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Artist and Artisan
Meet in the Knabe Factory
Principal Artists of the Metropolitan Opera Company, of Which
the Knabe Piano Is the Official Instrument, Visit the Plant of
Wm. Knabe & Co., in Baltimore, and See How Pianos Are Made
A
NOTABLE event during the recent visit
of the Metropolitan Opera Company to
Baltimore, in the course of its regular
Spring tour, was the visit paid by a number
of the principal artists of the company to the
factory of Wm. Knabe & Co. in that city, under
the guidance of Berthold B. Neuer, artist-
they saw in the plant's different departments.
Many of them had accepted the piano as
more or less a matter of course, finding the
results of the piano craftsmen's efforts dis-
tinctly satisfactory to their needs, but knowing
very little of how those results were accom-
plished. The trip through the Baltimore factory
that their time was so limited that they could
not spend several more hours making a closer
study of how good pianos are made.
This is believed to have been the first in-
stance in which practically all the principals
of an opera company have taken occasion to
visit a piano factory in a body, for the purpose
Metropolitan Opera Company Artists at Wrn. Knabe & Co. Factory in Baltimore
1—C. P. Vogt, Superintendent of Knabe Factory, Explaining One of the Operations to Intent Listeners, Who Are—Left to Right: Louis Hasselmans, Mme. Hasselmans, Louise
Lerch, Vincenzo Bellezza, Armand Tokatyan, Leon Rothier. In the Rear Can Be Seen Mr. Neurer and Mr. Reed. 2—Minnie Egener (Mrs. Louis Hasselmans), Metropolitan
Soprano, Preparing to Autograph Knabe Grand. 3—Maestro Vincenzo Bellezza, Conductor of Metropolitan Opera Company, Autographing Knabe Baby Grand. 4—Armand
Tokatyan, Metropolitan Tenor, in Role of Cameraman. Grouped Around the Piano: Mme. Hasselmans, Louise Lerch, C. P. Vogt, Mme. Bellezza, Leon Rothier, Louis Hasselmans
and Vincenzo Bellezza. 5—Louise Lerch Selecting a Piano for Her Use at Allentown While at the Knabe Factory. Miss Lerch Is the Young Singer of Allentown Who Made
Such a Deep Impression at the Metropolitan This Season.
manager for Wm. Knabe & Co. and also man-
ager of the New York warerooms. The
purpose of the visit was to permit the artists
to witness the actual processes connected with
the production of those instruments which have
been adopted as the official pianos of the Met-
ropolitan Company and are used by the artists
of that organization.
Several of the artists frankly regarded the
trip to the factory as more or less in the line
of a courtesy, and very busy, as is usually the
case when the company is on tour, they set
aside some twenty minutes for a hurried trip
through the Knabe plant. The fact that the
visit lasted some two and a half hours affords
the best evidence of the interest and enthusiasm
aroused in the singers in the various things
gave several of them their first opportunity of
seeing pianos in the actual course of production
and they were amazed at the many details that
must be so carefully watched and handled if
the complete instrument is to measure to
artistic requirements.
Special interest was
shown in the work of the many veteran em-
ployes of the Knabe factory and many of them
were asked to explain in detail the more, or
less intricate phases of their work.
The assembling of the various parts, the in-
stallation and adjustment of the action and
particularly the amount of attention given to
the hand carving of the period models held the
attention of the visitors to a remarkable degree.
They asked questions and marveled and sev-
eral of them took occasion to express regret
of seeing the wheels go around, as it were, and
those of the Metropolitan Company, who have
in the past enthused freely regarding the tonal
qualities of the Knabe", were even more en-
thusiastic when they actually saw the care and
attention given to the smallest detail in the
production of those instruments in order that
each one might prove a worthy representative
of the company whose name it bore.
Mr. Neuer and Manager Reed of the Knabe
Warerooms in Baltimore accompanied the opeia
stars to the company's factory, where C. P.
Vogt, the superintendent,
escorted them
through the plant and explained the various
operations. Some of the visitors expressed the
desire to make a tour of the plant again at a
later date when their time was not so limited.
University Shop Opens
rett, Fred B. Helms and E. J. Hanson, all of
Charlotte, are the incorporators.
the Knabe with the Ampico, the Fischer, Wur-
litzer and Davenport-Treacy lines of pianos.
New Branch in Salinas
Consolidated Stores Chartered
SALINAS, CAL., April 30.—The Anderson Music
Co., of San Jose, has opened a branch store here
in the Postoffice Building, West Gabilan street
and Lincoln avenue. The store, which will be a
permanent establishment in Salinas, will handle
The Consolidated Music Stores, Inc., Cin
cinnati, O., have been incorporated recently with
a capital stock of $30,000. The incorporators
are: F.. 1- Purcell, Edward F. Peters, Edward
A. Gruncr, R. I«. Hinds and S, Geismar,
The University Music Shop, of which Wilbur
T. Collins is manager, has been opened at 1652-4
North High street, Columbus, O., featuring
phonographs, sheet music and music rolls.
The Piedmont Music Co. of North Carolina,
Charlotte, N. C, has been incorporated recently
with a capital stock of $-10,000. George T. Gar-
9