doubling quickly to $13 million, which prompted production to increase to around-the-clock production as the company became the foremost drum manufacturer in North America for twenty years.[9]
Ludwig acquired the Musser Mallet Company, a manufacturer ofxylophones,marimbas andvibraphones, in 1965.[2] Ludwig was a strong presence in the marching drum market. During the 1970s, Ludwig's "Challenger" line of snare drums offered sophisticated tuning and strong build quality. Ludwig drums were used by many leading drum and bugle corps.
On 4 November 1981, William F Ludwig II sold the business to the Selmer Company (nowConn-Selmer). Selmer closed the Damen Avenue factory in the ensuing years and moved the drum production business toMonroe, North Carolina, in 1984.[2][3][10] In 2002, Ludwig merged withConn-Selmer, becoming abrand ofConn-Selmer, Inc.[11]
The Musser manufacturing facility remained inLa Grange, Illinois, until 2013, and was then moved toElkhart, Indiana.[12]
Percussion instrument companies | |
|---|---|
| Drums | |
| Cymbals | |
| Sticks | |
| Hardware | |
| Electronic drums | |
| Other instruments | |
