Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
MAY
THE
11, 1918
HARMONICAS AND THE WAR
Buck Private Writes of " 'Armonica' Arry" and
His Adventures With a Much-Bequeathed
Mouth-Organ While Fighting in Flanders
MUSIC
TRADE
REVIEW
47
87-101 Ferry Street
Jersey City, N. J.
OSCAR SCHMIDT, Inc.
ESTABLISHED 1877
"We need everything you can turn out in the
Manufacturer of Musical Stringed Instruments — Celebrated Stella and
shot and shell line—and we need music, too,"
Sovereign Guitars, Mandolins and Banjos, Violins,
writes one who describes himself as a "buck
Menzenhauer Guitar Zithers, Mandolin Harps,
private somewhere in the Flanders mud" to the
Guitarophones, Symphonettes and other musical novelties
editor of "Along Broadway," the Kdison musical
magazine.
ing how, if 'Armonica had gone West, I was
FRENCH BAND COMING TO U. S. A.
"I'm sitting here in a dugout that used to be
to have his harmonica. 'Twarn't long before
a shell-hole and there's a guy in the next dug-
we found him. I was sort of disappointed, Military Band Will Be Sent Over Here by the
out who's got a harmonica and you can hear
much as I love 'Armonica, because I got to
French Government
him blowing it all the time. His name is Harry
thinking how I'd show them a thing or two
—we call him ' 'Armonica 'Arry.'
His har-
about blowing 'Swanee River' and things like
PARIS, FRANCE, May 4.—The French Govern-
monica's got a history most harmonicas ain't
that these folks ain't ever heard of. We found ment is about to send to the United States a
got. He told me he got it from a man who got
him inside a pill-box with a red-eared Fritzi military band of carefully picked men under the
killed when we straightened out the Wipers line
backed up in a corner.
leadership of Gabriel Pares, former bandmaster
and he says that that man borrowed it from a
of the Republican Guard of Paris. Thirty of the
"
'I
got
a
mind
to
stick
this
pin
in
you,'
says
guy who went over the top and never came back.
He's willed it to me and, if he goes West, 1 'Armonica, pushing his bayonet at Fritzi's mid- band members are first-prize men of the Paris
Conservatoire, and four have been similarly hon-
can have it. I ain't wishin' him any hard luck, dle.
"With that 'Armonica's harmonica dropped ored by the Conservatory at Rome.
but I sure do want that harmonica.
out of his pocket.
In addition to the ordinary repertoire of brass
"He calls it a 'armonica, but I always called
" 'Pick it up,' says 'Armonica, which the Fritzi bands, the organization will be able to play or-
'em a harp. (I come from near Broadway and
chestral music. Among the bandsmen are a
did. 'Yet's 'ear you blow 'er.'
Forty-second street and I'm going back some
number of fine violinists and 'cellists and an ex-
"And
what
do
you
suppose
Fritzi
Mowed?
day if I ever get out of this mud.) He says
cellent pianist, who give concerts of modern
You'd
never
guess
it.
'She
Lives
Down
in
Our
to me the other day, 'W'oever 'eard of a 'ar-
Alley,' which 'Armonica loves so much. And French and classical chamber music.
monica being called a 'arp?'
you should have seen 'Armonica. 'Twas much
"Yesterday a shell took a flop behind his dug-
as we could do to keep him from kissing that
ARMY WANTS MORE MUSICIANS
out and dumped a whole load of mud on him
Fritzi and he give him a piece of chocolate
and his harmonica. He comes out sneezing and
which he'd been saving out for a special occasion Officers Recruiting Big Organizations for Use
looking like he'd been drawed through a street-
and they swapped addresses and promised to
in Training Camps
sweeper on a muddy day feet first. The first
write when the war was over.
thing he pipes was: ' W e r e 's me 'armonica?'
"And I didn't get the harmonica—but 'I got
POTTSVILLE, PA., May 6—The army wants musi-
And the whole gang started looking for it and
all the time he was swearing he'd quit cold and 'opes/ as 'Armonica says when we get to talking cians. In order to get them Government officers
have begun recruiting two big musical organiza-
tell the whole army to go to 'ell, if he didn't about Blighty."
tions here which will instil life and spirit into
find his durned old harmonica. He got it at
the men in camp. George W. Dewald, who in
PATENTS NEW FORM OF PICK
last and it was full of mud but he licked it off
the Spanish-American War was leader of the
and dogged if he didn't set down and start cry-
WASHINGTON, D. C, May 6.—Patent No. 1,- Fourth Regiment drum corps and was appointed
ing and blowing something about 'She Lives
263,740 was last week granted to Aaron Burd- chief division musician by Gen. Young at Chicka-
Down in Our Alley.'
wise, Baltimore, Md., for a pick for stringed in- niauga, Ga., has been given authority to recruit
"One days he asks me if I thought they 'ave struments.
a drum corps which will have thirty members.
'afmonicas in 'eaven, and I told him 1 didn't
This invention relates to improvements in
Joseph Painter, former leader of the Third
know because I'd never been there but that we picks for stringed instruments, and has for its
Brigade
Band of this city, and now leader of
both stood a good chance of investigating if object to provide a pick with a simple and con-
a military band at Camp Meade, is back home
we stayed in Flanders much longer. 1 guess
venient device to afford a comfortable grip and to recruit musicians for additional organizations.
he won't want to go to heaven if they won't
to prevent the pick from slipping between the
let him carry his harmonica along.
fingers of the performer.
The W. O. Wuertz branch store on St. Nich-
"I almost got the harmonica the other day.
olas avenue, New York, has been discontinued.
We went over the top at daylight in a fog, and
'Armonica 'Arry was out for blood because all
that mud had been throwed on his harmonica.
"We dropped into that German trench like a
load of bricks and when we had it all cleaned
up we couldn't find 'Armonica. I got to think-
VIOLINS
"(5RAHOPRI2ES 1
[BEST STRINGS
JOHNFRIEDRICH&BRO.
TAioeuEs - ^ •
FOR CASH
Sheet Music and Small Goods
Peate's Music House, Utica, N. Y.
OLIVER DITSON GO.
35I-53FWRTH AVE. NEWYORKCIIT:
Victor Distributors
Largest Wholesale
Musical Merchandise
House in America
Buegeleisen & Jacobson
Manufacturer*
Importers and Jobb«n ol
MUSICAL
MERCHANDISE
Attractive Special tie*
M odern Service
T H E OLDEST AND
ESTA5USHED 1034
STEWART
BOSTON. MASS.
RONQ
Exclusively Wholesale
AND
SEND FOR ^ ^ ^ 279 PirTN /WE
I WILL BUY
LARGEST MUSICAL
MERCHANDISE HOUSE
IN AMERICA
DURRO
ESTABLISHED ISM
WEYMANN
Superior QuaBiy MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
-~
Victor Distributer*
1108 Cha.tnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
Established O T « half a eanturjr
113 Univrstty Place
NEW YORK
Black Diamond
Strings
THE WORLD'S BEST
National Musical String Co.
Nev Brunswick, N. J.