What is SHREDHED?

John Keefe: SHREDHED is an innovative new format for sheet music, which allows guitar students to learn to play a song from start to finish without ever having to take their hands off their instruments to flip the pages of their songbooks. It allows for students to learn together without having to huddle over just one music stand, and ultimately is 3 products in 1: a three-pocket folder, a giant dry-erase TAB poster, and a self supporting music stand.

Where can one buy a SHREDHED for a holiday gift?

John: SHREDHED is available at most “mom n’ pop” and “big-box” instrument retailers around country. However, for the easiest way to buy, feel free to purchase from the online retailer of your choice on our website: www.shredhed.com. They’re great stocking stuffers for anyone who plays (or would like to play) guitar!

How did the concept of SHREDHED come about?

John: Years ago my brother Peter and I lived in different parts of the country (me in Austin and he in Charlottesville). When we’d find time to get together, we’d often pick up our guitars and try to learn the same song for fun. However, we were often frustrated by songbooks, as we would always have to stand right next to one another to view the music on the same stand and at least one of us would have to continuously take their hands off their instrument to flip the pages back and forth in the songbook. It didn’t take long for us to realize there was a better way for us to learn together.

After we both decided on a band we both liked (The Black Crowes), we went out in search of the largest piece of paper we could find and transcribed “She Talks to Angels” on one giant piece of paper and then hung it on the wall. Immediately we were able to stand on opposite sides of the family room and were able to play the song from start to finish without having to stand on top of each other or take our hands off our instruments to flip pages. Instead, we could play the tune from start to finish and could spend more time adding our own personal touches to the song and pretending that we were the Robinson brothers. From there we decided it would be nice to be able to write directly on the product so we could section out the song by parts, so we laminated it to make it dry-erase. Finally, we wanted to be able to make it both functional and portable, so we figured a way that it could reconfigure into a triangular table tent (which eliminated the need for a cumbersome music stand) and also a way for it to fold-up flat to the size of any typical songbook (so we could pack it up and take it with us wherever we wanted to go). It was a great idea and one that we had planned to get out of our family room and onto the shelves of the big-box instrument retailers.

Years later I relocated to Charlottesville for graduate school and soon after completion shared the concept with my childhood friend Eric Braun, who was on the West Coast working in enterprise sales for PayPal. Eric had experience in launching start-ups, had a stong understanding of how to correctly structure a business, and most importantly was a good friend. After a few visits to Charlottesville, we decided in early 2006 to form InkTree, Inc. (named after tattoos we got together years back in San Francisco – mine a bad one…that now I can never get rid of).

Soon after we formed our partnership, Eric and I executed a licensing and distribution deal for SHREDHED with Alfred Publishing, the global leader in educational print music. SHREDHED launched this past summer in Nashville and is the recipient of the coveted “Best in Show” Award from NAMM, the most prestigious organization of retailers and manufacturers in the music industry.

What are some of the artists with music on SHREDHED display?

John: Artists include The Black Crowes, Grateful Dead, Eric Clapton, R.E.M., Radiohead, Green Day, The Eagles, Pantera, The Ramones, and more. We also have purely educational titles called THE CHORD BOARD and SCALES AND MODES.

On a personal note, when will a Cleveland pro sports franchise ever win a championship again?

John: Just like SHREDHED, it all comes down to timing, patience and the right people on team. With that being said the Cavs will go all the way this season, The Tribe next year, and The Browns will be in the Super Bowl in 2010. Gotta dream, right?