Music Trade Review

Issue: 1899 Vol. 28 N. 17

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
10
for $100,000 with the following officers:
Wiley B. Allen, president and treasurer;
Rudolph Wangman, vice-president; Geo.
Heidinger, secretary; J. E. Whitney, as-
sistant treasurer and Cecilie Marvin,
cashier.
Davenport & Treacy Compli-
mented.
Stamford, Conn., April 2 2d, 1899.
The Music Trade Review, New York.
Gentlemen:—The enclosed notice in the
local paper of this place is most certainly
an acknowledgment of the superior skill
of our piano plate moulders, over those
employed by our competitors, and while we
do not desire to part with any now in our
employ, we cannot consider it entirely an
empty honor to have the leading and most
distinguished piano manufacturers in the
world (Messrs. Stein way & Sons) offer in-
ducements for some of our plate moulders
to produce for them the high grade of work
for which they are distinguished through
a long connection with us.
Sincerely yours,
Davenport & Treacy Co.
John Davenport, pres.
The advertisement to which Messrs.
Davenport & Treacy refer appeared in the
Stamford Advocate, date of April 21st,
and is as follows:
,
WANTED.—First-class iron plate mould-
ders. Steady work. Experienced men
earn from $22 to $29 per week. Stein-
way & Son, Stein way, L. I.
flondschein Co.'s New Quarters.
The S. A. Mondschein company will,
beginning May 1, occupy the splendid,
large store in the Hathaway building at the
northeast corner of Mason street and
Broadway. The young firm has in the
short period of its existence achieved an
extraordinary business success, that has
grpwn to one of the largest in the city in
its special branch, that of the sale of
pianos. Not only has the excellent, careful
and farsighted business management of
Mr. S. A. Mondschein contributed to this
success, but especially so the popularity of
the instruments they have placed upon the
local market, namely, the famous Sohmer,
Steger and Singer pianos.
The firm will have one of the most at-
tractive salesrooms in its new quarters that
one could imagine. The entire lower floor
will be used for the display of the firen's
stock of grand and upright pianos, as the
company. does not sell any sheet music.
The basement will be set aside for use for
repair and polishing shop and packing room.
The second floor is later to be arranged for
concert and recital purposes. With this
removal the S. A. Mondschein company
will more than ever occupy the foreground
among piano stores.—Milwaukee, Wis.,
Sentinel.
The A. H: Stratton Music Co., Ltd., is
a recent corporation which have opened
up in New Orleans, with a capital of
$20,000. A. H. Stratton is president and
W. W. Pickens, secretary and treasurer.
The Madrigal Singers' Concert.
The third and closing concert by the Mad-
rigal Singers, under the directorship of
Frank Taft, at Chickering Hall, on Tues-
day last, was unquestionably the best of
the series and one of the most delightful
entertainments of the musical season.
The concert began with one of the most
familiar as it is one of the most delightful
of sixteenth century secular compositions,
Orlando di Lasso's " Matona, Lovely
Maiden," and ended with an exquisitely
melodious set of quartets by George
Henschel—settings of translated Russian
songs. The artistic culmination was reached
in the middle with three of Brahms' trios
for women's voices, with accompaniment
for harp and horns. Beautiful, indeed,
was this music, though not so easily com-
prehended as Drigert's "Oh, Earth, Thou
Art Wondrously Fair," when the combina-
tion of a solo soprano with a choir of men's
voices bewitched the hearers, though the
music partook largely of the commonplace.
Richard Hoffman was the piano soloist,
playing two of his own compositions and
three small Schubert opuses. He acquitted
himself with credit as usual playing in his
accustomed musicianly style.
The concert was enjoyed by an immense
audience that crowded the Hall to the
doors, several hundred people being com-
pelled to stand during the performance.
To Chickering & Sons, who have been
the patrons and enthusiastic supporters of
these concerts, a special word of praise and
thanks is due at their close. Through their
enterprise and generosity, the people of
this city have been afforded opportunities
of enjoying some rare musical treats in
forms hitherto little known in New York.
To the singers who have participated, to
Frank Taft, their conductor, and the gen-
eral staff at Chickering Hall, the large
measure of success achieved must be pleas-
ing. They all worked hard enough to
deserve it.
We sincerely trust that we have not heard
the last of the Madrigal Singers, and that
in the near future we may enjoy a repeti-
tion of the appetizing menu which they
have served up during the season now
closed.
Speaking of the concert of the Madrigal
Singers, the Tribune of Wednesday said:
The choir is admirable in constitution, the
program was varied, interesting and, in
part, uplifting, conductor and singers did
their work with complete devotion to a
lovely ideal, and the results were such as
to merit a generous distribution of con-
gratulations among the generous managers
of the affair, Chickering & Sons; Mr. Taft
and the performers, including Richard
Hoffman, who, as on the two previous
occasions, furnished the pianoforte music
with which the program was enlivened.
A few of those who attended the Madri-
gal concert were: Miss de Forest, Miss
Callender, Mrs. T. H. Tower, Mrs. Wm. P.
Brush, Mrs. A. MacDowell, Miss Mary
Carreno, Miss Marie Lehmann, Seignor
Juan Burtrange, Miss Virginia Porter,
Miss H. Harper, Mrs. Geo. C. Boldt, Mrs.
O. Wolfe, Mrs. J. H. Heath, Mrs. Theo.
Burgoyne, Mrs. C. A. Hamilton, Mr. H.
S. Parker, Mr. C. B. Patch, Mr. Gardiner
Weatherbee, Mrs. Jos. Alexander, Mrs. E.
C. Converse, Mrs. J. M. Lander, Mr. and
Mrs. Egerton.
fir. Clark Wise Returns.
After the stay of over a week in the city
Mr. Clark Wise, of Clark Wise & Co., San
Francisco, left on Tuesday morning for
home. Previous to his departure he made
a selection of instruments at the Weber
headquarters. In the course of a chat with
The Review he spoke very flatteringly of
the Weber pianos, for which he expects to
build up a fine trade on the Pacific slope.
" Business prospects out our way," said
Mr. Wise, " are now very favorable. A
short time ago the continued drought made
the people on the Coast feel glum, but
welcome rains came in time, so that the
crops are now safe and a large degree of
prosperity assured."
It was Mr. Wise's intention to call on
the Krell people of Cincinnati on his way
home, but he happened to meet Albert
Krell in New York on Saturday, and gave
him a large order for Krell pianos. He
also placed a number' of miscellaneous"
orders, for other wares all footing up quite
an important number.
Mr. Wise ia one of the wide-awake,
intelligent and aggressive music trade men
of the. Coast, wj^o is bound to make his
mark.
flcPhail Co.'s Great Record.
Business with the McPhail Piano Co.,
Boston, continue^ tQ be more than ordin-
arily active. Sin.ee the first of the year
their trade has shown a steady increase
over all previous records, and the prospects
now indicate an output of 2,000 instru-
ments for 1899. Xhe growing popularity
of the McPhail pianos occasions no surprise
to those who have given consideration to
the merits of these instruments, whether
as to tone, design, materials and methods
of manufacture. In a word, they afford
the best of satisfaction, as they always
have,' to dealers and purchasers alike.
That "the men behind the guns"—Geo. F.
Blake and Francis H. Owen—deserve the
success which is coming their way, will be
freely conceded. They are both enterpris-
ing, wide-awake men, who are building up
a fine business on commendable and win-
ning lines.
A "Busted" Trust.
The Music Publishers' Trust has col-
lapsed, says the Advertiser. Jt was dis-
covered, last week, that a New York de-
partment store was selling the. music of
one of the firms in the trust at to cents
per copy, which was 25 per cent, less than
the wholesale price agreed upon. The
publisher requested the other firms in the
trust to refuse to sell music to this particu-
lar department store. His proposition was
refused and, in consequence, a "cut price"
war is threatened.
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
HOW THIS WONDERFUL INVENTION HAS ADVANCED IN POPULARITY DURING THE
YEAR A PHENOMENAL MUSIC CUTTING MACHINE AN ELECTRICAL BANJO.
PAST
11
operation of musical instruments. That
he has succeeded is now beyond question.
His busy factory at 46-48 East Houston
street is a remarkable sight. All of the
machinery used therein is built from Mr.
Davis' own designing, and we may add
that the electric batteries used in the piano-
phone are all made there. They probably
will rank as the most perfect small motors
in the world.
Mr. Davis said recently: "Considerable
prejudice has been aroused against the use
of batteries to operate piano attachments
owing mainly to the failure of crude arid
primitive devices. I can prove that we
have overcome every objection, and my
battery is a success in every way. Every
one is manufactured here under my own
personal supervision, and in operating our
attachment but a small quantity of the
electrical energy created is necessary to
operate the piano. I can operate the entire
piano attachment with our small battery at
a trifling cost—less than three cents an
hour. With our attachment applied to any
piano one can play any piece of music de-
sired without having passed years to obtain
a musical education. Hence I claim that
the Pianophone is an educator. It does
not deface the piano and is in every respect
durable, The material throughout is metal,
and there is no liability to get out of repair,
and the sale of one means the sale of others
in the same locality. It will perform with
unexcelled technique and accuracy of tem-
po any musical composition ever written."
An advantage which will readily recom-
mend itself to dealers is that the piano-
phone can be placed in any instrument
without defacing the piano in the slightest,
and it is not necessary to have it shipped
to the factory, as it is only a morning's
work toadjust the entire attachment. Thus
Mr. Davis has opened with the pianophone,
an avenue to a tremendous business,
because, as far as piano attachments are
concerned, we have only reached the initial
stage in their sales.
It has been said that this is in truth the ly arranged music rooms in the two great
age of electricity, and during the past few stores.
years we have seen and heard much of
Leading hotels throughout the country
electrical appliances in every branch of have purchased pianophones for the enter-
manufacture. The music trade has had its tainment and instruction of their guests.
full quota, and one man who stands out We are enabled to present a photograph of
prominently as an inventor of electrical in- one recently taken in the Imperial in this
novations, as applied to mus'cal instruments city. We may add that this is one of three
is George Howlett Davis, whose research which have been placed in this famous hos-
in the field of electricity has elicited hearty telry.
applause from thousands who have been
Mr. Davis is an electrical wizard, and to
pass hours daily over the development and
perfection of some electrical appliance is
to him the delight of his life. He has now
perfected and has ready for the market, a
self-playing electrical banjo, destined to
become one of the most popular creations
of the day.
Another specialty which Mr. Davis has
is his music cutting plant, an illustration
of which appears herewith. This is an
electrical perforating machine which will
cut music at the rate of thirty feet per
minute. The cost of operating this ma-
chine is very slight, so that it can be
readily understood that the earning capa-
city of the electrical perforating machine
is very great. It is an interesting sight to
see this machine operating in such a man-
ner that it mathematically perforates the
prepared paper in such a way that there
can be no possible error in the reproduc-
tion of a composition.
Mr. Davis saw years ago the tremendous
field, then undeveloped in this trade, for
PIANQPHONE IN HOTEL IMPERIAL.
electrical inventions as applied to the
enabled to enjoy delightful home music
through his mediumship.
It was something over a year ago that in
commenting upon the success of the piano-
phone we mentioned the fact that Col.
John Jacob Astor had purchased one of
these marvelous inventions for use in his
New York palace. In the latter part of
last December he ordered another one for
his famous yacht the " Nourmahal."
When we consider that Mr. Astor has
been interested for a number of years in
piano attachments, it is indeed a high com-
pliment that he has again paid to the piano-
phone—an invention which is acquiring
wider reputation with the passing of days.
George Howlett Davis, the inventor, has
perfected his attachment so that to-day its
execution is something marvellous. He
has won the highest praise Irom dealers
and musical experts. A compliment paid
him recently was the selection of the piano-
phone by John Wanamaker to be used in
his Philadelphia and New York stores.
For the former city Mr. Wanamaker has
secured the exclusive sale, and it forms no
VIEW OF MUSIC ROLL FACTORY, 44-46 WEST HOUSTON STREET,
PERFORATING MACHINE.
small feature of attraction in the splendid-
N. Y., AND ELECTRIC

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