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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
The National Music Show, Held in Chicago During the Recent Conventions,
Was a Very Gratifying Success, and Taught Some Lessons Which Will Prove
of Value and Benefit to the Trade—The Wholesale and Retail Viewpoint
It is not putting the matter wildly to say that
there are many opinions as to the effect of the
Music Show, lately ended, upon the player
trade. Seeing that the holding of such a show
in New York next year has been recommended,
it is only proper that the advantages of the
scheme should be canvassed as thoroughly as
possible.
To this end, and with the specific
purpose of investigating the matter, from the
viewpoint of the player business, we have at-
tempted to obtain some representative opinions
of both wholesalers and retailers; with the
hope that therefrom may be drawn some useful
and instructive conclusions.
A PRELIMINARY EDITORIAL VIEW
As a matter of principle, it might be con-
ceded, we think, in advance, that the idea of
a national annual exposition of things musical
is excellent.
It is, of course, perfectly true
that the analogy with parallel lines of trade
can be pushed too far, and that it does not fol-
low because the annual automobile shows are
successful that music shows must, ipso facto,
be equally so. Nevertheless, the music show
idea has its own specific advantage; and that
is found in the simple fact that the people
have inadequate knowledge of musical instru-
ments, inadequate knowledge of the player in-
strument in particular; yet withal a very
healthy curiosity, even in its present unstimu-
lated condition, to know more.
So much the recent show decidedly demon-
strated. It cannot be pretended that the Coli-
seum meeting was not internally a success.
Every person who entered that building seems
to have had a good time, and the amount of
eager curiosity displayed was certainly very
large.
The attendance itself numerically was
not large enough; but that was due to bad
judgment on the part of the management, we
believe. The people could have been brought
in, we feel, in larger numbers.
The point,
however, is that those who did come in—and
they were not so few—came eagerly, remained
interested, showed admirable curiosity and de-
sire to know; and went away with the feeling
that there was much in music that they did
not know before.
To that extent, without doubt, the show idea
is justified.
Regarding the player business
specifically, it is fair to say, as the result of
much careful observation on the spot, that the
public is curious to know all it can learn
about player-pianos, its present mental con-
dition being orre of almost complete ignorance.
Nothing could have been clearer than this to
any observer of the attitude taken up uncon-
sciously by the several thousand persons who
entered the Coliseum between May 19 and May
26. Ignorance—appallingly complete; that de-
scribes the public attitude towards the player-
piano entirely. For precisely that reason, the
idea of a National Music Show is a good idea.
Now let us see what some others think of it.
THE WHOLESALE VIEW
In talking with a great many manufacturers,
travelers and other wholesale executive officers,
one general impression was left. So vivid and
so general is it that we were not surprised to
find one specific conversation had with a promi-
nent player manufacturer typifying all the rest.
From notes of that conversation, the following
reproduction of it has been not inaccurately con-
structed:
"From a wholesale standpoint purely the
Music Show was a great success. In the first
place, the occasion drew many dealers to Chi-
cago who might otherwise not have come; and
as a result, the sales made right on the spot
were large in quantity and good in quality.
"In the second place, we had, all of us, the
advantage of seeing the most advanced ideas in
piano and player construction, and of compar-
ing them one with another.
Indeed, it would
have been better if all the firms in the busi-
ness, instead of only some of them, had come
together under one roof; for then the oppor-
tunity for comparison would have been even
more valuable. We were able to see what the
other fellow is doing, to compare his player
critically with ours, and to gain a first-hand
impression of comparative values, without hav-
ing too long an interval between the impres-
sions.
"Probably that one fact is the most important
of all. The player business seems to be on the
verge of a great change, and it was well in-
deed that the new ideas which the inventors
had to offer could be so amply examined in
their present development.
"As for the public value of the show, it
would seem that the outside attendance was not
very great, and that the show suffered from
being rather too elaborately puffed; but not
quite elaborately enough to bring the people in,
anyway in large numbers. It seemed to be as-
sumed by the managers that the people of Chi-
cago would rush in to the show merely on hear-
ing that it was in town, and that there would
be concerts, etc. The exhibitors were kept out
of the publicity altogether or almost so. Yet,
one thing seemed plain to most of the whole-
sale men from out of Chicago who exhibited
at the show; namely, that the visitors to the
Coliseum simply overflowed with curiosity to
see and hear the latest in player-pianos. Again,
it seemed clear, from the statements made and
the questions asked, by dealers from the Mid-
dle, Southern and Western sections of the coun-
try, that, generally speaking, the retailers are
very far from being advanced in their thought
on the player question.
"The impression left upon a visiting manu-
facturer was that the retailers who visited the
show have an awful lot to learn about player
construction, and about the way to put the
player-piano up to their prospective customers.
In all probability, precisely the same criticism
is to be made of the retailers from other sec-
tions of this great country; but the men one
met were mainly from the Middle sections;
and it is from contact with them that opinion
must, of course, in the present instance be
formed.
"If the National Music Show carried no other
lesson than this—that the education of the peo-
ple must begin afresh, and that the dealer must
be educated as a preliminary thereto—it ful-
filled its object and justified the expense to
which the exhibitors were put.
"On the whole, then, we are satisfied; and
glad that we exhibited."
THE RETAIL VIEW
The following remarks are reproduced as
they were noted down in the course of a talk
with a dealer from the State of Kansas who
was at the show and made some considerable
purchases there. His candor and good sense
will be recognized by all.
"I came to Chicago to the Music Show mainly
because my wife wanted to visit the city, and
persuaded me. I am now very glad I came.
I am glad for three reasons:
"To begin at the beginning, the Music Show
was a great surprise to me. I wish, frankly,
there had not been quite so much talking ma-
chine about it; and more piano and player.
But it was a most agreeable surprise. For the
first time in my life I was able to see, prac-
tically side by side, a large number of com-
peting player-pianos and player actions. I rec-
ognize now, also for the first time in my life,
that I knew nothing whatever of importance
about player construction before I visited the
show; and that after it was over I had just
begun to learn things I ought to have known
years ago.
"Let me tell you that we piano merchants
have been in wrong on this proposition for
years. The people to whom we are selling our
goods are even more ignorant of the real value
of a player-piano than we are.
I know that
we have been selling our goods on some fool
talking-point that is of no importance, while
neglecting the simple truth that all player-
pianos exist to give music to all, no matter
whether they have this or that method of con-
struction. The longer I stayed at the show,
the more I perceived that all player-pianos are
the same in principle, and that the best player-
piano is simply the player-piano that works
best; and that works best the longest time with-
out needing repair.
(Continued on page 8)
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