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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW.
GENERAL SURVEY OF THE CHI-
CAGO TRADE.
CURSORY OBSERVATIONS IN FORT
WAYNE AND RICHMOND, IND.; CIN-
CINNATI, 0.; BALTIMORE. MD.;
AND PITTSBURGH AND
PHILADELPHIA, PA.
As a rapidly-increasing music trade centre, Chicago
is eminently worthy of her glorious commercial tradi-
tions. To her the vast populations of the great West
largely look for their supplies. Her army of dealers
grow in prosperity from year to year ; her manufac-
turers are constantly adding to their producing facil-
ities. The inventive genius of her piano and organ
makers, their energy, their grasp of the present situation
and their conception of its wondrous possibilities mark
them out as being in the van of their respective indus-
tries. During my brief sojourn in the Queen City of
the West I visited many of her principal music estab-
lishments, and in every cise noticed evidences of aug-
menting power and influence.
One of the most progressive firms is that of
NEWMAN BROTHERS,
the famous organ makers. At the time of my visit
they were contending with untoward circumstances,
their factory having been very seriously damaged by
fire, and the building of which it formed part having
been condemned by the city authorities. They have
now moved to perfectiy safe and far more commodious
premises at Wells and Pearson streets, on the North
side, and are proceeding, with their quiet, characteristic
" push," to fill orders with the utmost possible prompti-
tude. Ere long they will build a factory that will en-
able them to quadruple their present output. Avalanch-
es of orders pour in upon them from all parts of the
Union and from Europe. The success of all their new
styles, especially those fitted with their patent air-circu-
latirig reed cells, is unprecedented in their annals.
THE W. W. KIMBALL 00.
are environed by an atmosphere of prosperity. The
head of the house is in Europe, but his mind is perfectly
at ease in regard to business matters, for are not his
able lieutenants Conway and Cone on deck, directing
the goodly State street ship toward El Dorado?
The new Kimball piano is in high favor all over the
country. Thirty-five of these admirable instruments
emerge weekly from the factory, and still the dealers
cry for more. It is almost certain that this output will
be doubled within twelve months. As for the firm's
sales of Hallet & Davis and Emerson pianos and Kim-
ball organs, they are as grains of sand upon the sea
shore for multitude.
Speaking generally, the business of
THE STORY & CLARK ORGAN CO.
is healthy. Mr. E. H. Story is back from California.
He will remain permanently in Chicago, where he will
devote to the great interests of his house his well-known
sagacity and energy. No organ, probably, has a wider
or more favorable reputation than that manufactured by
the Story & Clark Organ Co. Their new and elegant
catalogue is fraught with information concerning their
world-famous wares. In the introductory remarks
reference is made to their twenty-three years of pros-
perous existence, the high standing and great practical
knowledge of the members of the firm, their enterprise
and success as improvers of the reed organ, both
musically and in the matter of case styles, and their un-
equaled location and facilities for the acquisition of lum-
ber, etc. That they have made the best of all their
advantages seems clear after a perusal of the illustra-
tions and detailed descriptions of their five and six-oc-
tave organs. The new «tyles include the *' Chippen-
dale," with symmetrical and plain case ; the simple,
yet graceful "Louis X I V ; " the " Moresque," with its
graceful carvings and turnings; the " Romanesque ;"
the imposing and artistic " Modern Ideal" (No. 2) ; the
attractive ''Mosaic," specially adapted for religious ed-
ifices ; the " Archadral," the " Mozart," and the " Mon-
arch ;" the two latter being of particularly noble struc-
ture and possessing tone qualities that render the office
of the critic superfluous. We have already called atten-
tion to the Story & Clark " Trunk " case, which may be
shipped as baggage, and is therefore especially conven-
ient for concert companies and travelers.
C..A. SMITH &IC0.,
the now eminent piano-makers, have doubled their fa-
cilities. Mr. Smith is endowed with qualities the exer-
cise of which is leading him to fame and fortune. The
merits of this firm's pianos are recognized far and wide.
Orders for them flock in unceasingly. No idle moment
ever occurs in the factory of C. A. Smith & Co. Near
by is the establishment of
W. H. BUSH & CO.,
makers of the Bush & Gerts piano. Here the beaming
features and genial manners of Mr. Bush, Sr., more than
recompense the visitor for calling. The array of pianos
in the warerooms is exceedingly pleasing. Like those
of C. A. Smith & Co., they are encased in French and
American walnut, maple, and the lighter woods. The
tone of the Bush & Gerts piano is round and rich, and
brings joy to many middle-class and working-men's
homes. What with the quality of their goods and the
good sense and amiability of their venders, the great
success of W. H. Bush & Co. is only what might reason-
ably be expected. By May 1st the output will be twice
as large as that of a year ago.
ESTEY & CAMP
continue to move their gigantic business steadily along.
Their stock of Estey and Decker Bros, pianos is, in the
matter of cases, beautifully varied. Of organs they have
an infinite variety, In regard to both species of goods
it must be acknowledged that for splendor of tone and
beauty of style they are rarely equaled, and still more
rarely, if ever, excelled.
JULIUS BAUER & CO.
are settled in their new quarters, where they continue
to illustrate, as of old, the wisdom of adherence to con-
servatively progressive principles. They have a full
line of pianos of their own make, in which are included
several new designs of great beauty. A distinguishing
mark of these instruments is their exquisitely sympa-
thetic quality of tone. The merits of the Julius Bauer
pianos are evidenced by the encomiums passed upon
them by artists and experts, and, better still, by an ever-
increasing volume of orders.
At the branch house of
that of the Shoninger organ. Many of this firm's pi-
anos are sold every week in Chicago itself. The wide-
awake citizens of that city seize them as soon as they
arrive, fearful lest their rural cousins should get more
than their fair share. I met, also, the firm's genial repres-
entative Broderick, whose success on the road from a
business point of view is only equalled by his general
social celebrity and popularity. Anguera was there too,
of course, with his merry orbs and impressive mous-
tache. Tony will be in the East in a week or two. Chi-
cago will be comparatively dull in his absence.
I had not the pleasure of finding at home either of the
reliable old Reeds, of
REED 4 SONS,
but I discovered that their operations in Knabe pianos
were as brisk as ever, a fine trade being also done by
them in James & Holstrom and Hallet & Cumston
goods. These Reeds are not of the kind to be shaken
by the East or any other wind.
Mr. Platt P. Gibbs. or
THE CHICAGO MUSIC CO ,
has not lost any of his old-time vim. There is no fall-
ing off in his sales of Stultz & Bauer pianos in fancy
woods, of which he has always on hand a selection that
for variety and beauty is not duplicated elsewhere in the
West. His show of Henry F. Miller & Sons' pianos is
likewise exceedingly attractive. Of violins and other
stringed instruments he has an enormous variety, while
his stock of music boxes, rams' horns, tambourines and
tin whistles excites universal wonder and astonishment.
FREEBORN G. SMITH'S
Western lieutenant, Mr. Hawxhurst, was traveling at the
time of my call at the Bradbury warerooms, but his
clerks informed me that the state of business was not
such as to induce a suicidal temperament. Whatever
may be the position of the " Bradbury " in Heaven—to
which region Dr. Talmage appears to consider it peculi-
arly appropriate —its reputation in this present evil life
is like that of Cesar's wife.
THE STERLING CO.,
of Derby, Conn., are still unable to supply Mr. Steger
with as many of their pianos as he would like to have
and could dispose of. There is no satisfying this Steger.
He seems to sell pianos by magic. With the goods of
SOHMER & CO.
he is equally successful. He is, in fact, an illustrious ex-
ample of the success of the bright, active dealer who
handles wares of stainless repute.
The interests of
KROEGER & SONS
in the West are well taken care of by Mr. R. H. Day,
who finds plenty of outlets for the Kroeger piano in
well-to-do-families.
THE WEBER PIANO,
as might be expected, maintains its splendid standing
in Chicago and throughout the West.
The best dealers
can always find room for it.
GEO. P. BENT & CO.
we are glad to be able to report favorably. In a quiet
way they have built up a fine trade in organs of their
own manufacture which have arrested the attention of
dealers and the public, notwithstanding the unusually
small number of drummers employed in pushing them
The recent improvements in the firm's organs have
placed them high in the ranks of organ-makers, and
impelled handsome and ever-increasing orders.
I was not able to see the senior member of
THE B. SHONINGER CO.
AUGUSTUS NEWELL & CO.,
I found Mr. Joseph Shoninger, whose brilliant business
abilities have resulted in a trade for the Shoninger piano
of which nobody dreamed at the time of that excellent
instrument's first appearance. The factory at New Hav-
en is constantly run at high pressure, and the fame of
the piano there produced is rapidly becoming equal to
makers of celluloid keys and ebonized sharps, he being
at the time of my visit at their Toronto factory. Where-
ever he may be, however, it goes without the saying
that good work, and hard work too, is being done by
Augustus, and the same observation applies to his
worthy partner Walter S. Wright. The sharps and keys