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Music Trade Review

Issue: 1921 Vol. 72 N. 10

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
TOU
THE
VOL. LXXII. No. 10
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman BUI, Inc., at 373 4th Ave., New York. March. 5, 1921
< < w
OOK at the atlas and not at the map" is the advice offered by one of the big national magazines to busi-
I
ness men of the United States in general. In many particulars this admonition is well worth con-
I
sideration, for there are many who lack the vision to see the important part played by international
•
»trade in the building up of the prosperity of any one country.
Export trade in musical instruments as such is certainly far from being active, due to a number of causes
beyond the control of those American manufacturers who are really enthusiastic over the possibilities of foreign
business. To neglect domestic problems in order to go after export trade would be foolish at this time, for the
results would not warrant the effort. But there is such a thing as watching the conditions in foreign markets,
studying the situation as it may change for the better, so as to be prepared to take advantage of favorable op-
portunities that undoubtedly will offer themselves for getting into the field of international trade.
The present lull in export trade is due principally to two things—the piling up of a four-billion-dollar
trade balance in favor of the United States as against foreign countries and the high premium now placed on
the American dollar in foreign countries, which precludes foreign buyers from doing business with us on a
short-time basis. As one authority puts it, foreign buyers since the armistice piled up this four-billion-dollar
trade balance as a result of purchases which would ordinarily have been stretched out over a period of years.
Normally they would have purchased what they needed, and the balance of trade kept practically level, al-
though it was turning in our favor, but instead of taking a sufficient amount of time so that demand would
balance demand, or so that we would absorb direct securities from the other side, as England and France did in
the past, this balance piled up through immense one-sided purchasing on the part of foreign buyers in a
short time.
As it stands now the inability or unwillingness of American banks to carry long-time foreign paper has
served to put a definite check upon the export business that was growing despite the handicap of exchange,
but plans are now under way through channels opened by the Edge Act to underwrite foreign paper and busi-
ness securities and by distributing them among the public in general serve to provide an extended line of credit
that will relieve the situation somewhat.
American musical instruments found their way into South American markets, into Australasia, "Spain,
and other countries in increasing quantities during and immediately after the war, and, owing to the lack of
European competition, they succeeded in establishing themselves more or less solidly in popular favor. It is
only by watching the business thus gained, by getting a thorough understanding of the future possibilities of
the market and of the credit situation and being prepared to meet the European in the matter of prices and
terms that we can hope to continue our hold on this foreign trade.
It is known that Great Britain and other European countries, including Germany, have come to realize
that their business existence practically depends upon the cultivation of foreign markets and have entered into
that work along most elaborate lines.
Prices are shaved and terms offered that add much to the difficulties of competition, particularly to the
American who has enjoyed short-time business even in the foreign markets. In doing its part in rehabilitat-
i n g the country's industries the music trade must see to it that efforts are made to hold such foreign trade as
has been built up during the past few years as a basis for future development, whether or not attempts are made
at this particular time to expand such business.
The time will undoubtedly come when any substantial export outlet for the products of America's
musical instrument factories will prove most welcome in taking over surplus stocks that cannot be absorbed
within our own country. Foreign markets under such conditions represent insurance against slowed down or
closed factories.
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE
MUSIC
TRADE
REVFW
PUBLISHED BY EDWARD LYMAN BILL, Inc.
President and Treasurer, C. L. Bill, 373 Fourth Ave., New York; Vice-President,
J. B. Spillane, 373 Fourth Ave., New York; Second Vice-President, Raymond Hill, 373
Fourth Ave., New York; Secretary, Edward Lyman Hill, 373 Fourth Ave., New York;
Assistant Treasurer, Win. A. Low.
J. B. SPILLANE, Editor
RAY BILL, B. B. WILSON, BRAID WHITE, Associate Editors
WILSON D. BUSH, Managing Editor
CARLETON CHACE, Business Manager
L. E. BOWERS, Circulation Manager
Executive and Reportorial Staff
EDWARD VAN HARLINGEN, V. D. WALSH, E. B. MUNCH, C. A. LEONARD, LEE ROBINSON,
EDWARD LYMAN BILL, SCOTT KINGWILL, THOS. W. BRESNAHAN, A. J. NICKLIN. .
WE8TEKN
DIVISION:
BOSTON O F F I C E :
Republic Bldg., 209 So. State St., Chicago.
JOHN H. WILSON, 324 Washington St.
Telephone, Wabash 5774.
Telephone, Main 6950.
LONDON, ENGLAND: 1 Gresham Buildings, Basinghall St., D. C.
NEWS SERVICE IS SUPPLIED WEEKLY BY OUR CORRESPONDENTS
LOCATED IN T H E LEADING CITIES THROUGHOUT AMERICA.
Published Every Saturday at 373 Fourth Avenue, New York
Entered as second-class matter September 10, 1892, at the post office at New York, N. Y.,
under the Act of March 3, 1879.
SUBSCRIPTION (including postage). United States and Mexico, $2.00 per year;
Canada, $3.50; all other countries, $5.00.
ADVERTISEMENTS, $6.00 per inch, single column, per insertion.
On quarterly or
yearly contracts a special discount is allowed. Advertising pages, $150.
REMITTANCES, in other than currency forms, should be made payable to Edward
Lyman Bill, Inc.
anil
Departments conducted by an expert wherein all ques-
aUU
tions of a technical nature relating to the tuning,
ItonaMinonfc
regulating and repairing of pianos and player-pianos
W : | J d l UllCllIb
are dealt with, will be found in another section of
this paper. We also publish a number of reliable technical works, information concerning
which will be cheerfully given upon request.
Exposition Honors Won by The Review
Grand Prix
Paris Exposition, 1900
Silver Medal.. .Charleston Exposition, 1902
Diploma
Pan-American Exposition, 1901
Gold Medal
St. Louis Exposition, 1904
Gold Medal—Lewis-Clark Exposition, 1905
LONG
DISTANCE
Vol. LXXII
TELEPHONES—NUMBERS 6982—6083 MADISON
Connecting all Departments
Cable address: "Elblll, New York"
NEW YORK, MARCH 5, 1921
SQ.
No. 10
NATIONAL PLAYER-PIANO W E E K
N
ATIONAL PLAYER-PIANO WEEK, which was originally
proposed last Fall, but which owing to circumstances had to
be postponed, is now about to become an accomplished fact through
the energetic action of the Standard Pneumatic Action Co. and the
co-operation of the manufacturers, nearly 100 of them, who are
using Standard actions in their instruments.
The co-operation of these many manufacturers gives a really
national aspect to the celebration which is to be held during the
week of April 2 to 9 inclusive, for the manufacturers will naturally
bring into line many hundreds of dealers who are depended upon
to put the idea over locally. The campaign has been carefully
prepared, and with a full month to get the details ready for the start-
off, this first National Player-Piano Week should meet with a full
measure of r success. Certain it is that the trade just now should,
and will, welcome the stimulus to business offered by this celebra-
tion, for the concentration on player-pianos for the week should
result in attracting sufficient attention to the player-piano and what
it represents to have a distinct effect upon sales.
The Standard Pneumatic Action Co. is to be congratulated
upon the vision of its officials in launching the National Player-
Piano Week and mapping out the campaign and lining up the forces
at a considerable expenditure of both time and money. It is cer-
tain that, properly conducted, the direct results to the trade as a
whole will be far greater than any indirect results that the sponsors
for the week can hope to realize. It is a real move along lines of
trade betterment.
ELIMINATING OBJECTIONABLE SONGS
F
OR many years there have been arguments presented in and out
of the music trade for a general improvement in the class of
popular songs offered the public, and particularly for the elimina-
tion of suggestive songs and lyrics, but until very recently there
has been little or no attempt made to really carry on such a clean-
up campaign, either for the protection of the trade or the public.
REVIEW
MARCH 5, 1921
The Executive Board of the Music Publishers' Protective Asso-
ciation, however, has come to a realization of the fact that the
publishers themselves were in the best position to start house-
cleaning by banning suggestive numbers from their own catalogs,
and has urged that the members of the Association, including prac-
tically all the leading publishers, scrutinize the lyrics of ali songs
selected in the future with a view to cutting out the "suggestive,
lascivious, double entendre, or blue" material. It is believed that
by taking this step themselves the publishers will forestall any
attempt that may be made to reform popular songs from the outside.
It has been suggested several times that certain societies, or in-
dividuals, be empowered by law to pass upon popular songs before
they were offered to the public, and only last Fall it was urged that
a National Board of Song Censors, similar to the National Board
of Motion Picture Censors, be created to control the output of
popular songs. At that time The Review declared, as it had de-
clared several times before, that music publishers, being at the
fountainhead, as it were, could save themselves much trouble and
annoyance from officious outsiders by doing the censoring them-
selves. The loss to the publisher through refusing to issue songs
offered just because the lyrics were somewhat off color will hardly
be noticeable, for it is a known fact that very few of the really
suggestive songs have run up into big sales totals. Even the man
who will laugh at a suggestive song when presented on the stage
is likely to object most strongly to bringing that song into his home.
It is to be hoped that for the benefit of themselves and the
music industry as a whole, particularly the makers of music rolls
and records, publishers give heed -to the warning and earnestly try
to bar the objectionable from their catalogs. Popular songs need
not be serious, but they certainly can be funny without being nasty.
THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE TAX SITUATION
I
F more of the members of the music industry, particularly re-
tailers, had the proper conception of what the present organized
fight against inimical Federal tax legislation means to each indi-
vidual in the industry, the ranks of those who are already co-
operating with the Music Industries Chamber of Commerce would
be augmented considerably.
In the suggestions made for a tax program that will provide
required revenue, and at the same time make excise taxes unneces-
sary, the point that should be emphasized most strongly is that
unless some sort of tax program is put through that will abolish
all excise taxes, there is a strong probability of Congress, or at least
the Ways and Means Committee of the House, considering seri-
ously the suggestion of the Secretary of the Treasury and others
that present excise taxes be doubled and fixed at ten per cent in
the case of musical instruments.
To use a gambling expression, it is really a case of "double or
nothing." If the fight being made by the music industry through
its Chamber of Commerce does not result in the adoption of a
schedule that will eliminate excise taxes entirely there is a strong
probability of the music men being saddled with an extra five per
cent revenue tax.
Those who are in close touch with Washington and alive to
the trend of thought there emphasize the fact that there is real
danger in the air, and that every ounce of energy in the trade will
be required to switch things around so that the industry will be
accorded the consideration to which it is justly entitled. This tax
fight is not simply propaganda to ease up the tax burden of the
trade, but it is a fight to preserve the industry from additional
excise taxes which threaten, if assessed, to prove ruinous to busi-
ness. This is a real fight and not a pleasant pink tea.
A FOUNDATION FOR PROSPERITY
N the course of his remarks at the organization meeting of the
I Alexander,
board of directors of the National Bank of Commerce James S.
president, expressed the opinion that there is now a
better foundation for true prosperity than has existed at any time
since the outbreak of war in Europe. "The future does not hold
an expectation of a return to the abnormal activity of the latter
part of 1919 and the early months of 1920, and a return to these
conditions would be undesirable," he declared. "The year 1921
offers promise of a slow but sure revival of business on a sound
basis."

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