Classic Mode

Music Trade Review

Issue: 1923 Vol. 77 N. 25

THE
12
THE TECHNICAL DEPARTMENT
(C ontin.ued from page 11)
aeserves . . An old violin sometimes has a mar­
velous tone which no new instrument seems to
be able to equal. If we ask why it is that the
tone of the violin can be pres erved for two
centuries and more, while no piano holds its
tone for much more th a n a tenth of that time,
the answer is that the violin is treated with the
utmost care, kept wrapped up like a new-born
baby and anxiously watched by a musician who
has the utmos t interest in preserving it from
all untoward circumstances. A piano, per con­
tra, is exposed to any and every kind of physical
extreme, is left for months at a time in an
overheated dry atmosphere, and then fOT more
months in one saturated with moisture; and
consequently is treated in a manner which ren­
ders certain the complete internal breakdown
of the wood within a len g th of time not greater
than that required, in popular belief, for a violin
to mature and begin to show its tonal pos­
sibilities.
Of course, the piano can hardly be altered
much in this respect, nor have I mentioned the
terrific effects of constant neglect, and th e in­
difference of owners to regular tuning. On
the other hand, it is absurd to say that the
soundboard is subjected to excessive strains. It
bears no more in proportion than does the belly
of th e violin. The enemy is not in the con­
struction of the piano but in the domestic
interior where the piano has to live. If only
owners of piano s could be induced to take rea­
sonable care of their instruments, soundboards
would not break down in a few yea rs .
My advice to my manufacturing friends th en
is to study .carefully the tonal requirements of
the pianos they are making, to decide upon the
sort of tone they want, and then to look o,ut
for boards which will give that. The more rigid
the substance, the sharper the tone; the more
elastic, the duller. The proportion between
hard and soft regions in the wood is, therefore,
very important and must be watched with great
care. Moreover, each scale has its own pecul­
iarities and a certain kind of constru ction will
be as bad for one as good for a nother.
REBUSHING ACTION FLANGES
MUSIC
TRADE
REVIEW
DECEMBER
22, 1923
PLAYER-PIANOS DOMINATING DEMAND IN KANSAS CITY
Dealers Report Demand for Players Far Ahead of That for Straight Instruments-J. W. Jenkins'
Sons Music Co. Gives Successful Duo-Art C oneert-R. R. Sparrow on Trip Through State
KANSAS CITY, Mo., December 17.-Local dealers
report in ge neral a ve ry fa ir business in pianos
with the player sales far in excess of those of
s trai g ht pianos. In the high-grade pianos the
bab y grand is th e most P9Pular. The music
co mpanies ar e runnnin g a great deal of adver­
tising matter and showing window displays
appropriate to the holiday season, both of which
they feel are bringin g excellent results.
John Mahaffey, advertising manager of W. W.
Kimball Co., reports that on Novembe r 1 his
firm had th e largest stock of player-pianos it
ever had on hand, but by December 8 there
were only six left in stock. Since then they
have been able to get shipments of only two
or th re e at a time while the demand has been
for twice that number. . The compa ny is doing
some extensive advertising and has increased its
space about fourfold with· the result that the
business has excee ded by $100,000 in volume
any other year. In one window for the Christ­
mas seaso n th ey have what is called Saint Nick's
Mus ic D e n, with tin sel, soH lights, imitation
snow a nd Christmas wreaths. In the back­
ground is shown a piano. This display is at­
tracting a great deal of attention.
Christian Bissell, advertising m a nager of the
Starr Piano Co., stated that that firm had an
excellent Christmas trade in pianos, showing a
big inc rease over last year not only in pianos
but in all d epartments.
Mrs. H a rr y Wunderlich, wife of Harry Wun­
derlich, head of Wu~derlich Piano Co., w a s
operated upon December 14.
Manager O'Meara, of the vVunderlich Piano
Co., reports th a t the holiday demand is for the
Ampico re-enacting piano. In the high-class
pianos the baby grand is in demand. The in,
terior of the store is decorated with Christmas
wreaths , with streamers of red and green paper
roping, which shows in vivid contrast against
the ivory wo od"l'ork of the Fr ench doors. One
of the windows feature s the sma lle r musical
instruments, while the other is devot ed to a
Premier baby grand piano, set· in the midst of
holiday decoration s, consisting of imitation
snow and greenery. The window is attracting
a great deal of favorable comment.
The]. \V. Jenkins' Sons :Mu sic Co. has bee n
doing some ex tensive advertising, featuring the
Steinway, Aeolian Pianola piano, th e Vose
grand, the Brambach g rand, the Harwood
grand, the L ester g rand and the Steinway.
Th ey have, as suggested for Christmas gifts,
merchandise coupons which may be mad e out
for any amount and presented to friend s to be
redeemed at the Jenkins store.
The]. W. Jenkins' Sons Music Co. had an­
other Duo-Art concert at the Grand Avenue
Temple, Thursday, De cember 14, with Mrs.
Raymond Havens, contralto; Powell V\- eaver,
organist, and John Thomp so n at the piano with
the Duo-Art. The audi ence was ve ry appre­
ciative of the example of musicianship.
R. R. Sparrow, manager of the Kansas City
branch of the Columbia Phonograph Co., made
a flying trip through Kan sas and found the
deakrs in a higW y optimistic mood. The Rora­
baugh Dry Goods Co., at Wichita, and Charles
Ta ylor, ·at Liberal, Kan., report unusually good
business. Mr. Sparrow was highl y pleas ed with
the general conditions throughout the entire
Sta teo
R. E. CANON REMODELS STORE
FRANKLIN, PA., Dece mber l8.-- Alterations in R.
E. Canon's Music Sto·re have re cently been com­
pleted and include a new balcony running en­
tirely around the interior of the room. It is
estimated that the floo,r space is increased SO
per cent. The balcony. will be used for the
storage and display of pianos and phonographs
in addition to those on the main floor.
--,
"Dear Mr. V.,Thite: Will yOU kindly tell m e
through the co lumns of The Revi ew how bu sh­
ings are put into flanges, etc., in the factory
and what is the best method for rebushing
fl anges for outs ide tuners and repairmen? Any
information which you can give me along this
line I shall appreciate. Yours truly, vV. G.
Bradford."
There are different ways of doin .e: the trjck.
The old hand method was worked with needle
and long strips of the bushing: cut to th e right
thickness and worked through a whole set of
flanges placed side by side and clamped together.
Even with all the modern improvements, I think
it is probably best to have the bushin gs worked
individually to fit their pins, by experts at this
very delicate ope ration. It doe s not seem pos­
sible to obtain perfect results with any sys tem
which treats th e m all alike, me chanica lly.
To re-bush the best method is simply: Don't!
I n other words, get new flanges.
But if one must re-bush for oneself, get the
very finest bushing cloth, cut a strip as wide as
three times and a trifle more the diamet er of th e
hole, then taper off one end to a point and
pull the bushing through with a little glue on it.
Pull through both hol es and lea ve the cloth
to dry. Then work the hole to the proper width
with a needle.
Personally I should never re-bu sh for myself
if I could get the flanges all ready. The ready­
made flanges are properly bushed and one may
be certain of th em.
CORRESPONDENCE
is solicited and may be addressed to William
Braid White, care of The Music Trade Review,
\Vestern Division, 29 South State street, Chi­
cago, Ill.
KLEERNOTE
TRACKER BAR
SUCTION
PUMP
The only thorough and efficient
Tracker Bar Suction or Vacuum
Pump. Absolutely essential for remov­
ing dirt, dust and paper particles from the
tracker bar. Keeps the instrument in proper play­
ing condition, preventing weak and silent notes.
We al'e prepared to make
Special Prices to Dealers
and Tuners.
Illustrating the quantity of lint, dust, etc., taken
out of a player-piano. It is this dust and lint that
prevents perfect playing and causes silent . notes.
HAMMACHER,SCHLEMMER & CO.
PIANO AND PLAYER HARDWARE, FELTS AND TOOLS
NEW YORK SINCE 1848
4th Avenue and 13th Street
DECEMBER 22, 1923
THE
MUSIC
TRADE
REVIEW
A. C. THIEBES OPENING NEW WAREROOMS IN ST. LOUIS
Store Will Be Located at 1103 Olive Street, Handling Pianos and Talking Machines-Fay-Buchan,a n
Music Co. Moves to New Quarters-Mrs. Frances E. Clark Attends Teachers' Meeting
ST. LOUIS, Mo" December 18,-The music stores
were busy enough last \\;eek, but there was some
complaint that the purchases were mostly of
talking machines and records and music rolls
and small musical merchandise, with sales of
pianos lagging somewhat. Doubt was expressed
whether, on volume o·f business, December
would measure up to December of last year.
This is partly attributed to increase of unem­
ployment; partly to the cheapness of automo­
biles and gasoline and partly to the general
timidity which fears things that may never
come to pass. Not all of the dealers talk that
way, however. Some say their sales of pianos
and players the past week have been all that
could be desired and that they expect this week
to be better. Most of the sales now are for
Christmas delivery,
Arthur C. Thiebes, former proprietor of the
Thiebes Piano Co" is back on Olive street
after several years of comparative inactivity.
He has taken over the building at 1103 Olive
street, heretofore shared by the Shattinger
Music Co. and the Artophone Corp" and is open
for business there under the name of the A, C.
Thiebes Co" Inc., with lines of pianos and talk­
ing machines, He will handle the piano lines of
Bush & Gerts, Chicago; Hobart M. Cable, La
Porte, Ind.; the Straube Piano· Co" Hammond,
Ind,; the Kreiter Piano Co., Milwaukee, Wis"
and the Artophonc and Sonora talking ma­
chines. He takes over the retail business of the
Artophone Co-rp. The latter will continue to
handle the wholesale business, with warerooms
at 1213 Pine street and an office at the Olive
street store. The Shattinger Co., dealing in
sheet music, has moved to the third floor of the
Arcade Building. Mr. Thiebes, during the years
since he sold out to the Vv'urlitzer Co" has
continued in business in a quiet way, as a fac­
tory distributor 0.£ pianos, maintaining stores
at Bismarck, Ironton and Desloge, Mo" and has
four traveling representatives in southeast
Missouri and as far as Blytheville, Ark. He has
not completed his selling organization, but was
open for business to-day. Later he will have
a formal opening.
The Fay-Buchanan Music Co. has moved from
Thirteenth and Olive streets to larger quarters
at 1227 Olive street. President Buchanan is in
charge of the office and Vice-president Fay is
looking after the firm's interests on the road,
He has recently returned ft'om a trip through
northern Illinois and Missouri. The company
handles music rolls, the Starr phonograph and
the Gennett records.
Charles Spalller, of Paul G. Mehlin & Sons,
New York, was here the latter part of the week
on his way home from a trip to the Pacific
Coast.
Mrs. Frances E, Clark, head of the Edu­
cational Department of the Victor Talking Ma­
chine Co., spent the past week in St. Louis
attending the annual meeting of the Missouri
Sta te Teachers' Association, She spoke at the
conference of music supervisors on "Apprecia­
tion of Appreciation." A luncheon was given
in her honor by the Federated Music Clubs of
the St. Louis district.
When Charles Kunkel, member of the music
firm of Kunkel Bros., died recently there was
pending against him in the Circuit Court a suit
brought by his wife, Mrs. Ella E. Kunkel, for
title to the property at 3750 Lindell boulevard,
occupied by the firm. She alleges that it was
pllrchased with her money, but that her hus­
band placed the title in himself. The property
is valued at $15,000. The case has been con­
tinued to enable appointment of an adminis­
trator to represent the defendant.
BAILARD=CRAMER CO. OPENS
Stieff Advertising Copy Sent by Airplane to
Reach Opening Announcement in Time
SANTA BARBARA, CAL., December 1O,---Thc open­
ing of the Bailard-Cramer Music Co, on De­
cember 1 was an event of great importance in
this city, The occasion was commented upon
by both the morning and evening papers of the
city by special Bailard-Cramer sections, pub­
lished as a part of the regular issues. The
growth of the o'rganization has been rapid. The
company first opened its doors to the public
in September, 1921, in a little place on upper
State street. The progress of the company is
described by the Daily News as "Santa Bar­
bara's Recagnitio'n of the Best Music." The
house has built up its business on the carrying
of quality lines and the general music house
idea. In the piano field the firm has had ex­
ceptional success with the Chas. M. Stieff piano,
which this company has featured very strongly,
After two years of st eadily growing business
the original quarters were found far too small,
so the new large warerooms on State and
Carillo streets were opened. The opening was
marked by a concer,! at which many prominent
artists entertained. A publicity event which at­
tracted much attention was the arrival by air­
plane of Stieff full-page copy fo·r the local news­
papers from the headquarters of Chas. M. Stieff,
Inc., in Baltimore. This was the only method
by which it was possible to· have copy arrive
in time to be inserted in the special section
devoted to, this opening. Thomas Adamson,
manager for the Bailard-Cramer Co., in com­
menting on the resourcefulness thus manifested
on the part of the Stieff house, stated:
"This is just an example of the service and
courtesy which is shown in all our dealings with
the house of Stieff and the infinite care used
by the company in the transaction of even the
smaller business details."
In an article in th e Daily News, headed "Stieff
J'iano Monument to Mighty Genius," a tribute
is paid to the quality of the Stieff piano, and its
selection as a favorite by many of the leading
artists of the world, A no less interesting
13
article also appears in The Morning Press, in
which the Stieff piano is described as the crea­
tion of a musician and artisan. A brief outline
of the life of Chas. M. Stieff, founder of the
house of Stieff and creato'r of the Stieff piano,
is given and his thorough knowledge of music
and piano instruction is described as the basic
fundamental of the artistic merit of the Stieff
piano of the present day.
In addition to the Stieff, the Bailard-Cramer
Co. also carries the Hobart M, Cable and the
Kohler & Chase pianos, the vVelte-Philharmonic
organ, Edison, Cheney and Burnham phono­
graphs, Edison and Vocalio'n records and Hol­
ton band and orchestra instruments .
PUBLISHERS BUY TONK PIANOS
An exceptional retail month in the sale of
grands has just been experienced by ,W illiam
Tonk & Bro" Inc. , N ew York, who numbered
among their customers three of the executives
of the music publishing house of Waterson,
Berlin & Snyder Co, In addition to purchasing
ten new Tonk uprights for the rehearsal booths
in their establishment at Forty-seventh ani:!
Broadway, Henry Waterson, Sr., has purchased '
a Tonk reproducin g grand and H.enry W~ter­
son, J r" has se lected a Tonk standard grand,
both for their res pective residence,~. , Coupled
with the abo \',c tran sa ction was' the Purchase of
a nother Tonk grand by·.Jp e Hiller, professional
manager for the publishing firm. .
DANIEL MILLER CO. CHARTERED
PEORlJ\, lLL" December 17. -Incorporation papers
have recently been filed here for the Daniel
Miller Co. to manufacture and deal in musical
instruments, The concern will have a capitaliza­
tion of $50,000 and will operate at 116-A South
Adams strect. The officers are W. C. Leavitt,
L E. Sutherland and Ren L. Thurman. Gal­
braith & Sutherland, loca ted in the Lehmann
Bllilding, are corre spondents.
3·Great Pianos
With 3 sounding boards
in each (Patented) have the
greatest talking points in
the trade:
@.~.rnI~~!¥l~
RIUIIr&.
® ~@lm
1mlWI'mIZ. \
hnt.,I'ar.am~~ ~8or..U8a!.
·THE LEADING LINE
lMI£~ ~ ~ l1!lLJlW ~
d. WEAVER PIANOS
Ii.
•
na.w&. . .
IIIIDTnu..
_s...Do.I~ ..........
Grand•• Upriihts
and Player.
m:lID@~lID JUlJ~~
YORK PIANOS
1l'1I1LU"&. . .
_nw:.
1zm_ _ ~I~b!CIml&A_
Upriiht. and Players
UVINGSTON PIANOS
Upriiht. and Player-Piano.
If your competitor does not already have thi.
line iO after it at once
Weaver Piano Co., Inc.
FACTORY
E.ta6li.h.J
1.,0
We fix" 0 n e p ric e " ­
wholesale and retail.
The Heppe Piano Co.
YORK, P,A.
For over 25 years Specialists
in hi~gh grade Piano Cases
PHILADELPIDA, PA.
Paterson Piano
Case Co.
PATERSON, N. J.

Download Page 12: PDF File | Image

Download Page 13 PDF File | Image

Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).

Pro Tip: You can flip pages on the issue easily by using the left and right arrow keys on your keyboard.