For Immediate Release

Rebecca Eaddy
Marketing Communications Manager
Roland Corporation U.S.
(323) 890-3718
Rebecca.Eaddy@RolandUS.com

Roland Rolls Out American Atelier Line

Los Angeles, CA, October 4, 2005—Roland Contemporary Keyboards is proud to announce the rollout of the Atelier Series—American Classic Edition at a gala event in Las Vegas, Nevada earlier this month. The aggressive sales meeting marked the beginning of a new era for the Roland Atelier, and a reenergized push in the American organ market.

The Message
The message for the weekend was a clear and irrefutable one: Roland is committed to the Atelier organ business and is dedicated to its expansion.

Roland President and CEO Dennis Houlihan related, “You asked. We listened and, most importantly, we responded with exactly what you wanted!”

Change and focus were the buzzwords for the weekend and Roland Contemporary Keyboard General Manager Lynda Smith reiterated the central theme as she kicked the event off Wednesday morning, “You have my personal promise of focus, as well as Roland's commitment to Atelier today and into the future. Imagine the possibilities.”

The Products
To that end the company rolled out a brand-new American Classic Atelier lineup including the new AT-90SL, AT-80SL, AT-60SL and the affordable AT-45. Internationally renowned performers including Roland National Product and Marketing Manager, Chris Halon, Rosemary Bailey, Chuck Wright and Seth Rye helped the company unveil the dynamic, new product line to nearly 60 organ retailers, representing stores nationwide.

“These are our most American-friendly organs that we’ve ever produced,” said Roland Contemporary Keyboard General Manager, Lynda Smith. “We asked our retailers what they needed to expand their business, we listened to what they had to say, and we then implemented the changes to our products and our sales paradigm. They now hold the most effective sales tools and technology in the industry.”

Roland held to it’s promise by including customized musical content for the American senior market, expanded and accessible easy play styles, and simplified access to Roland’s superior sounds and cutting-edge technology.

“We removed the styles that didn't make any sense in our market and replaced them with customized musical content for the American Senior Market. Additionally we removed all non-senior songs and replaced them with some of the most recognizable and well-loved popular American songs from the American repertoire. The result is a lineup or organs that includes the most user-friendly technology and accessible organ sounds of any organ line in the industry.”

The Program
Not satisfied with the rollout of 4 new organs, the company then revealed a new three-tier sales program to facilitate and expand Roland Atelier expansion efforts. The top tier is now comprised of a new ‘Atelier Only’: Sales Team including sales professionals Rick Morales and Ellen Gonzalez. The second level includes Atelier Merchandising Specialists Chuck Wright and Seth Rye. The third and final tier is now comprised of eight Performance Team Members including Chris Halon, Rosemary Bailey, Chuck Wright, Ric Iannone, Rick DePiro, Hector Olivera, Seth Rye and Choy Lozada.

Roland Contemporary Keyboard General Manager relates, “Our relationship with our dealers is critical to the success of Roland Contemporary Keyboards. We invited them to Vegas not only to demonstrate our commitment to the existing organ business, but to arm them with the necessary tools to help them grow that business in the months to come. We have given them everything they need to be successful.”

The Future
Roland President and CEO Dennis Houlihan took to the stage and challenged the dealers to embrace the importance of Recreational Music Making in their growing business.

Houlihan said, “The timing of the introduction of our new series, the Atelier “American Classic,” couldn’t be better. There is a growing “wave” of interest throughout the country in Recreational Music Making. Getting senior citizens actively involved in organ lessons is a perfect application of Recreational Music Making. This is music-making for the sheer pleasure of it — not for performance. And, there is growing, undeniable evidence from the scientific and medical communities, that making music is good for us as human beings! This is a very good thing.”

New Tools for A New Beginning
In addition to the four new Atelier organs the company also unveiled a host of new marketing tools for the Atelier Sales force including in-store promotional pieces, a new www.RolandAtelier.com website and user-friendly marketing CDs.

The new Roland Atelier Fun Box promotional tool will include all of the necessary devices to help Atelier retailers maximize their business including Roland Stereo Headphones, 1-Performance Disk, 2-Style Disks, Hal Leonard’s “The Best Songs Ever” EZ Play Today Book as well as Hal Leonard’s “More of the Best Songs Ever” EZ Play Today Book.

The newly created www.RolandAtelier.com website will be available later this month and will include product information, advice and communication to customers and retailers nationwide.

Marketing CDs complete with Artist biographies/photos, event outlines, templates for invitations and posters, product images, bullet cards, price-tag templates and even a sample video of the popular Organ Power concert held annually at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Long Beach California.

The company went one step further and released Club Roland PowerPoint presentations to the dealers to help facilitate the popular in-store teach-to-sell Club Roland course.

“These new PowerPoint presentations make the Club Roland course instantly accessible to anyone wanting to implement this program in a store,” said Smith as she navigated through the new slides.

The company stepped outside the box and invited motivational speaker, Rob Dahlke, President/Senior Consultant for Rite Solutions to the podium. Dahlke has contributed to the success of many well-run organizations including Steelcase, CBS/Viacom and Trainingscape. His contagious energy and passion for sales lifted the Atelier retailers to a higher level as he challenged them to think beyond the traditional sales landscape. His dynamic enthusiasm generated a discussion about ways to overcome recruitment challenges and potential stagnation in the marketplace.

Roland is a world leader in the design, manufacture, and distribution of electronic musical instruments, professional audio equipment, multimedia products, and music accessories. For more information, contact 323-890-3718.

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