Musical instrument them to make zithers. The Yakuts believe that making drums from trees struck by lightning gives them a special connection to nature. Musical instrument construction is a specialized trade that requires years of training, practice, and sometimes an apprenticeship. Most makers of musical instruments specialize in one genre of instruments; for example, a luthier makes only stringed instruments. Some make only one type of instrument such as a piano. Whatever the instrument constructed, the instrument maker must consider materials, construction technique, and decoration, creating a balanced instrument that is both functional and aesthetically pleasing. Some builders are focused on a
Gene Krupa witness, John Pateakos had been paid to testify falsely against Krupa. Pateakos returned to prove that he wasn't a minor, that he had dodged the draft, and that he had been instructed by federal agents to leave after the first conviction. He recanted his earlier testimony. In the early 1970s Krupa's house in Yonkers, New York, was damaged by fire. He continued to live in the parts of the house that were habitable. In 1973, Krupa died in Yonkers at the age 64 from heart failure, though he also had leukemia and emphysema. He was buried in Holy Cross Cemetery