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REVIEW
THE
VOL. LXXX. No. 4 Piblished Every Satirday. Edward Lyman Bill, Inc., 383 Madison Ave., New York, N.Y. Jan. 24,1925
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The Future Development of the Player
A Musical Instrument the Selling- Appeal of Which Is Unique in Its
Universality, Its Future Depends Primarily Upon a Realization of
These Selling Elements by the Retail Merchant in Merchandising It
A
LTHOUGH the player-piano, as it is constituted to-day,
be said to represent slightly over two decades of practical
develogwnehfv even though the player-piano mechanism was
introduced some time before, it ha^s. unquestionably served to revolu-
tionize the entire piano industry and may be said to have put not
only new life into the trade by giving instruments of the piano
type a wider appeal, but to have led to experimental work that has
opened up fields of tremendous promise for the future.
The player-piarib to-day is a marvelous instrument, despite the
fact that there are still many in the trade who regard it more or less^Sfc
in the ordinary light for the reason that they have been to.o-daselv
associated with it and thus lacking perspective^are inclined to a
as ordinary those features which from the musical and 1 mechanical
standpoints are really quite extraordinary.
It is doubtful if in the world of mechanics there is a prodi§j£
that is at the same time so complicated and yet so substantial and
foolproof. Passing through scores of processes and made up of
thousands of pieces of metal, leather, rubber and wood, "it seems
almost inconceivable that an instrument such as the ordinary player-
piano can be made so faithfully and well that it will undergo years
upon years of constant usage without developing even those faults
which usually come with ordinary wear and tear. So\.iar as the
manufacturer's end is concerned, the player-piano represents a devel-
opment that may be said to have reached a state of perfection.
From the merchandising angle the player has not fared quite
so well for reasons that have been explained*"time and time again
by those interested in the exploitation of the instrument and by
articles in the trade papers emphasizing the fact that^lhje^reason that
selling progress has not been more rapid is because the need for
educating the player prospect in the possibilities of the instrument
and as a customer in its proper operation have never been fully
appreciated by all too many retailers.
Unique in Its Appeal
Speaking broadly, there is no single musical instrument that
offers so much both in entertainment and education to its owner.
The proper enjoyment of the piano itself is limited to those trained
to play it, or to those associated with the trained pianist. Other
instruments reproduce faithfully and automatically the playing of
pianists and other instrumentalists and the voices of the great
vocalists without any control from the owner. The player-piano,
however, not only produces music of itself, but provides means
whereby the owner can play that music in accordance with his own
ideas of interpretation whether those ideas be recognized as gert-
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erally correct ,or not. In other words, it provides for him trained
fiftgers that can be guided according to his individual whim and
makes him personally the pianist.
Frcftn the selling angle the player-piano occupies a field by
itself, and that fact is being more generally recognized by music
merchants who seek to develop every sales channel in their respec-
tive territories. There are those who can play, and want to play
manually themselves, and there are those who desire, and quite
properly, to have their music come to them without effort, or to
htfre me selections presented as actually interpreted by the great
artists. But there is still that great third class which, while unable
quality of music manually, nevertheless
a musical knowledge, or at least a musical desire, that demands
self-expression.
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Its Contribution to Music
The player-piano has done its full share in making a musical
America by bringing piano music into every home where it was in
any way desired. It has overcome the handicap of waiting until
the training period of the young pianist is over before satisfactory
music is possible. It has overcome the prejudices and sneers of
teachers and professional musicians who in the early days came to
scoff and now find use for that same player-piano in rehearsal and
teaching work. In fact, its educational possibilities are only just now
being developed to their fullest extent, which again is a rather sad
commentary upon the foresightedness of those who have had the
exploitation of the player-piano in hand.
The future of the player-piano depends not alone upon the
thorough understanding of its educational possibilities, which
knowledge must be disseminated properly and widely, but upon a
merchandising plan that is stable and sound—one that is based upon
the proper musical value of the instrument and not upon its cheap-
ness. It must be handled with dignity commensurate with its
actual value and possibilities rather than, as is too often the case at
present, in a manner such as the green grocer or the hardware mer-
chant would follow in the presentation of his wares.
There has just been launched by the Standard Pneumatic
Action Co. the first great national advertising campaign devoted to
a player action and designed to carry to the public the proper message
not simply of the action but of the player-piano of which it is a
part. This campaign will be presented through magazines of great
circulation and will be read by millions of people, and the results
of this unique venture will be watched with great interest.
It is to be hoped that with the player action, or more properly