Paul Francis, a 30 year employee of Zildjian, takes us back to 1618 when Avedis I discovered the alloy that changed music for ever. We go on a deep dive into every detail of Zildjians amazing history, including the struggles with trademarks, jealous cousins trying to steal the formula, and all of the amazing innovations that have been made along the way. We learn the whole family timeline and the contributions each family member brought to the company, and even learn about one uncles assassination attempt on a Sultan! Paul Francis is the Director of Cymbal Innovations for Zildjian and has climbed the ranks from sweeping floors and hanging Christmas decorations to now developing and creating the cymbals that we all know and love . You can hear the passion in his voice every time he talks about Zildjian and is an absolute expert on the topic with many first hand experiences with the older generations of Zildjians. Find him on Instagram at @cymbalcraftsman Visit Zildjians website for all kinds of great information: www.zildjian.com Thanks for listening! - Follow Drum History on Facebook and Instagram for daily drumming videos! @drumhistory_podcast - Please give us a rating and a review if you like the show. I love getting feedback from everyone and hearing how you like the show, get in touch and let me know what you want to learn about next!