Larry Dunn is a 7-time Grammy winning artist. He was the keyboardist/musical director of one of the most successful bands of all time, Earth, Wind & Fire (EWF). On November 17^th, 2019, the National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian honored EWF by putting the photograph of the nine original in their museum. I sat down with Larry Dunn at the Casio Booth at NAMM just after his incredible performance at Casio to a record crowd at NAMM, and we talked about this honor plus the new Casio signature keyboard that Larry Dunn endorses.

Sheryl Aronson: Larry, Casio just named one of their keyboards after you. How did that come to be?

Larry Dunn: It’s awesome. I’m verklempt. Casio decided to honor me for going into the Smithsonian (He holds up the honorary photo of Earth, Wind & Fire that went into the Smithsonian.) That’s me (he points to his picture). The really cute one.

Sheryl Aronson: Please talk about the photo of Earth, Wind & Fire going into the Smithsonian.

Larry Dunn: The photo was taken by photographer Bruce Talamon who has the biggest EWF collection. The photo went into the Smithsonian on November 17^th, 2019. It’s something to be proud of, and then EWF went to the Kennedy Center Honors on December 8^th, 2019. I didn’t go but they had my big head in the picture. All of this was a great honor.

Sheryl Aronson: Congratulations. So the new Casio … let’s talk about the product, and the one that is named after you.

Larry Dunn: It’s the Casio Privia PX5. The design on it (there are no words) is done by an artist named Andrew Drivinstein… it was the idea of Sherman Hill, who works with us. The design is that part of it looks like earth, part of it looks like wind and part of it looks like fire. We presented it today here at Casio, and Nichelle Francis of Angel Food Edibles made a cake that was a replica of the design. Bill Brown has spoken to the Casio people about the design, so it looks like we might have a go on it.

Sheryl Aronson: What are the features on the Casio?

Larry Dunn: The Casio PX5 actually came out about five years ago. It has 88 weighted keys and it only weighs 25 pounds. Mike Martin took my Fender Rhodes, which used to be Herbie’s (Herbie Hancock), and sampled it and put the sound on the PX5, and the sound from one of Herbie’s Rhodes is also on it. You can go on USB internet and download sounds from Casio’s site.

Sheryl Aronson: This new technology sounds great.

Larry Dunn: When I was 13 years old, I’m carrying a B3. It was very heavy. But I was lifting it and bringing it everywhere with me. Now they come out with something that’s only 25 pounds, and I have the muscle power to lift the B3, but the Casio is so light and easy to travel with. You can carry it like a guitar. It has a great keyboard.

Sheryl Aronson: You performed at Casio today to a very large crowd. We even had Ralph Johnson (EWF) and John Paris (drummer for EWF) in the crowd. Who played with you at this performance?

Larry Dunn: I had my beautiful wife Luisa there singing with Procton Bonell and Howard Johnson, Keith McKelley playing sax, Romi Gerosso on guitar, and Jon Barnes was on trumpet. The tracks were not sampled; they were real.

Sheryl Aronson: What do we have to look forward to as we move into Casio 2020?

Larry Dunn: The newest keyboard they released was the PX S3000. It’s very streamlined and weighted keys. I don’t think they released anything new this year. I tell everyone that this is not your father’s Casio. People think of little toys and watches. Casio told my wife that when a lot of musicians found out that I play Casio, they changed their mind about exploring the possibility of buying one, too. It’s been a great relationship between Casio and me.

Sheryl Aronson: What has it meant to you to be a musician all these years?

Larry Dunn: When I was growing up, I had no idea that there was compensation for doing music. I went on a talent show when I was eleven, and I was happy to stay up late, get my picture in the paper, make 12 dollars. I told myself this is what I’m going to do for the rest of my life. It’s really a blessing to be able to play music. I always tell people, do something you can put your heart into.

Sheryl Aronson: What you’re saying is that you have loved playing music all this time?

Larry Dunn: Yes, and there’s a lot more to do.