Classic Mode

Music Trade Review

Issue: 1901 Vol. 32 N. 8

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
If the conditions of to-day prevailed in
the formative stage of this industry, the
developments credited to Chickering,
Steinway, and a host of other creators
would not have been possible.
The scale draughtsman (not the copyist)
of our day may be a specialist, but we have
not yet met one who has not a most thor-
cugh and radical knowledge of every
branch concerned in the process of piano
making. And, moreover, such a man is
not to be found among the younger school,
because the mechanic learning his "trade"
finds it easier, as Mr. Mehlin well says, "to
master some special but narrow field," than
to summon energy enough to master all
branches.
All men who aspire to be superintend-
ents of factories where originality and ex-
cellence are sought after should have a
knowledge, not of the superficialties, but
of the very soul of the piano; hence should
be a master of the important art of scale
drawing—the developments of which effect
the present and future status of the in-
strument so vitally. To those who do not
consider the piano an art creation these
words do not apply. From a purely com-
mercial viewpoint it is handy and econom-
ical to go to a foundry and buy or "rent" a
" scale "—in .other words, a piano plate—
and discourse on its "musical merits "; but
to be able to originate, to improve, is an-
other thing altogether. One is commerce,
the other, art. Each has its usefulness
and fills respective demands and needs.
The conditions existing among mechan-
ics and referred to by Mr. Mehlin, do not
hold out any great measure of hope that
the present and coming generations will
bring forth any great minds whose per-
ceptions, materialized into practical re-
sults, will effect the improvement of the
piano along the lines of acoustics. While
many can copy scales and the other feat-
ures which follow, only a few are to-day
occupying a place of any prominence as
originators of new and novel progressions
in this field, because the laws upon which
the art of scaling are based are scientific
and known only to a limited number of
men. And it is to these men, who are in-
dividually little known in that connection,
outside of the house or piano they are
identified with, is due so much that is in-
calculable in its effects in the art sphere of
the instrument.
BARGAIN MAD.
of the disagreeable features of
modern business, which may be
credited to the incursion of the depart-
ment store, is that of bargains. People
nowadays seem to be bargain mad. The
trouble is no longer confined to the stores
where knick-knacks are sold, but even in the
piano business everybody wants a bargain
—the wholesale buyer, the retail buyer,
the consumer.
And the "cheap" piano man is cheap-
ening all the time, forgetting that at the
same time he is cheapening his reputation
and his position in the industry.
The "bargain" idea in the piano busi-
ness is a veritable curse. It is not only
demoralizing to the retailer, who thinks it
his duty to cater to the demand, but he in
turn affects the manufacturer and so it
reaches the supply man.
This cheapening process is bound to end
in disaster and can be avoided only by a
determination on the part of manufacturer
and dealer alike to maintain a standard
price and to adhere to it.
W. J. Keeley Returns.
William J. Keeley, of Wilcox & White,
returned to town on Tuesday. Sneaking
to The Review on Thursday concerning his
trip, he said: "I found the Wilcox &
White agents enthusiastic in their work,
and learned from them that our products
are steadily growing in favor. There are
more sales, more inquiries, more indica-
tions of active interest shown all along the
line."
Referring to trade conditions as shown
in actual work at the factory. Mr. Keeley
said: "We have decided to build a large
addition to our Meriden factories. The
contract has been given out for a new
brick building with 250 feet frontage and
a depth of 40 feet. It will be 4 stories
high and is to be constructed as rapidly as
is consistent with good work."
This will make a total frontage of 650
feet for the Wilcox & White factories, ex-
PERSONALITY~A FACTOR.
clusive of the annex. Two stories of the
/^"\NE fact stands out clearly when re- new building will be devoted almost ex-
viewing the evolution of business clusively to the storage of music for the
to-day and that is: the increasing value of Wilcox & White products.
personality. It is just as great a factor in
Death of Ethelbert Nevin.
success in this era of gigantic combination
Ethelbert Nevin — he who might have
as it was fifty years ago. The location, been the Mascagni of America—is dead.
discipline and organization of even the Thirty-nine years ago he was born at Edge-
great trusts would count for little were they worth, Pa. Although musically inclined
not backed up by brains and judgment at from his youth, it was not until 1884, shortly
the helm. What is most needed, as ever after he published the "Serenade "and " A
Sketch Book,," that he began to take music
in the past, is a dominant personality im- seriously. It was then that he commenced
pressing his own individuality upon all his studies with Klindworth in Berlin, re-
connected with him, and supplying that maining there three years. Mr. Nevin was
cohesion and enforcing that harmony with- an excellent pianist, excelling in interpreta-
tion rather than bravura, having had, in the
out which success is impossible.
language of his eminent teacher, "a touch
"One man power" is as vital as ever to
that brings tears." His music has won
success, especially if the "one man" in world popularity—his "Narcissus" and "My
"power" has the faculty of selecting cap- Rosary" being best known. His latest works
able lieutenants. Already the growth and were published by the John Church Co. un-
further expansion of these aggegations der the general title of "Songs From Vine-
of capital are "up against" the problem as acre" gracefully christened by Mr. Nevin
after the home of his childhood. The indi-
to what extent and how far the human
vidual titles of these songs are "A Neck-
brain can grasp and solve the constantly lace Of Love," "Sleeping and Dream-
increasing difficulties which beset the path ing," "My Desire," "The Nightingale's
of all growth. The strain and responsibility Song," ' 'Ein Liedchen," ' 'La Lune Blanche"
seem to be too much for this one man to and "Ein Heldenlied." Mr. Nevin's song
bear and the constant cry is for men of cycle, "Captive Memories," has much of
that illusive grace which characterized his
ability and experience to share the load of
earlier work; it possessed much of the
those in authority.
ever present sentiment, which the nobility
of his style alone saved from becoming
Gift for the German Emperor. musically maudlin. The majority of his
After the Saengerfest held in Brooklyn compositions have been published by the
last fall, President Saenger and Otto John Church Co., the Oliver Ditson Co.,
Wissner visited Berlin to express the thanks and the Boston Music Co.
of the Saengerbund to the Emperor for
the magnificent prize which he donated. The Queen Can Do Some Wrong.
After the return of these gentlemen, the
"Queen" Lavinia Dempsey, of the Hol-
Board of Directors decided to present the
Emperor with a souvenir of the festival in land Dames, who, like old-world royalty,
the shape of an album, costing one thou- takes special pleasure in being in debt, is
sand dollars, containing the program, the now being sought for by Hamilton S. Gor-
prize song, the list of the leading societies, don, who desires to recover a piano be-
the autographs of the officers and photo-
graphs of the hall and the various prizes, longing to him which she has in her
which included several handsome Wissner possession.
pianos, donated by Otto Wissner. On
O. R. Parkhurst has been appointed
Monday the gift was presented to the Ger-
man Ambassador at Washington for trans- manager of the business of the W. J.
Lasher Co., of Rome, N. V,
mission to the Kaiser Wilhelm.
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
A Letter From Mr. Whitney.
Norwalk, O., Feb. 20, 1901.
Editor Music Trade Review:—
We enclose clipping from late advertise-
ment of Gimbel Bros.,of Philadelphia. For
a house of any character, or decency, to
put out such a misleading" advertisement,
is contemptible. Please notice the slick,
insinuating way in which they convey to
the public the impression that the A. B.
Chase piano is an off-shoot of the Chase
Piano Co., of Richmond, Ind. We quote
three or four paragraphs in their advertise-
ment which show on their face the con-
temptible meanness of the thing. They
say:—
"The Chase is made by a company char-
tered by the State of Indiana in 1879. The
founding company split, and as an off-
shoot there came the very excellent piano
of a similar name. These are not A. B.
Chase pianos. We have chosen the instru-
ments made in the original way by the
original company."
The writer of the advertisement well
knew that there was not a word of truth in
the insinuations contained in the second
and third sentences of this quotation.
It
is well known to the trade everywhere that
we are not an off-shoot of the Chase Piano
Co., of Richmond, or any other Chase
Piano Co. There is only one original A.
B. Chase Company, and it was chartered
in 1875, at Norwalk, Ohio, and we never
did business at any other place, or in con-
nection with any other Chase Company.
Again, referring to the last paragraph
quoted, it is well known that the Chase Piano
Co., of Richmond, Ind., failed, and was
closed out by James M. Starr, and that the
Chase Brothers went to Grand Rapids and
associated capital with them and continued
business, afterwards moving to Muskegon,
where they are now doing business in an
honorable way under their own name, so
that the statement Gimbel Brothers make
that "they have chosen instruments made
in the original way by the original com-
pany" is not true.
We were a good deal surprised that the
men whom we, and the trade generally,
have regarded as honorable men, and men
of character, that make up the Starr Piano
Co., should get the consent of their minds
to make a piano under this name. It
seems to us that they must have known
that a piano made under this name would
create confusion, and give an opportunity
for dealers all over the country to misrep-
resent it.
We see by the trade journals that the
charter of this company was only revived
week before last.
They seem to have
turned out pianos very rapidly, getting a
shipment of them to Philadelphia last
week. We suggest that the lumber that
went into these pianos could not have been
kiln-dried more than twenty-four hours, that
the varnish work must have been done by
something that would double discount Vic-
tor Victorson's process. Instead of putting
it into a bake oven at 120 degrees, they
must have put it up to 220 degrees. And
then, the bellying, and action finishing, fly
finishing, action regulating and tone regu-
ating all must have been done at lightning
speed. Then think of the transportation.
It must be somewhere near the end of the
Twentieth Century when freight time from
Richmond to Philadelphia is cut down to
about one hour and forty-five minutes. It
is more likely, however, that they were at-
tached to a flying-machine, and made the
journey through the air, seasoning the lum-
ber as they went.
But, to be serious about the matter, it is
a disreputable piece of business from be-
ginning to end for both the manufacturers
and the dealers that handle them. Is it
done for the purpose of deceiving the dear
people, hoping to again prove P. T. Bar-
num's assertion that the American people
are never satisfied unless they are being
humbugged?
Yours for honesty in the piano business.
The A. B. Chase Co.
Calvin Whitney, Pres.
The following is an excerpt from the ad.
to which Mr. Whitney refers. It appears
under the caption "Gimbel Piano Club: "
But as every one does not care for a race-horse, so the aver-
age musician—the great majority ot people who sing and play
—need not despair or worry, of their choice of piano is to be
from any one of a dozen good makes. The piano chosen for
The Qlmbel Club is the Chase—or, as we might put it, the orig-
inal Chase piano. It is a n made
by a company chartered by the
State of Indiana in 1879; c ' ' s made in the factory at Kichmond,
Indiana, that stands on the foundations of the original building
(which was burned). The founding company split and as an off-
shoot there came the very excellent piano of a similar name.
These are not the A. B. Chase pianos. We have chosen the in-
itruments made in the original way by the original company.
The Chase Pianos are splendid full-size 7 1-3 ociave Upright
Pianos, cased in mahogany, burl walnut or English oak, as you
prefer. Length, 5 ft. 3 in.; height, 4 ft. 8 in. The makers em-
ploy the highest order of mechanical skill. The sounding'
boards, the cases and even to the forming of the ivory keys, the
work is done in this one great factory. There is an average
stock of two miUion feet of selected lumber always seasoning in
the company's yards, and every assurance is yours that not only
are the pianos elegant in tone and looks now, but they are built
for great endurance and long life.
An Artistic Production.
A really artistic production is the new
catalogue issued by the American Piano
Mfg. Co., devoted to illustrations and de-
scriptions of the latest styles of Boothe
Bros, pianos. It is printed in two colors,
with special designs of marginal captions,
on heavy coated paper. From a literary
standpoint, the catalogue possesses con-
siderable merit, and some strong and con-
vincing arguments are adduced why in-
tending purchasers should give considera-
tion to the Boothe Bros, pianos. The
illustrations include style E, style F, style
G, orchestral grand uprights and baby
grands style i and style 2.
These instruments are not only hand-
some in design, but are distinctly original
in case structure, owing to the fact that
the American Piano Mfg. Co. make and
design all their own cases. Dealers inter-
ested in pianos that are bound to augment
their trade should write for this new cata-
logue and become acquainted with the
latest offerings of this enterprising institu-
tion.
Assets Now $700.
The estate of B. W. Hitchcock, the fa-
mous old music dealer of Park Row who
assigned some four years ago and whose
assets were estimated at $836,563.76, has
dwindled down to $700 now in receivers'
hands. Meanwhile, not a penny has been
paid the creditors. These facts came out
this week in the Supreme Court, and they
afford an illustration of what happens to
an estate when it goes into court.
Jacob Doll has leased the old Wilson &
White warerooms at 146 Fifth avenue,
next door to his present location. The
move will be made shortly.
Brown Bros., who recently opened up on
a large scale in the Perley Block, Salem,
Mass., are handling the Merrill piano as their
leader. Musicians who have visited this
establishment speak very highly of this in-
strument.
J. W. Van Zandt, of the Cable Piano
Co., Salt Lake City, Utah, was a visitor to
The Review sanctum this week. He spolce
cheeringly of trade conditions in his sec-
tion and looks for a record-breaking year.
Mr. Van Zandt has been visiting friends in
Meriden.
The Shoninger warerooms are being re-
decorated and, when completed the interior
will present a handsome appearance.
A. M. Wright, of the Everett Co., made
a trip to Cincinnati this week. He re-
turned on Wednesday.
Henry Eilers, of the Eilers Piano House,
Portland, Ore., Weber representatives in
that city, is in town. He has selected
stock.
L. W. P. Norris, of the Lindeman Co.,
now traveling in the firm interests, is
making an excellent record.
P. J. Gildemeester, Knabe ambassador,
is expected home to-morrow from his
Western trip.
The Minneapolis Music House, Minne-
apolis, Minn., report some large sales of
Henry F. Miller pianos. Those made last
week included two Henry F. Miller con-
cert grands, one to a prominent railway
official and the other to a wealthy business
man in that city.
David Evans, who formerly was con-
nected with the Estey branch in Spring-
field, Mass., is now traveling for Cluett &
Co., of Troy.
The Review received a satisfactory bus-
iness report at the Kelso factory on Thurs-
day. There is a steady demand. Three
new styles are in course of preparation.
Carter & Durough, have moved from
Tifton, Ga., to Valdosta, where they have
a broader field of operations.
The piano tuners of Steger & Sons are
arranging to give another dance in Steger
on March 2.
Louis P. Bach, of Kranich & Bach, re-
turned on Wednesday from a tour of Kra-
nich & Bach agencies and special busi-
ness.
The firm of Vanderbeck & Sattles, piano
dealers, in Plainfield, N. J., was dissolved
Wednesday by mutual consent.
The trial of David Schrank, who killed
George Schaeffer, a fellow workman in the
Sohmer factory on Dec. 13, was begun this
week in Long Island City. Insanity is
the defense.

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