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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
Oregon Music Trades Association Plans
Children's State-Wide Essay Contest
Prizes to Be Offered to the 142,770 Children in the Grade Schools of That State for Essays on
Music—Philip T. Clay, of Sherman, Clay & Co., a Speaker at Meeting
DORTLAND, ORE., March 5.—The Oregon
Music Trades Association at their meeting
held in the banquet room of the Hotel Benson,
the evening of February 24, adopted the plans
for a State-wide music essay contest. More
than fifty members of the association were in at-
tendance and honor guests were Philip T. Clay,
of San Francisco, president of Sherman, Clay &
Co., and Harry A. James, special representative
of the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Co.
The contest plans adopted followed a report
of two committees appointed at their January
meeting. One committee was on "Music in the
Public Schools" and the other on "Educational
Musical Advertising." The report of the joint
committees was read by B. R. Brassfield, chair-
man and manager of the Wiley B. Allen Co.,
which was as follows:
"After careful consideration the following plan
of procedure for the propagating of a 'Music
in the Public Schools' campaign was accepted
by the joint committee and is herewith recom-
mended to its members. First:—Realizing the
urgent need of first stimulating and creating
new enthusiasm and favorable public sentiment,
it was decided to first try and win the good-
will of the school children, and this can best be
accomplished by the promotion of a musical
essay contest. Second:—The ambition of this
association is to advance the study and enjoy-
ment of music in three directions: first, music
in the home, by making the home musical; sec-
ond, music in the school, by making the school
musical and encouraging the study of music, and
third, 'Make America Musical' the adopted slo-
gan of the National Association of Music Mer-
chants. Third:—The title of the essay to cover
the above would be 'What Is the Advantage of
Music in the Home, in the Schools and Com-
munity Music?' This title, we believe, suggests-
and furnishes in itself to the school children
a wealth of inspiration for the writing of the
essay.
"Qualification:—Your committee recommends
that contestants should be limited to grade
school students, owing to the fact that high
school students would naturally have the ad-
vantage and yet will be called in to help the
younger students in formulating their essays.
"Rules:—The total number of words of the
entire three subjects shall not exceed 300 words.
Legibility, grammar, neatness and punctuation
will be considered. All essays must be in con-
testants' own handwriting in ink.
"Prizes:—After considerable thought, your
committee recommends that cash prizes be
given, that if merchandise in the way of musical
instruments were given it would have the ten-
dency to commercialize the real thought and the
contest lose its real meaning and not be as in-
viting to the children. In addition to the indi-
vidual prizes, we recommend a silk flag to be
given to the school sending in the three best
essays.
"The cost of promoting this campaign will be
in the neighborhood of one thousand dollars,
and we recommend that the amount be raisel by
local subscription and from the dealers through-
out the State. It is further recommended that
we enlist the services of the Parent-Teachers'
Association in promoting the campaign, to re-
ceive the essays, to elect the judges and award
the prizes."
After submitting the report Mr. Brassfield
made a few remarks in favor of its adoption,
saying: "We must do something and this idea
is a good start toward getting music in the pub-
lic schools, a plan that was impressed upon us
at our January meeting by Alex MacDonald, of
New York City, who was present and gave us
an inspirational talk on the subject."
The report was discussed by the members
and on motion of H. H. Princehouse, of the
McCormick Music Co., and seconded by E. B.
Hyatt, was adopted unanimously. The date of
the contest was then set to be from March 15
to May 15. During the discussion it was shown
that the contest would have a far-reaching ef-
fect as there are in the grade schools of Ore-
gon 142,770 pupils eligible for the contest.
President G. F. Johnson then introduced Mr.
Clay, who addressed the members and gave out
two warnings to them. He cautioned them to
go slow on the instalment selling and to be
careful on their trade-ins. "The growth of the
instalment business is going to reflect on the
country," he declared. "For instance, more
building is going op in the United States than
ever before. The men who are working in this
line are being paid by the day. Authorities
predict that in 1927 there will be much unem-
ployment. But the men who are working have
mortgaged their incomes in the belief that their
wages will continue to be paid for years to
come when, as a matter of fact, the peak of the
building has been reached." He urged the deal-
ers to look into the financial standing of their
customers before signing up a contract on an in-
stalment basis. He also stated that the trade-
MARCH 20,
1926
in problem was equally serious and cautioned
I he dealers to limit their trade-in business as
much as possible. He praised the work of the
association and urged them to be as friendly out
of the meeting as well as in it, and to pull to-
gether at all times. Harry A. James also ad-
dressed the association, entertaining them with
a clever monologue and demonstrated that
Britishers are not without humor.
Another feature of the meeting was the danc-
ing of little Florence Oliver Thompson, five-
year-old daughter of George Thompson, secre-
tary of the association, and a musical program
furnished by the G. F. Johnson Piano Co., being
songs by Robert Johnson, tenor, accompanied by
Jean Meyer Richards, and violin solos by Syl-
via Weinstein Magulis, accompanied by her sis-
ter, Helen Weinstein.
Regret was expressed by the members at the
departure of Frank M. Case, who for the past
seventeen years has been identified with the mu-
sic business in Portland, for sixteen years as
manager of the Wiley B. Allen Co., and the
past year as manager of Sherman, Clay & Co.
It was voted to send a letter to Mr. Case ex-
pressing the regret of the members at his de-
parture. President Johnson closed the meeting
with a short address, referring to the essay con-
test, and the business conditions in the city,
and stated that he believed that 1926 would be
a good year for those who would get out and get
the business, but that they could not do that by
expecting the business to come to them. He
emphasized the fact that it takes work to get
the business.
New England Conservatory of Music
Buys Chickering Ampico for Teaching
Instrument Used Chiefly in the Work of Francis G. Findlay, Director of the Department of
Public School Music, in This Old and Notable Institution
A NNOUNCEMENT has recently been made
that a Chickering Style 65 Ampico has been
installed in the New England Conservatory of
Music by Chickering & Sons, Boston. The in-
strument has been adopted by the conservatory
chiefly by Francis G. Findlay, director of the
public school music department. He employs
the instrument to illustrate lectures on music
appreciation and also in his classes on orchestral
conducting to show the interpretations of Artur
New England Conservatory of Music
as a regular part of its teaching equipment and Bodanzky and other noted conductors in over-
as the exclusive reproducing piano of that insti- tures and symphonic works.
Several prominent faculty members of the
tution.
The New England Conservatory of Music is New England Conservatory record their play-
one of the oldest institutions of its kind in the ing exclusively for the Ampico, among them
United States. For many years it has been Julius Chaloff, Antoinette Szumowska and
under the directorship and guidance of George George Proctor.
W. Chadwick, dean of American composers.
Located in Boston, one of the musical centers
of America, it affords pupils the opportunity,
The A. M. C. Co., Hendersonville, N. C, has
the environment and the atmosphere so neces-
been granted a charter recently to conduct a re-
sary to a finished musical education.
The Ampico at the Conservatory is used tail business in musical instruments.
A. M. G. Music Go. Chartered