Fluent in three languages, a master in international business, a skilled engineer, and a violinist, this self-professed "resident of the world" has lived in more countries and held more jobs than he probably cares to remember. Manuel was born in Athens, Greece of Armenian heritage. His family would soon after move to Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he would spend his formative years and graduate from college with an Engineering degree. Fifteen years later, his family would emigrate to Windsor, Canada; various jobs would subsequently lead him to Toronto, Puerto Rico, and finally Miami.

Manuel's career in corporate America, of twenty-five plus years, specializing in international business, would end in 2002 with his acquisition of Allegro Music and the pursuit of his first love - music. Given his first violin at the age of 5 by another violinist, Manuel, from an early age, exhibited a natural aptitude for music. Even without parental support to learn a musical instrument, he persevered by whatever means necessary to further his own musical development. His arrival in Canada would prove to be a very active and diverse musical period in his life, from playing as a violinist with the semi-professional Windsor Symphony Orchestra, to performing as a singer/bass player in Latin and jazz clubs, across the river in Detroit. Even after joining the corporate world, Manuel continued playing the violin recreationally in a trio including piano and French horn, and currently plays in the local Alhambra Orchestra.

Manuel's love for music is rivaled only by his love for musical instruments. He has been a collector of fine violins well before he could have ever anticipated running a music store. For this reason, even with his mile-long list of responsibilities and day-to-day duties of overseeing a retail operation, this long-time violin aficionado and handyman, who holds a certificate in violin construction and restoration, can't help but undertake luthier related activities, personally caring for the repair, adjustment and restoration of fine string instruments that come through the store.

Manuel is tireless in his efforts to promote music education and its importance in the development of children. His commitment to this is made even more apparent by his actions. In an effort to give back to his local community, Manuel wants to provide people with opportunities that were not necessarily afforded to him in his youth. To that end, he offers free classes to underprivileged violinists who exhibit talent and dedication.

Anyone who knows Manuel, knows that he is the lifeblood of Allegro Music. It is rare for a customer to come into Allegro and NOT ask to see Manuel. Patience, empathy, passion and generosity are just a few of the many traits that have made him such a beloved figure among his family, friends and customers. Few would argue that it would be hard to imagine a local music community without Manuel being a vibrant part of it.

Marina hails from what, in 1991, was Soviet Armenia -- the year she came to the United States. She is an honors graduate with a Bachelor of Music degree from the Romanos Melikyan Music College in Yerevan, Armenia. An additional five years at the Yerevan State Conservatory would further bestow upon her a Master's degree in music pedagogy, solo performance, and chamber music accompaniment. Having come from the Soviet education system (one of the most rigorous in the world) she was well-equipped to tackle everything she has excelled in, since arriving to South Florida.

Over the last 15 years, she has become one of the most sought after piano teachers in Miami. Aside from raising three children and running her independent piano instruction studio, Marina has held various teaching posts as a music teacher in local public and private schools, and frequently receives calls to perform as an accompanist, in addition to performing at many special events.

Despite her already frenetic schedule, she surprisingly finds time to make a sizeable contribution to Allegro Music. Her extensive education and knowledge of classical music made her the obvious choice to oversee the extensive inventory of sheet music when she and Manuel originally bought the business. For this reason, she has become the resident expert on all sheet music related matters, with an intimate knowledge of our inventory that has become indispensable both to Allegro's employees as well as to our customers.

Manuel's eldest son, Phil, joined the team at Allegro at the beginning of 2007. His music experience started at the age of 6, when he first started taking piano instruction. During high school, formal classical training at Canada's prestigious Royal Conservatory of Music provided the foundation that would lead to his involvement in other musical pursuits, including the formation of a rock band, for which he played bass, and songwriting, for which he learned the guitar as an alternative to writing on piano alone. After graduating from the University of Toronto with a degree in International Relations, Phil decided to put aside his aspirations of ambassadorial grandeur to pursue his first passion - music. He enrolled in one of the premiere music business schools in North America, The Harris Institute for the Arts, with the hopes of a career that would combine his creative talents with his business acumen.

Soon after completing the one-year music business program, Phil was able to get his foot in the door working at the major record label, BMG Music. He held various positions during his tenure at BMG, while simultaneously managing a recording artist for whom he had negotiated a record deal with Universal Music. It only took a few years of working in the Canadian music industry for Phil to realize that any lucrative career in entertainment would require a move to one of the major music centers in the United States. Two months after 9/11, Phil made his move to New York City. Ultimately, the move was precipitated by Phil's association with heavyweight manager, Steve Kurtz - Christina Aguilera's former manager - whom Phil had befriended during his time at BMG (not coincidentally Aguilera's record label) and had discussed the prospects of a co-management relationship for a roster of new up-and-coming artists.

Phil's time in New York would be spent managing recording artists, songwriting and producing, as well as holding a position as Manager of Marketing & Promotion at ESPN/ABC Sports. A life-altering event would eventually be the cause of Phil's departure from the Big Apple in his desire to be closer to family, assist in growing the family business, and focus on the one aspect of the music business which truly provides him the most fulfillment. Songwriting.

Allegro Music considers itself fortunate to count a doctor among its staff. Perhaps not a medical doctor, but if you believe in the healing power of music, then Dr. Leo Walz's credentials are the next best thing to attending medical school. This Doctor of Musical Arts came to Allegro from the Miami-Dade public school system, where he had been a teacher of orchestra, chorus, piano, and guitar. After 16 years of full-time teaching responsibilities, at both the elementary/middle school and university/college levels, Leo decided it was time for a change.

Having been a customer of Allegro for years, when the opportunity arose to work alongside Manuel, it was a difficult proposition to turn down. What was particularly attractive, was that it would allow him the increased flexibility to be more involved in all his other musical endeavors, and still teach as well -- something that is important and comes naturally to him, which is why he teaches courses at Miami-Dade College in music theory and ear training, as well as music appreciation.

Leo has become an invaluable asset to Allegro Music since joining in 2005. Not only does he have extensive knowledge of every single product (from sheet music to accessories) and every single instrument in the store, but he can also play every instrument in the store. Although not necessarily a virtuoso on every single one, Leo's natural dexterity for music is obvious; not to mention his perfect pitch and ability to sight-read and transpose a piece on the spot. As far as being an instrumentalist, Leo specializes in piano and guitar performance, yet he plays viola in the Alhambra Orchestra -- Miami's community orchestra, for which Leo is the founder and Music Director Emeritus.

Another organization, which Leo has been integral in the development of, is the South Florida Youth Symphony. Leo has been the conductor for this orchestra, considered to be the finest orchestral ensemble in Miami-Dade County for high school aged students, for the last seven years. In addition to his local conducting responsibilities, he has traveled extensively as a guest conductor to countries such as Bulgaria, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, and Nicaragua, and has conducted works ranging from Handel's "Messiah" to Bizet's "Carmen".

Originally from Venezuela, of Italian descent, Marisella came to the United States in 1981. Fluent in English, Spanish and Italian, she fits right in at Allegro, with all the other polyglots in the store. She holds a Business degree from Venezuela and a Bachelor of Science in Systems Analysis from the University of Miami.

Marisella spent several years in the computer field as a programmer at Florida Power & Light in the Power Supply Control Center. In 1993, she decided to make a career change, moving on to a position as Executive Director of the Italy-America Chamber of Commerce, and then a year later she took the position of Executive Director at the U.S. Foreign Trade Institute, where she is still an active collaborator. New opportunities arose in 2002, to become a business consultant for different firms, allowing her to have more time to engage in her own entrepreneurial activities.

An accomplished xylophonist (at least on the toy xylophone in the store), it is not this musical skill that makes her indispensable at Allegro, but rather her adeptness at supervising the financial affairs of a store that is one of the key music outlets in the metro Miami area. Some of her most discernible and important contributions include keeping the business financially on course, developing and implementing organizational and procedural efficiencies, and providing input on advertising and marketing collateral.