Music Trade Review

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THE MUSICAL CRITIC AND TRADE REVIEW.
148
TIMELY TALKS ON TIMELY TOPICS
WILLIAM TONK,
of William Tonk & Bro., importers and dealers in
musical merchandise at No. 47 Maiden lane, con-
versed recently -with a reporter of THE MUSICAL
CKITIO AND TRADK REVIEW.
"Has business been very good since you opened
in Maiden lane ?" asked the reporter.
"Yes, indeed, we have been very successful—far
beyond our expectations. The holiday trade is
beginning to come in lively, and we have all we
want to do. In fact, we are already behind our
orders, and are working our men until ten and
half-past ten every night. We have the best facili-
ties for buying abroad, and we deal only with
manufacturers and give everything at first hand.
Our extended experience gives us a great advantage
in buying goods, and when you have a good article
it is not difficult to dispose of it at a reasonable
price."
Mr. Charles J. Tonk, a brother of Mr. William
Tonk, is associated with him in the importation
and sale of musical merchandise.
DRIVING A LIVELY TRADE
thing else, especially for people living in flats.
We are also selling in the organ line a very fine
instrument called the " Perfection." It is made
in Queen Anne style, of solid black walnut. It has
a device for closing the pedals to keep out dust
and mice."
"Why, do mice injure an organ?"
"Yes, indeed. Music hath charms, you know,
even for mice. I've no doubt they are fond of
organ music, for I have found them building nests
in the instrument. Besides their weakness for
music, they are also fond of the glue on the
bellows. We are selling a great many "Perfection"
organs."
CHICAGO TRADE.
UR music trade continues very active, and as
the holiday business is now at hand all our
O
merchants are both busy and very hopeful in re-
gard to the amounts of sales.
A PIANO'S REPUTATION.
The reputation of a pianoforte has a great deal
to do with the ease with which it sells. Many per-
sons will have .the so-called fashionable instrument
no matter what its cost.
I have noticed that fashion is very capricious in
its estimate of an instrument. At one point the
piano of one maker will be the leading fashionable
instrument, and at another, some different make
will have the supremacy.
It may be Stein way in one city, Chickering at
another, whilst Knabe will hold sway in a third.
In Chicago, however, each agent feels that his par-
ticular instrument is the one of all others. This is,
however, more business than fact.
But I was informed of the sale of a pianoforte
nearly twenty years of age, which had been re-
paired, and at the present time brought as much
as it did twenty years ago. This was surely on its
reputation rather than its merit.
S. T. Gordon & Sons, music publishers, at No.
13 East Fourteenth street, have issued a catalogue
of their publications, covering 204 pages and ad-
vertising 6,200 vocal and instrumental pieces of
music and 300 books. S. T. Gordon, jr., said the
other day that they were doing a heavy wholesale
business in handling musical publications of all
kinds.
The firm also do a lively business in renting and
selling pianos and organs. The trouble just now
is, not to get customers, but pianos to rent, as all
good instruments are snatched up as soon as
procured. The upright is especially growing in
PIANOFORTE ALLEGIANCE.
favor in this city, owing to the sliape of the rooms
in which many people live. Mr. Gordon said he I spoke in my last note of artist's testimonials
thought the firm rented more pianos than any other and their general worth to business. A slight
house in New York.
incident in regard to this came up this week. A
pianist, who had been a firm supporter of the
BUSINESS BOOMING.
Steinway piano, had an occasion to use the Chick-
J. Biddle, dealer in pianos and organs, at No. 7 ering in public. The following Tuesday a "local"
East Fourteenth street, reported that business is appeared in the papers, announcing that "the
booming.
artist's choice " was the Chickering, which graced
" Square pianos," he continued, "are going out the stage of the concert room when the gentleman
of the market at this time of the year, while the played. An "artist's choice" is, therefore, the
demand for uprights is greater now than at any latest commendation a pianoforte may receive.
time last season. Many customers tell me they
For my part, give me a good tuner's choice as
would buy a square piano, but they can't find being
the most reliable.
room for it in their houses. There is considerable
trouble, however, in getting uprights into the
THE KNABE PIANOS.
flats, because, as you know, they are considerably This instrument is being pushed into a more
wider when turned on end than squares. And general knowledge of the people by the energetic
then people don't want to pay for the additional
expense of hoisting the instruments up through house of H. Reed & Sons.
the windows. In one flat in Fifty-seventh street you
THE WEBER.
couldn't have got an upright up the stairs if you
This
house
has
determined to keep their ware-
had taken off the balustrade. One man wanted a
piano only four feet long. Of course, I couldn't rooms open during the evening to enable custom-
accommodate him. He had hired a flat for a ers to buy during the more quiet hours, after the
year and wanted a piano, but I had to send him heavy business of the day is over. It remains to
be seen if this example will be followed by other
away."
houses.
" Do you experience much annoyance from care-
THE STEINWAY.
less moving of jn'anos?"
" Carmen, as a rule, are careful; but they will Calling in to see Lyon & Healy yesterday, I
damage walls occasionally. The other day a car- found a goodly number of their fine instruments
man damaged a wall while moving a piano in a had been purchased for holiday gifts. Steiuway &
house and I had a bill of 820 to foot. Now that Sons owe a great deal to this firm for their zeal in
sort of thing don't pay, and besides we don't like introducing and keeping their piano at the head of
to have pianos injured. Some ladies think it is the market in this city.
about as easy to move a piano as to move an empty
THE HOUSE OF KJMBALL.
bureau, which you can hold over your head—with
some assistance. I defy you to do that with a
The gentleman who is the head of this establish-
piano, however; especially an upright on a narrow ment
is noted for his business sagacity, and when
staircase, where there is little room for the three we view
the great activity of his enterprise the
men who are essential to moving it properly."
truth of this statement is made plain. They have
agents and branches in nearly every important
UNABLE TO SUPPLY THE DEMAND.
place in the Northwest.
T. Leeds Waters, piano and organ dealer, at
s. BRAINARD'S SONS.
No. 14 East Fourteenth street, said recently to a
reporter of THE MUSICAL CRITIC AND TRADE RE-
There is no large publishing house in Chicago,
VIEW that he was overrun with orders, and that he although the leading firms of the East have branches
did not remember a time when business was as here. This house has been accomplishing a great
lively as it is this fall.
deal in regard to publishing in this city, and I
" This may be partially due to the holiday should not be surprised if the demands of their
trade," he continued, " but I am inclined to think business forced them to do their manufacturing in
it comes rather from the general prosperous this city, instead of Cleveland.
condition of the country. You see we have few
Whoever goes into the right kind of publishing
pianos displayed in the room. We have eighteen in this city will have the leading business of the
pianos sold which have yet to be delivered. Our Northwest.
factory in Connecticut is working right up to time
THE BAKER PIANO.
all tho while."
"What style of pianos is most popular among Mr. Baker is still here introducing his instru-
your customers ?"
ment. He assures me that he is quite successful.
"Well, we are selling more uprights than any-
C. H. BRITTAN.
December 20th, 1881.
BALTIMORE TRADE.
SANDERS & STAYMAN.
T7>NERGETIC and intelligent business manage-
A_J ment have characterized the transactions of
this popular firm of piano and organ dealers, who
now have an extensive trade centering at the office
and warerooms of the firm, No. 15 North Charles
street, Baltimore, Md. Messrs. Sanders & Stay-
man represent the Estey organ and control the fol-
lowing territory: The States of Maryland, West
Virginia and North Carolina, and the two lower
counties of the State of Delaware. They are
classed among the foremost agents of Estey & Co.
The pianos they handle are the " Weber," " Decker
Bros.," and " J. & C. Fischer," with all of which
they do a heavy business.
Every available foot of space on the lower floor
and the three floors above is covered with organs
and pianos, not only during the holiday season,
but throughout the year. Although the ware-
rooms are spacious, it is apparent that the firm
needs more room to attend effectively to the com-
fort of its patrons and to enable them to display
their instruments advantageously.
Messrs. Harry Sanders and J. A. Stayman are
gentlemen of musical culture, who understand the
taste of the community in which they have built
up their large business; and to this they add shrewd
business management and an urbane manner in
dealing with customers, which has made them gen-
eral favorites.
Mr. Sanders has lately recovered from a serious
illness, indirectly caused by a wound he received
during the " late unpleasantness." He is up and
at it again with his usual spirit and unceasing
activity, and undoubtedly the hope of the trade,
as of his friends, is, that he may not be troubled
with any more disorders of that nature.
JABBERING.
ERE is a conundrum from a recent issue of
H Does the not Art the Jabberer:
number and space devoted to ad-
vertisements in a "class journal" qualify the
degree in which it is regarded by the trade it
represents?
Answer—They undoubtedly "does."—[ED. MU-
SICAL CRITIC AND TRADE REVIEW.
KIND WORDS.
Notices of the MUSICAL CRITIC AND
TRADE REVIEW, taken from other
newspapers, are entirely unsolicited by
us. In spite of the editor's large news-
paper acquaintance, he has never asked
a line of encomium from any one.
The usual method ot obtaining large
numbers of putting notices for a critical
or art paper is to offer to send such pa-
per to country editors for a year free
"if they will kindly publish the enclosed
lines"—written in the office of the fiaper
to be puffed—and the value ot the critic-
al paper is just about equal to the value
of the puff in the obscure country sheet.
THE MUSICAL
CRITIC AND TRADE REVIEW of
November 5, 1881, is an excellent number. It
contains a portrait of Mrs, E. Aline Osgood, the
distinguished soprano, and a most interesting
table of contents. Musicians can scarcely keep
up with the times without a first-class musica]
journal.—Santa Barbara Daily Press.
REACHED ITS DESTINATION.
A letter was recently received at the New York
postoflice from a professor of music in Portugal,
who desired to subscribe to the leading musical
journal of America. It was addressed " To the
Most Recommendable Musical Newspaper in New
York."
The postoffice department immediately forward-
ed the letter to the office of THE MUSICAL CRITIC
AND TRADE REVIEW.
Wood Brothers, on State street, Cambridgeport,
Mass., about six weeks ago bought out Woodman
& Co., pianoforte action makers. A fire nearly
destroyed the building November 11, but they
immediately rebuilt the place and are now in work-
ing order. Ebony sharps are a specialty. They
are pushing and enterprising.
J. Burns Brown will sever his connection with
the Mechanical Orguinette Company on January
1. He promises to furnish the musical market
during the ensuing year with " a new departure
in mechanical musical instruments."