Classic Mode

Music Trade Review

Issue: 1913 Vol. 57 N. 13

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
mer officials of the company, some with and some
without suit, more than $25,000 in piano consign-
Receiver of Krell Auto-Grand Piano Co. Will
ments, which, together with the bills receivable
Be Able to Pay Something Better Than 20
due and owing to the old company, will result in
Per Cent., Says Lawyer Coleman, of Holtz-
approximately a little over $100,000 available for
man & Coleman, Who Discusses the Case.
distribution to the creditors. This means that the
estate will probably pay something better than 20
(Special to The Review.)
per cent.
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., September 24.—Louis A.
"We believe the sale to be a good one, results
Coleman, of Holtzman & Coleman, lawyers, in dis-
cussing the recent sale of the business of the Krell having shown that the placing of the company in
Auto Grand Piano Co., of Connorsville, IndL, made bankruptcy was a wise step. We have no doubt a
the following statement, which is of interest to the first dividend will be ordered paid within a snort
time."
creditors and the trade at large:
$ 100,000 FOR DISTRIBUTION.
"The trustee in bankruptcy has completed a sale
of all the property of the company, excepting bills
and accounts receivable, for $80,000 cash, which
the trustee has in bank. The sale (as announced
in last week's Review) was made to Lawrence
Maxwell, of Cincinnati.
"The receiver also has on hand about $5,000 in
cash, profit, as a result of the operation of the
plant, together with a little over $10,000 of his own
bills receivable, which he believes to be good.
"The receiver has also recovered from the for-
MAKES IMPORTANT CHANGE.
(Special to The Review.)
W I S . , September
23.—Carl
To get even a moderately good thing aim at something sur-
passingly good.
We cannot achieve perfection in this world—but we can
aim at it. And by constant practice we may come near to it.
The constant aim of the M. Schulz Co. is to do a good job
—to make a player-piano that shall give, above all things, satis-
faction. To achieve just this means that the ideal of perfection
must ever be kept in mind.
This ideal is translated into genuine practice in the case of
the M. Schulz Go. Player. The features which give it place
among original and significant developments in the player indus-
try include among others the following:
Greatest Simplicity
Complete Accessibility
secured by our simplified
provided by our arrange-
and perfected single-valve
ment of vents, our sectional
action, with its features of
construction and immediate
airtightness, power and re-
detachability of all parts.
sponsiveness.
Lightest Pumping
made certain by our simple, Highest
assured by the superiority
direct lever pedal system,
of our material, and the
eliminating toe work and
"kick."
• skill of our workmanship.
And
i
Most Complete Security
afforded to retailer and pur-
chaser by our generous, un-
reserved guarantee.
The Live Dealer needs us—and we need him!
Why not spend 2 cents to learn our good player proposition?
M. SCHULZ COMPANY
General Offices:
711 Milwaukee Avenue
Chicago
L.
Goersch, manager of the player department at
Gimbel Bros.' Milwaukee store, and formerly man-
ager of the Milwaukee branch of the Tel-Electric
Piano Player Co. when the latter concern main-
The Schulz Standard is
Player Perfection
Southern Branch:
730 Candler Building
Atlanta, Ga.
Three Factories in Chicago
SECURE IMPORTANT PATENT.
Price & Teeple Piano Co., Chicago, Pleased
Over Granting of Patent Covering Valuable
Points Bearing on Their Player Action.
(Special lo The Review.)
Carl L. Goersch, Manager of Gimbel Bros.'
Player Department in Milwaukee, Joins the
Sales Force of Musical Instrument Sales Co.
MILWAUKEE,
tained a store here, has resigned his position at
Gimbel Bros. He will join the sales forces of the
Musical Instrument Sales Co. and will represent
the company in Reading and Allentown, Pa. Mr.
Goersch and his family formerly lived in Allen-
town, so the new territory will be familiar ground
for him. E. S. Bridge, general manager of the
piano department at Gimbel Bros., says that a suc-
cessor to Mr. Goersch has not been secured as yet..
CHICAGO, I I I . , September 23.—The Price &
Teeple Piano Co., of this city, has been notified by
the United States Patent Office that a patent has
been granted it on Charles Freborg's application
and assigned to Price & Teeple Piano Co. for a
most valuable patent which Mr. Freborg applied
for September 21, .1909—four years ago.
This patented invention is to provide means
whereby the pedals are connected with the bellows
in a way to transmit a direct pressure on the
pedals to the bellows without damaging the toe
rail of the piano, and at the same time connected
in sucli a way as to make the instrument mouse-
proof.
This enables the makers to attach a panel which
slides back and forth, covering the pedal opening
as completely as if it were almost a solid frame.
The patent also covers the construction, so that
the bellows in the piano can be placed by simply
setting it on a ball and socket connection and then
sliding it in at the top and fastening it securely
with a strong catch. This enables the bellows to
be removed from the instrument in one minute's
time. This is a very important matter in case the
repair man should desire to get at any part of the
player action connected with the bellows.
Another improvement connected with this com-
prises an adjusting means with the motor gover-
nor, in which a spring on the governor may be
very conveniently tightened or loosened. This per-
mits of an accurate adjustment of the governor for
an actual control of the air pressure.
The Price & Teeple Piano Co. is highly gratified
over the granting of this patent, as it, of course,
gives the company exclusive and protected rights
in one of the important points connected with
its player action.
AN INFORMING BOOKLET
Is That Just Issued by Kranich & Bach Under
the Caption of "Slave cr Master, Which?"
Kranich & Bach, 237 East Thirty-second street,
New York, have just issued a very interesting leaf-
let on their player-piano which, in addition to at-
tracting attention by reason of an unsuual headline,
is most informative. It bears the 'heading, "Slave
or Master, Which?" and presents concisely, though
adequately, the various constructional features of
the Kranich & Bach player. These include the Tri-
Melodeme and the several distinctive expression de-
vices which characterize the Kranich & Bach
player.
The "slave or master" query is linked to the use
of the K. & B. player by comparing the ownership
of a player where the operator is the "slave of
automatic devices, the mere medium of propelling
energy," with the owner of a K. & B. player-piano,
who "is master of the mood of each composition
and has all the pleasing lights and shades of a
superb Kranich & Bach piano at the finger tips."
Other selling talks in this interesting leaflet in-
clude a few paragraphs on the difference between
individuality and mimicry in the use of a player-
piano and the fact that the Kranich &.Bach player
contains a special individual and original player
mechanism, designed particularly for Kranich &
Bach.
The Aeolian Co. will present in next month's
national magazines one of the most artistic and
attractive advertisements featuring the Pianola
that has ever been conceived. This advertisement
will consist of four pages in colors, and will repre-
sent the acme of modern artistic publicity.
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
G
RAND players are in the air. This is not an Irish bull. It
is not modelled on the sayings of the immortal Sir Boyle
Roche. For in truth the air is full of talk about grand players,
while every now and then one seems to materialize from the clouds
and assume definite shape. The thing is not at all remarkable.
It had to come. This newspaper has been predicting its coming
for some time past; and now we have it full upon us. The ques-
tion for us to consider just now is—what are we going to do about
it? During the present season there will be on the market at least
half a dozen well-defined and individually distinct types of grand
players, all actively competing for favor. Obviously we shall be
witnessing the beginning of a brand new development. Obviously
it is our duty to know what we are doing.
W
HATEVER anyone may think about it, there is no doubt
that we have here something new and important to think
about. The grand player is not the upright player at all. In the
first place it is going to be, for some time to come, a relatively
costly proposition. Therefore, it is going to appeal to a better
class of trade. Therefore, it may be sold for cash. Suppose
every dealer who knows his business will make up his mind to push
the grand player this winter as hard as he can, on the basis of cash,
going after only the very best people and working for their trade
pnly. That will be one way to put the dealer's business on a better
basis.
UT this is not the only thing to be thought of. Say what we
may, the fact remains that the very best possible salesman-
ship method in the player game is based on public demonstration,
Now, when there are grand players on the floor to sell, there is no
valid argument against using them for recital work. For the kind
of people who can afford to buy a grand player, the best way of
selling is to demonstrate rightly. The way to demonstrate a grand
player is the way which we use in the demonstration of any other
{•ort of grand, namely, by having it publicly played. Now, if the
public demonstration of player-grands be done in the right sort of
way, the result is going to be just as good as it would be with the
straight grands. That is to say, just as people are prejudiced in
favor of the straight grand by hearing a great artist play it, so
they may be prejudiced in favor of a player-grand by hearing it
demonstrated by a competent musician. This, however, means that
the competent demonstrator must be able to impress his audiences
with two ideas: first, that the player-grand is markedly artistic,
and, second, that anybody can easily avail himself of its capacities.
In this second element of the demonstration lies the whole differ-
ence between useful and useless demonstration; between success
and failure.
B
I
T can be done. Let us have no doubt as to that. The only
question is as to doing it. Recitals we must have, but they
must not be imitation piano recitals. The killing weakness of the
player recital up to date has been just here. People have been in-
teiested, thrilled, excited in every way by artistic player recitals of
the usual sort—but they have not bought player-pianos. And the
reason has been that they were surrounded with the atmosphere
cf the piano recital, and were totally unable to get their minds de-
tached from the trains of thought thereby brought into being. We
must have informal recitals. Good playing is essential, but with
it must be mingled explanation and even instruction. Abolish the
platform and with it the sense of distance and awe. Bring the
proposition down to the level of the average person. Then you
will have achieved your purpose.
M
OST people in this world are not distinguished for the pos-
session of uncommon intelligence or uncommon powers of
clear thinking. But the opinion of the crowd, while it may be, and
usually is, somewhat inarticulate, is pretty near to truth in the
aggregate. The instincts are right, even if they cannot be logically
analyzed. And one may be pretty sure that when the public refuse
to take the bait which the player recitals have been holding out to
them, the fault is with the recitals and not with the public. One
can even put the matter in a clearer way than this. We have no
right to say whether the public is right or not. It would not
make a bit of difference if we could see plainly that it is wrong.
For it is our business to know what the public thinks, not to discuss
what it ought to think. Only when we know what people think
and then adapt ourselves to their methods, can we get into that
position with relation to them which enables us to begin to lead
them. That is a simple secret, but a great one.
I
N presenting grand players to the prospective purchasers, either
through the medium of advertising in various publications,
recitals of a more or less elaborate character, or by straight sales-
manship on the wareroom floor, the point to be considered is that
if the greatest results are to be obtained the appeal must be made
to the greatest body of the people. Therefore, the player-grand
must be presented not as something of mystery, of exclusiveness,
but as a form of player-piano most desirable for the musical people
from numerous points of view. The field for the grand player
should bear the same relation to the field for the upright player-
piano as does the straight grand to the ordinary upright and should
depend, as in the case of ordinary pianos, upon the tone superiority
of the grand as compared to the upright. The simplicity of the
player mechanism and its desirability should be demonstrated in an
understandable way to ordinary people.
TT
took 10 minutes to write this ad and 57
A
years to prepare for it, as since 1856 the
D. H. Schmidt Co. has been making hammers.
It has always given and will give a specialized hammer service
of such unusual character that as years mature the name Schmidt
represents THE piano hammer.
To continuously make piano hammers for 57
years and to rank to-day as the leading piano
hammer house is a wonderful achievement
DAVID
H. SCHMIDT CO., Poughkeepsie, N. Y.
Western repreMnUtiret: Widney ft Widn*7,
6 South Wabath Arenue, Chicago, 111.

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