Music Trade Review

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THE
JANUARY 23, 1926
MUSIC TRADE
11
REVIEW
TECHNICAL DEPARTMENT
Conducted By William Braid White
training methods. Pending this solution, which
in no case could become effective within a
short time, there now appears a plan which
bears all the earmarks of the practical, which
has undoubtedly been carefully worked out and
Y. M. C. A., of That City, Has Worked Out Plan Whereby Students of Piano Tuning Take which I, for one, desire very much to see given
every opportunity to prove its effectiveness and
Theoretical Course in School Combined With Shop Work Among the Leading Retailers
practical value.
of the City Who Are Working With the School—The Advantages of This System
Philadelphia Comes Forward
Probably a good many of those who read this
OR more years than one likes to think of, young men from the outside world into the
men of the piano industry have been be- piano industry via the schools have had to be department are aware that for some years the
wailing the lack of means for imparting based upon the possible earning power of the Philadelphia Y. M. C. A. has conducted a school
technical training to those young men whom outside man. The factories meanwhile have of piano tuning under the effective and able
they have always wished to attract into their looked on and neither said nor done anything direction of Roy A. Schow. The director of
to change the state of affairs, save to emit the school and the educational managers of the
ranks to take the places of the old race of
mechanics now so rapidly passing away, and periodical laments oyer the falling-off in the Y. M. C. A. have done their best to steer a fair
course between the demands of students to be
to develop the great field of outside service intelligence of their working personnel.
The only vocal element among the tech- made self-supporting within the shortest pos-
work. They have talked a thousand times about
the old apprenticeship system and as often nicians themselves has been among the tuners, sible time and the demands of the art in respect
have reluctantly concluded that it could not be who have been able of late years through their of the time needed to acquire even a rudi-
revived. Meanwhile they have looked with in- Association to speak with no uncertain voice. mentary practical acquaintance with it. They
terest at the efforts made by one after another And the burden of their speech has been that have meanwhile given much time to studying
enterprising individual to teach tuning, repair- they cannot and will not associate themselves the parallel course of the personnel question
ing and other branches of technical work. They with any system of training, for their own in other industries, and have been brought face
have found that all these endeavors are beset ranks or for the factories, which aims at or to face with the very interesting and fruitful
by one major and apparently inevitable diffi- professes to give adequate instruction in any method of school-shop co-operation which has
culty. All have tended, in fact, to fall between technical branch within three or four months. already obtained a firm foothold in the engi-
the two stools of time and expense. The student On the other hand, they recognize that the fac- neering trades. According to this plan students
can not become a good technician unless he tories are to-day not to be expected to inau- who enter a technical school or college of en-
spends a long time in learning. To spend such gurate of themselves systems of apprenticeship gineering divide their time between the class-
a long time means the expenditure of far more which, indeed, are far from likely to work out room and the shop. A favorite method is to take
money than most students can command. practically within any probably occurring con- alternate fortnightly periods, half of each month
Young men looking around for a profession ditions. Thus, while they have not hesitated in the school room, and half in the shop. The
may be attracted to piano making, or to piano to blame the manufacturers for failing to pro- latter is selected and used by virtue of an arrange-
tuning and service work; but if they must spend vide for the replacement of trained personnel, ment made between the school and the man-
a couple of years earning nothing, or next to they have done nothing to bring about the state agement of the manufacturing plant which un-
dertakes the co-operative work. In consequence,
nothing—still worse if they must pay to learn of affairs which they claim to desire.
Manufacturers meanwhile have been too much the student gets something very near to an ideal
during all this time—very few of them will be
pressed during the last few years with external course of training. He learns the scientific
attracted.
Moreover, the schools have been obliged to and internal difficulties of all kinds to give and technical facts upon which the craft or the
concentrate on one branch of piano trade tech- more than a passing thought to the personnel practical technic is based, and then goes into
nology, namely, the outside branch. The earn- question. The present tendency in the manu- the shop to assist at the actual building of the
ings of the successful tuner and service man facturing field is doubtless towards concentra- product which represents the practical reduc-
tion of plant and control, and possibly the large tion of the figures and the drawings. In this
can be very attractively large, much larger than
the factory can usually promise, save to its operating units which are thus gradually being way, where this co-operative plan is being
(Continued on page 12)
chief executive. Hence, all attempts to attract fashioned will be able to carry out their own
School and Shop Go-operative Course
in Tuning Is Offered in Philadelphia
F
A Unique Charm
In Piano Decoration
Imagine your pianos with a
decorative effect like myriad
jewels softly scintillating in the
light. The unique charm of this
effect can be obtained with the
Hilo Crystallizing Lacquer fin-
ish.
Applied like varnish, it may be
used over any other finish.
Wood-grain, lettering, colors and
other decorative effects show to
decided advantage thru the
clear lacquer.
Hilo Crystallizing Lacquer low-
ers finishing costs. It saves all
the rubbing coats—and requires
no polishing. It is tough and
durable.
Send today, for free test sample
and Bulletin 8.
HILO VARNISH CORPORATION
BROOKLYN
Chicago
A PIANO TUNING COURSE
ON A CO-OPERATIVE PLAN
Whereby each two weeks' technical training
In the school is alternated with two weeks'
paid work in a shop.
Write for Catalog R
CO-OPERATIVE PIANO TUNING SCHOOL
The Y.M.O.A., 1421 Arch St., Phils., Pa.
Philadelphia
Boston
Pittsburgh
STANDARD TUNING FORK
Approved by Leading Authorities
for the use of
Musician* and Tuners
WAVERLY MUSICAL PRODUCTS CO., h e .
NEWLY ADOPTED PITCH A-440
71 10th St.. Long Island City. N. Y.