About Anixter Rice Music Service

Anixter Rice Music Service believes a player’s first impression of a score begins with the music on the stand. Compositions and orchestrations are taken more seriously at the hands of a professional copyist, transforming compositions and orchestrations into impeccable, playable scores, allowing musicians to engage with the music at its fullest potential.

Russ Anixter, Richard Rockage, and Danielle Gimbal lead Anixter Rice Music Service, offering premier music preparation services for theatrical productions, from Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals to regional and international shows. We have over fifty years of combined experience, having prepared music for hundreds of projects across TV, film, recording sessions, live concerts, and events. Delivering an impeccable product under tight deadlines, we strive to foster a collaborative, enjoyable working environment. Our work has reached musicians in venues large and small, across all corners of the globe.

Music copyists are the essential final link in the production chain, transforming composers’ ideas into scores that allow musicians to deliver their best performance. We understand and anticipate players’ musical and psychological needs, creating parts that are instantly readable, saving valuable rehearsal time. We honor the traditions of hand-copied music preparation while embracing new technology, fluent in Finale, Sibelius, and Dorico, and are skilled in translating from Digital Audio Workstations like Logic and ProTools.

As your editor, proofreader, and graphic designer, we ensure the music on the stand is accurate, easy to read, and beautiful.

Russ, Richard, and Danielle each bring unique experience—as arrangers, orchestrators, performers, and business professionals—to each project. Our musical expertise, project management skills, and good nature help us navigate challenges in even the most high-pressure environments, working seamlessly with music departments to deliver the best possible product.

We look forward to working on your team.

Meet Our Team

Russ Anixter and the Anixter Rice team are the gold standard in music preparation, full stop. For decades, as a guitarist, their charts have been a cornerstone in the NY music scene; their perfect charts on my music stands from Broadway pits to record dates. Russ's professionalism, precision, and seamless handling of even last-minute changes create a stress-free, supportive environment for creative teams and musicians to focus entirely on the music. As a music coordinator, I’ve relied on his meticulous attention to detail and unmatched expertise in union rules for music prep. As a proud member of Russ’ Hippie Big Band, I’ve had the privilege of playing his incredible arrangements. His talent as a copyist, orchestrator/arranger, and band leader shines in his charts, and he brings such joy to the entire band on every rehearsal or gig. Russ’s passion for music and his dedication to excellence elevate every situation. His entire team operates with this same level of professionalism and love of craft as copyists on other projects for clients. With Danielle Gimbal and Richard Rockage, Anixter Rice continues to set the bar. Whether I am on stage or behind the scenes, it’s always an honor to collaborate with the best in the business.

Michael Aarons, Music coordinator, contractor and guitarist
Russ Anixter has been my personal first call copyist since 1996. He brings an enormous range of skills to the job – music theory, great ears, a great work ethic. So often I am asked to achieve the impossible - with no understanding from my employers that that is what they are asking. Russ always helps me get there. He has an innate gift for “the deadline.” It’s like perfect pitch, only better. Richard and Danielle are great copyists and proofreaders. As a group they will help any orchestrator achieve great results. If a note seems questionable, they will ask for clarification. If the ordering of the musical numbers in a show is changing at dizzying speed, they refuse to get dizzy. They stay on top of it. Who among us hasn’t found out that #27is now# 26A-but no one told us? Russ and his team will tell us- when nobody else even realizes we’re not in the loop. Do yourself a favor and hire Anixter Rice Music Service for your next project. You’ll be glad you did.

Danny Troob - Orchestrator extraordinaire!
Danielle Gimbal has been a cherished collaborator of mine for over ten years. She is, hands down, the best music copyist I’ve ever encountered. She’s the best not only because her copy work is impeccable (which it is), but because she truly understands the complicated and often overwhelming process of creating a new musical. As a writer who often finds himself wearing many hats, Danielle's personal and intuitive approach to music copying makes me feel supported and inspired in times when I need it the most! She’s able to place her work in the context of the larger goals of a show and operates with the show’s best interest in mind, not just the score’s. Her sensibility, work ethic, and speed are unmatched. Gimbal has become a trusted partner of mine and I cannot imagine creating a new work without her.

Joe Iconis, Composer
Danielle Gimbal and the whole team at Anixter Rice Music continue to impress on every project they are hired for. They have a complete and innate grasp on what it means to have well prepared sheet music for any and all musical situations they are asked to collaborate on, whether it be Broadway stage productions, TV, film scores, or live concerts. Their thorough work, collaborative energy, and sharp attention to detail means that anything having to do with prepared sheet music for a project will be well organized, up to date, easy to read, and thoroughly checked for anything that could potentially slow down a rehearsal or recording process. This is worth its weight in gold, but more literally dollars, as every minute in these situations can save money, time, and save mental energy in the form of foreseeing any bumps in the road before they may happen. As an orchestrator and composer who has thrown a wide variety of musical ensemble sizes and file types at this team, I have never known them to not help me to fully realize my musical vision in the most holistic way possible. Using Danielle and Anixter Rice music has increased the output, speed, and quality of my work in an unquantifiable way.

Charlie Rosen, two-time Grammy and two-time Tony Award Winning Composer and Orchestrator
As music supervisor of nearly every show Alan Menken has written since I began working with him 30+ years ago, I have chosen to have each and every show copied by Anixter Rice Music Service since their formation in 2004. Why? There’s simply no one better. They’re fast, accurate, and intuitive… really understanding the creative process and how best to serve it. When we’re out of town and have insane rewrite deadlines to meet, they meet them with grace and aplomb, never complaining or trying to explain why it’s not possible…. they’ve made the impossible possible time after time. I’ve happily used them for 20 years, and intend to do so for the next 20.

Michael Kosarin, Music Supervisor and conductor
Russ and his team [Anixter Rice Music Service] always go above and beyond for the Radio City Christmas Show: from anticipating our needs before the season gets started, to delivering and customizing the scores and 72 instrumental parts, everything gets done right, and done with a dollop of joyous tidings to boot. We're grateful and fortunate to have them on our side.

Fred Lassen - Music Director and Conductor, Radio City Christmas Spectacular!
For decades now, I’ve asked for Russ and his partners on every project I have which requires music preparation services. They are intuitive, thorough, consummate musicians -- stunningly fast, accurate to perfection, and a joy to work with every single time. I heartily recommend Anixter Rice Music Service with my utmost respect — consider this a rating of nineteen stars on a ten-point scale.

Ron Melrose, Broadway music supervisor and arranger
I first worked with Anixter Rice Music Service on Frozen in 2018. The experience and work were seamless and enjoyable, and they easily handled a large orchestra. Since the pandemic, I've gotten to know Russ more and worked with him and Richard on more projects. I fully appreciate the calm and confident way they run their business, and as both an Orchestrator and Music Supervisor, those are the kind of people I want on my team. The combination of flawless work and decades of experience makes for band rehearsals that can be about the music. I always look forward to the process with them and will be working with them for a long time to come.

Brian Usifer, Music Supervisor, Arranger, Orchestrator
I first met Russ Anixter and Don Rice back in 2003 while I was assisting Bill Brohn on Wicked. At that time, they were in the process of “inheriting the shop” from their mentor, Peter Miller, who was about to retire. Brohn had always spoken very highly of Peter, and in turn, Russ and Don. It was very clear to me that they had perfected their craft from that same tradition of countless years of on the job training (beginning in the days of “hand copying”) working alongside a mentor. Knowledge like that is priceless - furthermore, they were also taking that experience and adapting it to the somewhat new process of computer notation at the turn of the century. Now 20+ years later, I feel the same exact way I felt when I first met them: Always calm, cool, and collected - not to mention, spot on accurate in their work - I know that having Anixter Rice Music Service down in the trenches of a project with me will provide a much appreciated confidence that everything will always go smoothly.

Christopher Jahnke, Orchestrator and music supervisor