The Neil A. Kjos Music Company is an American music publisher based in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

. It has published a large number of books used to teach music, most notably the ''Standard of Excellence'' series of books and software.

History

The Neil A. Kjos Music Company was founded by its namesake in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

in 1936 as a one-room operation in space rented from the Lyons Band Instrument Company. By 1957, the company had outgrown the premises at Lyons and built a 20,000 square foot plant in

Park Ridge, Illinois Park Ridge is a city in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States, and a Chicago suburb. Per the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 39,656. It is located northwest of downtown Chicago. It is close to O' ...

. Neil A Kjos, Jr., soon began working for the company after receiving degrees from

St. Olaf College St. Olaf College is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. It was founded in 1874 by a group of Norwegian-American pastors and farmers led by Pastor Bernt Julius Muus. The college is named after the King and the Patron Saint Olaf ...

and

Teachers College, Columbia University Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...

, and serving in the 524th Air Force Band. During his studies, Neil Jr. met

Jane Smisor Bastien Jane Smisor Bastien (15 January 1936 – 27 March 2018) was an American author and educator, best known for publishing works on teaching piano methods and techniques. She published more than 500 books that were translated into sixteen languages. ...

, future author of the best-selling piano methods around the world. Neil Jr. acquired the title of president when his father retired in 1969. In 1973, Neil Jr. determined that the company should expand to a part of the country with a more reasonable climate. A location in San Diego, California, was selected for the construction of a new plant. After completion in 1975, the Neil A. Kjos Music Company operated from both San Diego and Park Ridge. In 1985, the Park Ridge location closed, and all operations were transferred to the newly expanded facility in San Diego. Neil Jr.’s two children, Mark and Tim, joined the company in the mid-1980s. Upon Neil Jr.’s retirement in 2000, Mark and Tim, with their business and music backgrounds, took over. Music publishing companies of the United States Companies based in San Diego Publishing companies established in 1936 1936 establishments in Illinois American companies established in 1936