Pedrini’s to play itself out

A family’s nearly 70-year legacy in Glendale and La Crescenta is coming to an end as Pedrini Music will be going out of business at the end of next month.

Founded by Bruno Pedrini after his return from serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, the storefront was originally located a few doors down from the Alex Theatre on Brand Boulevard.

Today, in between the rows of instructional music books and guitar straps hanging from the walls is an old photo album that sits on one of the display counters. On the first page is an application to the city of Glendale for a new sales-tax permit that dates back to Nov. 7. 1946.

Pedrini Music was on Brand for 50 years before moving to La Crescenta in 1997. It’s been at 3610 Foothill Blvd. for a little more than a year.

The original owner had seven children and two of them, Diane Mora and Noreen Cavato, took over the reins from their father.

After nearly seven decades in business, the sisters said they’re grateful to the loyal clientele that’s built up over the years, including music instructors who gave lessons at the store.

“A lot of them came to only us for their musical needs,” Cavato said. “They wouldn’t even go online. They’d rather support the small business and they come in telling us that.”

But business has slowed since the economic downturn and the decision was made to close up shop. Mora, and her husband, Manny Mora, who also works at the store, will be packing up and moving to La Quinta to enjoy retirement.

Manny Mora has worked at Pedrini’s since the early 1970s. He came in not knowing much about instruments, but picked up skills from the patriarch of the Pedrini family. Yet, he said, with a grin, he prefers to play the cash register.

He said giving up the business is going to be a big change for him and his wife.

“I don’t think it’s grasped her mind yet,” Manny Mora said. “We’re going to wake up and not have to go to the store and think something’s wrong.”

Diane Mora started working at Pedrini’s in her teens by doing tasks such as dusting off record players in listening booths.

She witnessed the evolution of music mediums from the demise of records to the short life span of the 8-track and the arrival of the first CDs. Her favorite era? The 1970s during the holiday season.

“It was fun. You didn’t mind working at Christmastime,” Diane Mora said. “We were working from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and it was very festive on Brand [Boulevard].”

One of her favorite memories was when her dad asked her to gift wrap a 100-inch-long console that combined a TV and a record player, an effort she jokingly said might have led to back problems.

She said long before the store focused exclusively on music, her father also repaired televisions.

Currently, everything that’s not already on sale is 30% off through the end of February, when Pedrini’s Music will go out of business. After that, Diane Mora said she’ll turn to eBay and sell what’s left of her inventory to other music stores.

Patriach Bruno Pedrini ran the store until about the early 1990s when he retired. He passed away last August at the age of 98.

After his death, Diane Mora said among the tributes that came in were letters from some her father’s earliest customers.

“We started getting cards from people saying, ‘He fixed my television,’” she said. “There’s people in their late 80s and 90s that still remember us.”