Andy Zildjian at the helm at Sabian

Sabian, leading cymbal manufacturer from Canada, announces that Andy Zildjian has taken over as president. Zildjian has worn nearly every hat at Sabian, from working in the factory to managing South American sales. Zildjian has been vice president of the company’s U.S. operations since 2001. “It’s an exciting time for me to be taking over during Sabian’s twenty-fifth anniversary,” said Zildjian. “There’s a solid foundation in place and I look forward to building upon the momentum that we have going for us. Being the leader in the cymbal industry is a position that we enjoy and I want Sabian to keep. That is in part demonstrated with the recent launch of the Legacy line and revolutionary Vault retail program. I’m not new to the business and I’ve been heavily involved since I was young, so I’m well versed in and comfortable with everything from the factory and production to sales and marketing. I look forward to starting this new era of Sabian.”

Andy Zildjian has been a part of Sabian since the beginning – the name Sabian is derived from the first two letters of his and his siblings’ names: Sally, Bill and Andy.  He has worked for the company since the mid-‘80s, when he started in the Canadian factory before heading south to Virginia, where he worked as a road rep. Andy Zildjian’s success in the field landed him the top spot at Sabian’s East Coast office, where he headed up artist relations as well as sales and sales support.  In 1996 he was appointed head of South American sales while maintaining his artist relations duties. Sabian also announced that John Teague and Jackie Houlden step into management roles, as director of operations and executive director, respectively. “Both John and Jackie bring extensive music industry knowledge and experience to our team,” said Andy Zildjian. “They are very strong individuals with an aggressive mind set, which will benefit us greatly as we launch new products and take Sabian to the next level. Most importantly, they believe in our goal of continuing to evolve and expand our ideas and techniques to meet the needs of today’s drummers and percussionists.” The remaining Sabian management team will consist of the following key players: Anne Porter, vice president of finance; James “Nort” Hargrove, vice president of manufacturing; Stacey Montgomery-Clark, director of marketing; Lane Davy, director of U.S. operations; and Peter Stairs, director of sales. Bill Zildjian will continue in his role as vice president of Percussion Ltd., Sabian’s financial holding company. “This is the most exciting time for Sabian since we began as a small shop 25 years ago”, he said.