Zen-On Music Co.

Zen-On Music Co.
The Zen-On Company was founded by Teiji Shimada in 1931 as a music publisher and in the early 1950's invested in a local guitar maker called Hayashi Gakki. I have seen 1954 given as a foundation date for Hayashi Gakki and I am not sure if Zen-On owned it or was just a shareholder?

I have read they took over the bankrupt Zeon Gakufu Syuttpansya in 1968, and they may also have merged with, or took over the acoustic Guitar maker C.F. Mountain (founded in 1948).

Zen-On Music Company are still in business today, mainly as a music publisher, but they do still sell some musical instruments

Zen-On produced instruments branded Beltone, (not the Perlberg & Halpin brand), Cortez, Custom, Emperador, Morales, Mountain, Pearl, Zen-On and Zenon This may not be all the brands they made, I haven't seen all of these names on Ukuleles and if it was OEM for someone else, they may not have been the only firm producing them?