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THE MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
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 Bill, 373
Fourth Ave., New York; Secretary, Edward Lyman Bill, 373 Fourth Ave., New York;
Assistant Treasurer, Wm. 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
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.
under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Y.,
SUBSCRIPTION
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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.
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Departments conducted by an expert wherein all ques-
tions of a technical nature relating to the tuning,
regulating and repairing of pianos and player-pianos
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
Diploma...-.
Paris Exposition, 1900
Silver Medal
Pan- American Exposition, 1901
Gold Medal
Gold Medal—Lewis-Clark Exposition,
LONG DISTANCE
Vol. LXXIII
Charleston Exposition, 1902
St. Louis Exposition, 1904
1905
TELEPHONES—NUMBERS 5983—6983 MADISON
Connecting all Departments
Cable Address: "Elblll, New York"
NEW YORK, OCTOBER 22, 1921
SQ.
No. 17
BROADENING ASSOCIATION ACTIVITIES
HE general tendency of well-organized local associations of music
trade interests to take a definite part in local civic and semi-
political movements is progress in the right direction, for it is
calculated to place the music industry on record as being of distinct
importance in the business world and so impress those who are
connected directly or indirectly with such general movements.
In Dallas, Tex., recently, the local music trade association was
prominent among the other trade bodies that lent their endorsement
to the proposal for a bond issue to provide for the repaving of a
number of the streets of the city. Similar moves have been made by
other associations.
Although it may be argued that a local association of music mer-
chants should devote its attention chiefly to looking after the interests
of its own industry, the fact remains that any movement that is
calculated to make a city better to live in, or better to do business in,
is going to help directly every business man in that town, the music
merchant as well as others. On that basis it is right and proper for
the music merchant to go outside of his own narrow field and place
himself distinctly on record in such public matters through the
medium of his association.
T
TRADE ASSOCIATIONS AND THE GOVERNMENT
CCORDING to reports from Washington the attitude of the
Government toward trade associations, what they may do and
what they may not do legally, is still somewhat a matter of doubt. At
the present time the Department of Commerce is co-operating with
the Department of Justice in determining the attitude to be taken
by the Government toward organizations exchanging information,
particularly in the matter of prices.
Information has been received by the Government that several
hundred organizations are exchanging price information or statistics
of one sort or another, and in some cases it is emphasized that only
by the exchange of such information can various lines of industry
hope to carry on their businesses economically and yet profitably. In
A
OCTOBER 22,
1921
many cases the actions of the associations are innocent in themselves,
but nevertheless are held to violate existing laws. There is a move-
ment on foot, however, to change the laws with a view to allow-
ing more latitude for the activities of the association, while still pro-
viding a check against any attempt to operate in restraint of trade.
The Anti-Trust laws as at present constituted have perhaps
accomplished some good by discouraging certain monopoly, but expe-
rience has shown that just as often as not the organization or indi-
vidual prosecuted has come within the toils of the law through inno-
cent violation of the statutes due to an earnest effort to standardize
business and help trade without injuring competitors. It is felt that a
few clearly defined laws with teeth, and designed to punish the real
restrainer of trade, would be found more effective than the present
cumbersome rules and regulations that keep the honest business
men on the anxious seat and from doing things that are perfectly
ethical and very desirable from a business standpoint, but which
threaten to transgress Federal statutes.
EDWARD VAH HARLINGEN, V. D. WALSH, E. B. MUNCH, LEE ROBINSON, C. R. TIGHE,
EDWARD LYMAN BILL, SCOTT KINGWILL, THOS. W. BRESNAHAN, A. J. NICKLIN.
W E S T E R N DIVISION:
BOSTON O F F I C E :
Republic Bldg., 209 So. State St., Chicago.
JOHN H. WILSON, 324 Washington St.
Telephone, Wabash S242-S243.
Telephone, Main 6950.
LONDON, ENGLAND: 1 Gresham Buildings, Basinghall St., D. C.
NEWS SERVICE IS S U P P L I E D WEEKLY BY OUR CORRESPONDENTS
LOCATED IN T H E LEADING CITIES THROUGHOUT
AMERICA.
REVIEW
PIANOS IN. THE SCHOOLS
T
H E report published in The Review last week regarding the
pianos in the Minneapolis schools and the recommendations made
by the business superintendent who prepared the report are of par-
ticular value to music merchants generally for the arguments that are
given to them and which may be used to advantage in putting through
deals for pianos in local schools.
The report emphasizes the wisdom of the school owning rather
than renting the pianos, and although in the majority of cities pianos
are purchased outright there are still some sections where the renting
habit prevails and where the arguments and figures presented should
prove of real value.
The really interesting section of the report, however, concerns
the care of the piano. It was shown that during the past year only
$407.50 was paid for tuning 203 pianos. At $2 per upright and a
slightly higher rate for grands, this indicated that the average for the
year was less than a single tuning per instrument, and as some had
received attention several times it means that a number of the pianos
had not been tuned at all during the entire twelve months.
The report was particularly emphatic in advising that this matter
of tuning receive earnest attention and that an appropriation of at
least $900 be made for that purpose this year. It is a known fact
that even in the larger cities, such as New York, the average school
piano is generally entirely out of tune and very much neglected. It
would seem proper for individual tuners, as well as the members of
the National Association of Piano Tuners, to give this matter earnest
attention and to emphasize to the school authorities the necessity for
keeping pianos in proper tune, not only for the protection of the in-
struments themselves, but in order to educate the children to an
appreciation of proper piano tone.
The average school piano is used from one to several hours a
day, five days a week, and approximately ten months a year, and it
the ordinary piano in the home, which is subject to much less use,
requires tuning every four or six months, then the school piano needs
the attention of the tuner at much more frequent intervals.
WHERE ARE THE SALESMEN?
I
T seems somewhat paradoxical that in the midst of the existent un-
employment situation there should again be heard the complaint in
the trade that really qualified piano salesmen are hard to find. By
this is not meant men who have been engaged in other lines of busi-
ness and think they can sell pianos, but rather men who have been
trained in the business, know pianos, and also know how to get pros-
pects, follow them up and close sales.
The Review has recently received several inquiries from retail
piano houses for capable men who are willing to go out in the field
and bring in business and who will not insist upon being placed in
managerial or semi-official inside positions at the outset. It may be
that the concerns having difficulty in building up their sales organiza-
tions are the exception, but at least there are several which confess
that they are having just that difficulty.
There has been much said of the trained piano men who, during
the boom times, gave up piano-selling to go into the selling of
securities and automobiles as offering more attractive inducements.
Just now, however, neither of those fields is to be considered active,
and it might be interesting to know where good piano salesmen have
gone at this time. It is a question that gives food for thought.