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THE MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
NO FREE PIANOS FOR "ARTISTS" FROM DETROIT DEALERS.
Piano Men in That City Forced to Take Step for Their Own Protection Owing to Growth of Evil
—Demand for Free Piano in Many Instances Only a Form of Plain Graft.
(Special to The Review.)
DETROIT, MICH., April 14.—The Detroit piano
to anything else. She had punched its halting,
staggering, vulgar keys all the morning without
dealers are shutting down on the evil of lo.aning being able to tinker out a sonata in recognizable
pianos to "artists" of different types. The move form, and had become so vexed that she had
is a matter «ff self protection. The custom of
wept, and wouldn't Mr.
please send up and
pianists, ranging from good to. ibad, of asking for get the horrid old thing and replace it with a new
piano.s gratis has grown so heavily in recent years • one or a grand that had never known rag?
that it has fallen of its own weight. The dealers
The verbally assaulted manager blandly stated
have come to the conclusion that there is nothing that he never sent o.ut grands under any circum-
in it but expense.
stances, and that he wouldn't send out a new piano
Formerly, when the trade and the city were unless it was purchased, and that all the second-
not as large as no.w and a real top-notch artist hand instruments in the shop, doubtless, had been
desired accommodation with a piano, there may on familiar terms with ragtime from their child-
have been enough publicity in a loan of one to hood. Then he went out to ask the tuners if they
make it worth while. But such piano loans have had put the piano in good shape, and The Review
become so co.mmon, and letters of the artists ex- correspondent went out to ask some other dealers
pressing praise of the fine qualities of the pianos of their experience along similar lines.
so laudatory, that it is a pr.tent fact that they are
"I'd rather have a woman tell a neighbor that
"bought," that such publicity as may be gained
her piano she had bought from us was a fine in-
by the use of the piano by an artist is more than
strument than to have the praise of the greatest
offset by the bad impression it creates.
artist in the world," said one manager. "Boosting
The evil has been manifest in all large cities from constant users o.f a piano to friends counts.
and in many small ones. In Detroit it go.t to a If those friends are in the market for a piano they
pass where even church organists and accompani- are at least going to look over the one the neigh-
ment players besieged the dealers for pianos on bor has told them about."
terms of nothing down and nothing a month, the
It seems that the semi-classic is the highest pin-
dealer to pay the cartage. Most of them wo.uld
nacle to which the lo.an-requesting pests of De-
not deign to bother with anything of less degree troit can soar. Besides local pests there are travel-
than a grand. And the nerve of the favored
ing "artists/' vaudeville actors who frame their
recipients was boundless.
act to include a piano solo, and others who are
great only in their own eyes. To accommodate
One or two dealers still indulge in that sort of
accommodation. While The Review correspondent them all would require, in the aggregate, an in-
was interviewing a store manager this week two vestment more than sufficient to establish a big
pompous and self-conscious women entered and piano house.
assailed said manager. The younger one an-
The sentiment of the dealers is that these artists
nounced that she had called to give him a scolding shall pay rent and cartage, and it is being put into
because that piano was so awful, so, terrible, that effect by most of them—by so many of them that
she could not use it. It was such a crime to ex- the houses which are still beguiled by them can-
pect "an artist," as she expressed it, to try to ex- not take care o.f them all, and thus they are forced
tract real music out of an instrument that had
to go to those who have declared independence,
been played to ragtime until it would not respond
and pay real money.
BEHNINQ RECITALS IN WATERLOO.
CLEANING UP FARRAND CO. STOCK.
Otto A. Gressing Demonstrates Behning Player
Grand Before Large Audiences—Opening of
Early Music House a Tremendous Success.
Balance of Cecilian Players Purchased by May
Co., Cleveland — Factory Equipment Dis-
posed Of—Some Upright Pianos Left.
(Special to The Review.)
WATERLOO, IA., April 11.—A series of recitals
in which the Behning player grand piano has been
demonstrated by Otto A. Gressing, of the Behning
Piano Co., New York, have been given by the
Early Music House, of this city, and have been
largely attended. On Thursday night last the re-
cital hall was crowded and a most interesting
program was given, while on Friday afternoon
Mr. Gressing was at the Behning player during
the opening of the new store at the Early Music
House in the new Black Building. This was also
largely attended. One evening during the week
seventy-five puipls o.f the Iowa State Normal
School, Cedar Falls, la., accompanied by C. A.
Fullerton, head of the music department, were
given a private demonstration of the Behning
player grand. Three soloists assisted during the
recitals, and all accompaniments were played with
the player.
NEW CONCERNJN KEOKUK, IA.
W. C. Reimbold, of Nauvoo, 111., and R. M.
Scott, of Hamilton, have organized the W. C.
Reimbold Piano Co. and opened quarters at 803
Main street, Keokuk, Ia. The new company
handles the Emerson, Schiller and other makes of
pianos and player-pianos.
J. H. Worth, a piano dealer, of Kewanee, 111.,
has opened a branch store at 307 Tenney street,
Wethersfield, 111. He handles the Kimball line.
(Special to The Review.)
DETROIT, MICH., April 14.—D. J. Nolan, man-
NEW QUARTERS FOR HUDSON CO.
Prominent Detroit Department Store Arranges
for Erection of Handsome Ten-Story Build-
ing—Piano Department to Have Temporary
Quarters on Woodward Avenue.
(Special to The Review.)
DETROIT, MICH., April 14.—The piano depart-
ment of the J. L. Hudson Co.. will be almost
homeless from May 17 to December 20—merely
a visitor at some place not yet selected. Several
months ago it was announced in The Review that
the Hudson Co. had acquired ano.ther building
adjoining the present one on Woodward ave-
nue and was to remodel it for the piano depart-
ment. Since then it has acquired additional front-
age amounting to sixty feet in all, and will tear
down all three buildings and erect a new ten-
story structure similar in design to the present ten-
story one, and connected with it. In this palatial
building quarters designed especially for the con-
venience of the piano, and talking machine business
will be provided. Meantime, the piano department
must seek new quarters.
Manager E. P. Andrew has grown footsore in
the last few days scouting around the shopping
district, but has found no location especially de-
sirable. The most likely store found is in the
new Fisher Arcade, next to Grinnell Bro.s., and
into the basement of which Grinnell Bros, have
extended their talking machine department. This
is in the heart of the piano store colony, and if
enough room on the upper floors can be obtained
on a short-term lease it may be accepted.
The contractors will begin to raze the old store
on May 17. They will work under penalty, and
their contract calls for the new building to be
ready by December 20. As the Hudson Co.
does everything it undertakes in the finest possi-
ble manner, it is safe to say that the Chickering,
Apollo, McPhail, Angelus and Victrolas will spend
the pre-Christmas week and many years there-
after in one of the finest music trade establish-
ments in the United States.
WURLITZER BRANCH IN MILWAUKEE.
Full Line of Electric Automatic Instruments to
Be Handled in New Quarters in the Man-
hattan Building—A. F. Schneider in Gen-
eral Charge of Business with Good Force.
(Special to The Review.)
MILWAUKEE, WIS., April 14.—The Milwaukee
ager of the piano department of the May Co. in branch office and warerooms contemplated for
Cleveland, and of similar institutions in two or some time by the Rudolph Wurlitzer Manufactur-
three other cities, came to Detroit this week and ing Co. have been opened in the Manhattan Build-
purchased the residue of the Cecilian players from ing on Second street, where commodio.us quarters
the receiver of the Farrand Co. There were about have been leased on the third floor. The Wurlitzer
a hundred of them. The only instruments the automatic electric business in Milwaukee and
receiver now has left are eighty upright straight about Wisconsin will be handled from the new
pianos, which were ordered by a Southern music branch, the Wurlitzer pianos and players being
house some time ago. The original order was for sold by the Gensch-Smith Co., 730 Grand avenue.
a hundred. Twenty of them were shipped. Be- A. F. Schneider is in general charge and has
fore the remainder were ordered sent on the gathered together an enterprising sales force to
Southern house failed. It is understood that ne- work this territory.
gotiations for their disposal to another Southern
In view of its opening the new Milwaukee
store have been practically co.mpleted.
branch the Wurlitzer concern has filed a state-
The Farrand Co. machinery is practically all ment with the Secretary of State at Madison to
sold, and little remains for the receiver to do ex- transact business in Wisconsin. The capital stock
cept dispose of the outstanding contracts.
of the company is given at $2,900,000, while the
Lemuel Kline, president o.f the Weiler Piano Co., investment in Wisconsin is placed at $10,000.
was in Detro.it. Mr. Weiler is impartial in his
The Gensch-Smith Co., well-known Victor
calls, generally visiting nearly every dealer in the
ho.use, has been meeting with a fine business in
city. Other visitors were R. D. Janney, of Wm.
the Wurlitzer pianos and players during the few
Knabe & Co., who spent a day at Grinnell's, and
weeks that it has had the agency.
Fred G. Coryell, of the Melville Clark Piano Co.,
specializing in Q. R. S. rolls.
INCREASES CAPITAL.
The North Tonawanda Musical Instrument
Works has increased its capital from $150,000 to
$300,000 to meet the growing demands of its
business.
WINTER & CO.
220 SOUTHERN BOULEVARD, N E W YORK
Manufacturers of
INCORPORATED.
The Vowels Music Co., Vincennes, Ind., has
been incorporated with a capital stock of $10,000
to deal in musical instruments, etc. The incor-
porators are J. B. E. LaPlante, W. S. Vowels and
C. H. Downey.
Superior Pianos
and Player Pianos