Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
44
THE MUSIC TRADE
UKULELES FOR FOX HILLS MEN
REVIEW
IMPROVEMENT TO REGULATE PITCH
NOVEMBER 22, 1919
ON WITH THE DANCE THAT CURES
Vv ounuea Soldiers in Hospital Appeal for Musical
instruments—Music Jmeips Shell Shocked and
vv ounuea Soldiers to Regain Their Health
WASHINGTON, D. C, November 17.—Patent No. Red Cross Finds Harp and Other Instruments a
Great Help in Hospitals
1,321,227 for a tailpiece for stringed musical in-
struments was recently granted to Jean Mcnnes-
The dance frequently bridges the great gap be-
son, Paris, France. This invention relates to
li anyone has a ukulele which they want to improvements in stringed musical instruments, tween the present and the past that was before
put to a good use tney can become good Samari- owing to which the tension of the strings can be the war for some of the poor fellows at Uncle
tans by sending it to box Hills, Staten Island,,
Sam's hospital at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indi-
where these instruments and others will be used regulated with the desired precision, and the said ana. Most of the soldiers there are mental pa-
strings
prevented
from
cutting
the
bridge.
m the hospitals where shell shocked soldiers and
In stringed musical instruments, the tension tients. P. L. Montani, the Red Cross musical
those who have been seriously wounded in action
corresponding to the desired pitch is difficult to director, one day struck on his harp the note that
are stationed at present.
brought memory back to a stolid Russian.
Mrs. .hdward McVickar, New York city chair- obtain, and more particularly to maintain con-
"I would play upon the harp a varied selection
man of the National JUeague lor Women's Service, stAnt by means of the ordinary peg. It is more of folk songs and national anthems," said Mr.
is appealing for donations of ukuleles—particu- particularly the case in stringed musical instru- Montani, "and I soon discovered that some re-
larly ukuleles, but banjos, guitars and violins are ments in which the first string is a steel wire, for sponsive shaft struck home. One patient, a Rus-
acceptable—for the wounded men confined to the resistance of steel wire to tension is very great. sian, who could barely speak English, was par-
Fox Hills Hospital on Staten Island. On No- If the tension exercised by turning the peg is ticularly silent and morose. I played at him the
vember 18 the league will open a "cheer canteen" too slight, the pitch is not reached, so that it is Russian national anthem and several Russian folk
near the hospital, where these men are to be en- necessary to exert a considerable effort on the songs. There was no response. But the moment
tertained and cheered all during the long winter peg in order further to stretch the string. It I struck up a Russian dance the patient came to
months. Bowling alleys, pool rooms, a library generally happens that the resistance met with his feet. He began snapping his fingers. He
and other entertainment equipment are being in- necessitates a great effort, owing to which the began to smile. Then, crossing his arms, he
stalled.
peg is turned through a greater angle than is performed a genuine Russian dance. This huge-
"What do you want more than anything else necessary and the string is given too high a pitch. ly delighted his mates, and the man rapidly im-
at the 'cheer canteen?' " Mrs. McVickar asked Moreover, owing to its tension, on the one hand, proved."
the men in one of the wards.
After that, team clog dances were inaugurated.
and to its small diameter, on the other hand, the
"Give us a ukulele band!'' one boy yelled, and first string cuts the bridge, so that very soon the Two or three benches were placed lengthwise,
the cry "ukulele band" was taken up by the ward. said first string is no longer on a proper level with orderlies holding them secure. The director
"We must have that band," said Mrs. Mc-
would induce a man to give a fancy step on this
Vickar. "We want ukuleles, banjos and guitars, relatively to the other strings, which greatly in- improvised platform. This invariably aroused the
terferes
with
the
playing
of
the
instrument
and
and we will make up a band from among the
men, and they were easily persuaded to sing.
men in the hospital. They need all the amuse- also absorbs part of the vibrations. All these
drawbacks
are
done
away
with
by
the
use
of
this
ment they can get during the winter—for keeping
The Musical Supply & Equipment Co., Inc.,
up their spirits helps along their recovery. There invention.
Boston, Mass., has increased its capital from
are about 2,S(X) wounded at the Jfox Hills Hos-
$340,000 to $390,000.
pital, which is the only military hospital in the
PLAYING-GUIDE FOR ZITHERS
.hast. Shell shocked and the more seriously
wounded men are there, and the majority of
WASHINGTON, D. C, November 17.—Patent No.
them have been conhned in hospitals for a year." 1,320,571 was last week granted to Paul F. Richter,
Boston, Mass., for a playing-guide for zithers,
which he has assigned to the Phonoharp Co.,
REED-PLATE * 0 R MOUTH-ORGANS
East Boston, Mass. One object of the present
Patent Granted on Method for Using Flat Wire invention is to provide means adapted to facili-
T H E OLDEST AND
for Moutn-Organ Keeds
tate the playing of a musical accompaniment on
LAROEST MUSICAL
a harp or zither that has chord-strings arranged
WASHINGTON, D. U., November 17.—Emil i_am- in chord-groups such for example as shown and
MERCHANDISE HOUSE
precht, Philadelphia, Pa., was last week granted described in U. S. Letters Patent to Marx, 1,190,-
IN AMERICA
Patent No. 1,319,960 for a reed and reed-plate 782, granted July 11, 1916. In accordance with
construction for mouth-organs.
the present invention, such means includes a
UTMUSHtD IBS*
Prior to this invention, the reeds of mouth- guard extending across the chord strings and hav-
organs were usually produced, in order to secure ing a series of openings each of which registers
351-53 ftwnUvfc NEWYORKCOTC
the proper tone, by grinding or milling the reeds with and affords access to one of the groups of
Victor* Distributors
to various thicknesses. The reeds thus made va- strings.
ried in thickness within their lengths and each
of the reeds had to be separately ground or
milled. These reeds were riveted to the reed
WHOLESALE MUSICAL MERCHANDISE
plates and in order to secure a proper width for
BALTIMORE, MD.
riveting the reeds were usually made with an en-
larged end, or, in other -words, an end of greater
width than the major portion of the length of
the reed. This prior method of manufacture was
BEST STRINGS
expensive, slow, and insured practically no accu-
racy to the quality of tones produced.
JOHNFRIEDRICH&BRO
Victor Distributors
One object of the invention is to do away with
1108 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
the necessity of grinding and milling mouth-organ
Established over half a century
reeds so that flat wire of even thickness can be
used and secured to the reed plates.
RUNG
A. BURDWISE
WEYMAHN
Superior Oualily MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
OLIVER DITSON CO.
DURRO
AND
STEWART
BOSTON, MASS.
Manufacture*
•mp*rtan and lehhen st
Largest Wholesale
Musical Merchandise
House in America
Buegeleisen & Jacobson
113 University Place
NEW YORK
MUSICAL
MERCHANDISE
Attractive Specialtiee
Modern Service
ESTABLISHED ISM
Black Diamond
Strings
THE WORLD'S BEST
National Musical String Co.
New Brunswick, N. J.
••m