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THE: MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
PROBLEM OF THE "DEAD" PLAYER-PIANO.
A New Situation That Has Developed in the Player Trade and Which Must Be Analyzed by the
Dealers—Extravagant Claims Made for the Instrument Regardless of the Natural Musical
Ability of the Purchaser Largely Responsible—The Interest of Really Intelligent People
and Lovers of Good Music Must Be Aroused—"Ragtime Fiends" Will Not Support the In-
dustry—Where the Blame Really Lies—Suggestions as to a Remedy.
A very peculiar situation has developed in the is tolerable and pleasing to him or to her in a
player trade—a situation so peculiar that it seems
manner equally tolerable and pleasing. The love
to be almost unintelligible, at least unt'l carefuly
of music in some form, anyway, is an attribute of
• analyzed. We all know that the ordinary piano normal personalities. To practise it is generally
is, in only too many cases, a "dead" instrument
regarded as a delightful and desirable thing. Noth-
for the greater number of its days. It is little
ing is more natural than that there should be a
played, less understood. It fulfils the duties, far
healthy demand for, and an abiding delight in, an
too often, of furniture and decoration, rather than
instrument calculated to bring this possibility with-
of music giving. And for the very reason that the
in the horizon of all.
ability to play the piano is not widespread, and
If, then, it be true—as it undoubtedly is—that
with most people never is acquired, the introduc-
the player-piano is, to a most disquieting extent,
tion of the player-piano was hailed as nothing less abandoned as a continual home music-giver by its
than providential. At last the problem had been
owners after the first shock of novelty has passed,
solved. The silent piano was to be replaced with
there is something wrong somewhere. . The thing
one that would never necessarily be without musi-
seems incredible, yet it is so. What is wrong, and
cal voice. And a musical revolution was to come. why?
Well, some fifteen years have elapsed since the
Perhaps the answer may also be disquieting!}
first attempts at producing a commercially success- simple and plain. Is it not because people find
ful piano-playing mechanism began to be heard of
that tkey cannot get from the player-piano the
on the music market. And to-day we are faced
music that they want?
with a problem exactly the same as bothered us
Brushing aside all excuses and explanations, is
before.ever the piano-player or player-piano were
not that pretty nearly the true reason for all the
heard of. We are beginning to hear, far too trouble—that people do not get what they want?
often, of player-pianos that are just as silent and
Now, it would seem upon reflection that the
"dead" as their predecessors were. Plainly, this
player trade has itself largely to blame if this be
is a very peculiar state of affairs indeed. It is the so. Nobody in the trade any longer pretends that
object of this article somewhat closely to analyze the player-piano will give decent music without
the conditions thus alleged, after showing that they
any knowledge or taste on the part of the per-
do indeed exist, and after that to trace the influ-
former. And consequently, so long as the trade
ence that the facts may properly be said to have
is content to conceal this fact from the purchas-
to-day upon the player trade.
ing public and to leave them to find the truth out
for themselves, it is certain that resentment and
The fact that many thousands of player-pianos
dissatisfaction must follow.
have been sold already and that the demand for
them is slowly though steadily increasing, is
Suppose that a more sensible plan were adopted.
enough proof that people really want something
Suppose that the dealers began to adopt a more
of the sort. Nobody whose opinion is of the sincere, more honest and more candid method of
slightest value will deny that the level of musical
exploitation. Suppose that people were always
appreciation in America is gradually and surely
warned that they would have to go through their
rising. Nobody will deny that the pleasure of per- apprenticeship in playing the player-piano before
sonally producing music is one that truly can be obtaining a mastery of it. Suppose that salesmeh
experienced through the medium of the player-
might be induced to take the proposition seriously 1
piano. And lastly it will be generally admitted
and respectfully, and to learn to demonstrate at
that these latterly mentioned facts do supply excel-
least tolerably. Suppose that every effort were
lent grounds for presuming that the demand for
made to see that each person who bought a player-
player-pianos is a natural, a healthy and an in- piano was thoroughly instructed in its use. Would
evitable demand.
not all this help?
But when we come to consider the player-piano
If people get tired of the player-piano after they
in its relation to the people after it has been sold, have bought it, then they will make others tired
we are confronted with a condition quite different
of it before those others buy. Many piaijo dealers
and by no means so flattering to our pride. If we
have made a great mistake. They have not be-
consult the tuners and repairmen who go out into
lieved in the player-piano seriously. They have
the homes where player-pianos are to be found, or
treated it as if it were merely a fad. They have
if we analyze the sales at the music roll libraries,
misrepresented its possibilities. They have told
we find that, in fact, the player-piano seems to people things which they knew were not true.
sink, very quickly after its acquisition, into a con- They have succeeded in disgusting thousands of
dition of relative desuetude. People buy them, people who might otherwise be enthusiastic root-
play with them for a while, and drop them. The
ers for the player-piano. And they have done all
writer has spoken with hundreds of people who
this because they have had the wrong idea from
own player-pianos and he has to confess that the
the start.
vast majority of these seem to lose healthy inter-
The ragtime fiends will not support an industry
est in their instruments after a few months at
like ours permanently. Even they get tired
most, and thereafter to take an attitude which
of the awful monotony and sameness of the
suggests that they have been, to some extent at
"music" which they evoke from their player-
least, buncoed.
pianos. The writer has had the misfortune to live
What is the reason for such a condition of
for the last three weeks next door to a family
affairs, and what effect may its existence be sup-
who own a player-piano. The two sons and daugh-
posed to have upon the future and prosperity of
ter of the family play ragtime every night as hard
the player trade? These are important questions as they can from eight till twelve. -Lately the
and should be answered with care.
mother was heard to say that she wished to heaven
People .buy player-pianos because they are told
that the "thing had never been bought," while the
and believe that, with these instruments, any per- father was heard to curse the day he had ever
son at all may produce the kind of music which "fallen for a thing like that." A tuner was telling
the writer recently that he was astonished to find
how many people who own player-pianos had shut
them up and forbidden the children to touch them
for fear of forming bad habits in music. And a
cultured woman, mother of a splendid family, told
the writer only last week that she simply had been
compelled to stop her children from using the
player-piano, as it was driving her crazy.
Instances like these may be multiplied indefinite-
ly. The important question is : What are we going
to do about it?
>
We have ourselves to blame. We were not
content to have patience and go after the intelli-
gent people. We have laughed at the "high-
brows," made no attempt to satisfy their musical
intelligence.
And what has been the result?
Simply this: that the player-piano is regarded with
indifference by most musical people and with dis-
like by many. We are facing an unpleasant situa-
tion.
Say what you will, there must be a change.
There must be something like intelligence put into
this business of ours. There is no sense in spend-
ing uncounted dollars every year on mechanical
improvements if the retailing end of the business
is going to be conducted in stupidity and blind-
ness. We must wake up. We must realize that
the sober good sense of intelligent people is an
asset of price if it be on our side. And somehow
or other we must get the intelligent people over
to our side. We can do this. But we can only
do it by going back to the plain, candid, sensible
kind of exploitation that originally distinguished
the work of the first great houses in the player
business and which distinguishes them still. Every-
body knows who these great houses are. Every-
body knows that they have fought the good fight
of intelligence and candor against the stupidity
of a whole trade. And while the rest of the trade
has been doing its best to put the player-piano in
an impossible position these pioneers have re-
mained true to their first principles. We must
make up our minds to get back to something like
their good sense and good judgment. And we cali-
on page 12.)
NATIONAL
Christman Grand Pianos
Christman Upright Players
Grand Pianos, Upright
Pianos and Player Actions
That can be installed
in all the different
makes of pianos :: ::
Christman Piano Co.
597 East 137th Street
New York City
PIANO
Tlie "No Trouble" Player
INJickel-in-me-Slot
NEW ART STYLES
. MANDOLIN, a n d t h e N e w VIOLIN-FLUTE
ATTACHMENT
11
NATIONAL PIANO PLAYER CO.
OREGON-ILLINOIS
Write for Descriptive Catalogue
Continuous Roll, and Automatic
Rewind Styles—Also 88 Note Pedal
and Combination Pedal and Elec-
tric Styles.