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The Music Trade Review
The Men in the Factory Behind the
Production of the Steinway Pianos
Four Veterans of the Productive Force Whose Total Aggregate Service in the Steinway & Sons
Factory Shows a Record of One Hundred and Seventy-seven Years
*T*O those who visit the factory of Steinway &
"•• Sons and observe the type of workmen who
strive in their daily task to maintain Steinway
quality in every detail there is little mysterious
about the manner in which the Steinway instru-
ments maintain their distinctive structural and
The fourth member of the quartet, Otto Plot-
kow, joined the Steinway factory force in 1876
in the key-making department. He was later
transferred to case making and finally to the
fly-finishing department, where he made and
hinged square, upright and grand tops. He is
DECEMBER 4, 1926
Although younger men are constantly being
added to the Steinway working force, the pres-
ence of these veterans exerts a powerful influ-
ence in the development of a proper spirit of
achievement among the younger element, pass-
ing on to the new workers that pride in the
maintenance of Steinway standards that has
acted as a guide to the veterans in their years
of effort.
Special List of Atlas
Rolls for Christmastide
Containers for Two Rolls Are Among Features
of Holiday Offerings by the Atlas Player
Roll Co.
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The Atlas Player Roll Co., 35 Fifth street,
Newark, N. J., has a series of special Christ-
mas selections in roll form. These include
"Xmas Morn," a story, and "Xmas Night," an-
other story. Also there is "Chimes of St.
Johns" and "Christmas Chimes." These are un-
usually interesting rolls for the holiday period
carrying chime effects, There are two rolls
also carrying Christmas dance selections, one
entitled "Dance Songs for Christmas," suitable
* o r k ° t n y° u n & a n d old in fox-trot and waltz
*N|jf ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ | ^ ^
^ ^ ^
settings, another roll entitled "Waltz Songs for
A Quartet of Steinway Veterans. 1. Ernest Eichenbrenner and Aloysius J. Myers. 2. Edward
Raschke. 3. Otto Plotkow
tonal qualities year after year, for a surprisingly
large number of the workmen are really veteran
employes of the house, some of them represent-
ing the second and even the third generation en-
gaged in the production of Steinway instru-
ments.
The quartet of veteran workers pictured here-
with, for instance, represents in the aggregate
177 years of continuous service in the building
of Steinways, which means naturally that the
quality of their work has become a genuine con-
dition with them. With the exception of Edward
Raschke, the men are still at their benches at
the Steinway factory each day. Combined with
their skill is an expert knowledge that has come
with the years in association with their work.
Edward Raschke, who retired in 1924, after
playing a part in the building of nearly 4,700
Steinway instruments, was a young German cab-
inet maker when he came to America in 1882 and
entered the finishing department of the Stein-
way factory. He was first put to work on fin-
ishing square pianos and as that type of instru-
ment lost its popularity lent his attention to
uprights. The excellence of his work soon ad-
vanced into the grand department, where he fin-
ished 4,500 of these instruments. The first grand
he worked on was number 48,485, and the last
242,687. In addition he finished 149 square and
thirty-seven uprights during his forty-three
years' service with the Steinway house.
Ernest Eichenbrenner entered the Steinway
employ in 1870 as a bellyman. For the first
three years he made sounding boards; then fitted
square piano plates and the sounding boards
into the cases. He then worked in the upright de-
partment and finally was transferred to grands,
fitting the plates into the instruments. Although
the work is considered very hard Mr. Eichen-
brenner has kept at it for thirty-five years and
is still to be found at the factory daily. He
is 77 years old and rounding out his fifty-sixth
year of Steinway service.
At the right of the photograph is shown
Aloysius J. Myers, who has been in the Stein-
way employ for twenty-eight years, for most of
that time working as Mr. Eichenbrenner's part-
ner. He has taken an active interest in factory
activities, and for two and a half years was on
the safety committee at the Ditmars avenue
factory, during which time he offered many
worth-while suggestions for the improvement
of working conditions,
shown in the photograph cutting a grand top
with a modern device developed in the Stein-
way factory, where he is rounding out a full
fifty years of service.
Christmas" with fox-trot and waltz settings of
familiar Christmas music. The other special
rolls include "Yuletide Spirit" and "Holy
Night."
Of special interest with the release of these
holiday rolls is a container with room for two
rolls decorated in Christmas effects. The deal-
er can place any of the selected Christmas titles
in these special boxes which makes them par-
ticularly inviting as Christmas presents.
Winner of the National Music Memory
Contest Enjoys Her Stroud Duo-Art
Mrs. E. W. Delcamp, Who Took First Prize in Contest Staged by the National Federation of
Music Clubs, Tells of Her Pleasure From the Stroud Duo-Art
~———.
„_
Stroud Reproducing piano which was constantly since it came. It is a beautiful in-
x
donated by the Aeolian CO. as first prize strtiment and has a lovely tone and wonderful
in a national rriusic-rriemory contest held dur- reproduction.
ing the convention of the National Federation
"It just seems too good to be true that we
§ Mrs. Delcamp o
and H^r
j
Daughter
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at the
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1 Stroud Duo-Art |
of Women's Clubs at Atlantic City, last Sum-
mer, now reposes in the home of Mrs. E. W.
Delcamp, in Lexington, Ky., who in a letter
to the Aeolian Co. says:
"I just cannot tell you how very much
pleased I am with the Duo-Art piano. It is
wonderful! And we have played it almost
can sit and listen to Paderewski, Hofmann,
Bauer and others, right here in our own home,
It certainly was worth striving for, and you
were most generous in offering such a hand-
some prize."
The event in which the prize was won was
national.