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FEBRUARY 23, 1929
Announce Awards in Player-
Piano Selling Contest
Wm. Krassner, of Brooklyn, Captures First
Prize of $1,000 in Sales Contest Sponsored
by Standard Pneumatic Action Co.
The Music Trade Review
Music Dealers in Knoxville, Tenn,
Hear Promotional Talk by Loomis
TZ'NOXVILLE, TENN., February 18.—One
of the results of a meeting of members of
the local music merchants at luncheon at the
The Standard Pneumatic Action Co. has just Farragut Hotel, on Monday, will be regular
announced the results of its player-piano sell- monthly luncheon meetings for the purpose of
ing contest which closed on December 31, 1928, discussing trade problems. At the present time
and is believed to have stimulated sales of there is no local association but it is possible
player-pianos to a marked degree. The awards that the monthly meetings will result in the
were made in accordance with sales points or formation of an organization.
credits and the results were decided by Has-
The meeting to-day was called by Lynn
kins & Sells, certified public accountants, who Sheeley, vice-president and general manager of
acted for the company.
Clark-Jones-Sheeley Co., and State Commis-
The first prize, $1,000 in cash, was won by sioner and member of the Board of Control of
William Krassner, of the Allied Piano Manu- the National Association of Music Merchants.
facturers' Co., Brooklyn, N. Y., with 7,989 Delbert L. Loomis, executive secretary of the
sales credits; second prize of $300 by Harry Association, was present and, following the
Sykcs, of the same company, with 5,487 cred- luncheon, Association activities were reviewed
its; third prize, $100, by E. R. Mihm, of the in detail by Mr. Loomis, who told of the pro-
Weaver Piano Co., York, Pa., with 5,049 motional work now being done by the Associa-
credits; fourth prize of $50 by J. Rademacher, tion in co-operation with the National Bureau
of Jacob Doll & Sons, Jersey City, N. J., with for the Advancement of Music. A round-table
3,474 credits, and fifth prize of the same amount discussion followed which was entered into by
was won by Joseph Tanzer, of the Janssen all present and it was at this time that the
Piano Co., New York.
suggestion was made that monthly luncheon
The contest was announced early in 1928 get-together meetings should be held.
through the medium of a very elaborate pro-
Three new members were added to the Asso-
spectus which was sent to every piano dealer ciation during personal calls by the Executive
in the United States and to thousands of sales- Secretary in the morning and two more at the
men, and which, in addition to outlining the luncheon, so that Knoxville is now represented
contest, presented some salient selling points in the National body with five members. J. V.
for player-pianos. W. A. Mennie, president of Ledgerwood, president of J. V. Ledgerwood,
the Standard Pneumatic Action Co., reports Inc., was the first member to join. This com-
that the contest recently closed was far more
successful than that held in 1927, which up to
that time had proven one of the most success-
Two New Sonora Branches
ful sales promotion plans put across in the
industry. It was stated that the 1927 contest
SAN FRANCISCO, CAL., February 16.—The Sonora
helped to keep the company's factory running Phonograph Co., Inc., with Coast headquarters
through the Summer months of the following at 865 Mission street, now has two sub-
year and it is expected that the results of the branches, one in Seattle and the other in
1928 contest will be equally satisfactory.
Los Angeles. The Seattle branch is at 911
Western avenue with George W. O'Neil in
The A. M. Hume Music Co., 194 Boylston charge and the Los Angeles branch is at 1117
street, Boston, Mass., has leased quarters in Santee street with F. G. Scrafield as manager,
the Earle Building at 269-285 Columbus avenue. and G. K. Brown, assistant Coast manager.
Widespread Interest Shown in Radio
Broadcasting of Baldwin Piano Co.
HP HE series of radio programs launched by
the Baldwin Piano Co. on February 3 and
presented each succeeding Sunday evening from
7.30 to 8 o'clock, Eastern Standard Time, have
already proven one of the most interesting fea-
tures on current broadcasting schedules. Deal-
ers throughout the country have been quick to
realize the importance of tying up with this
radio feature which goes into millions of homes
throughout the nation, hundreds of thousands
of them being within contact distance of a
Baldwin retail representative.
The feature, programmed as "A.t the Bald-
win," has presented, and will present, artists
of national and international reputation as
soloists, together with an excellent orchestra
and the Baldwin Singers, a quartet which spe-
cializes in music of the better sort. Originating
in Station WJZ, New York, the feature is
broadcast over the Blue Network of the Na-
tional Broadcasting Co. through Stations
WBZA, Boston; WBZ, Springfield; WBAL,
Baltimore; WHAM Rochester; WJR, Detroit;
WLW, Cincinnati; KYW, Chicago; KWK,
St. Louis; WREN, Kansas City; WSB, At-
lanta; WSM, Nashville; WHAS, Louisville;
WKY, Oklahoma City; WFAA, Dallas-Ft.
Worth, KPRC, Houston; WOAI, San Antonio,
and KOA, Denver.
A particularly interesting program was broad-
cast last Sunday, February 17, with Walter
Gieseking, the famous German pianist, as the
featured artist. His presence before the micro-
phone proved of distinct interest as was mani-
fested in the publicity given the feature not
only in the radio sections of the newspapers,
but in the columns devoted to musical news of
general character. He played Bach's Prelude
and C-Sharp Fugue, Schubert's Moment Musi-
cale and Dubussy's Golliwog's Cake Walk, in
addition to other numbers.
The feature is presented as though it were
in the home, in the hour or so after Sunday
dinner, and is designed to create the impression
that the piano, and particularly the Baldwin
piano, provides a most important center for
suitable entertainment at that hour.
On next Sunday, February 24, the featured
artist will be Richard Buhlig, the internation-
ally famous pianist, together with the Baldwin
Singers. Mr. Buhlig's program includes Schu-
bert's Impromptu in B-Flat; a group of pre-
ludes by Chopin; a Spanish dance in E-Minor
by Granados, and other numbers. Baldwin
dealers throughout the country have taken oc-
casion to compliment the company upon the
fine character of the programs and particularly
upon the manner in which they are received.
The time chosen for their presentation is
regarded as particularly appropriate in all sec-
tions of the country, coming closely after the
dinner hour, and usually before the activities
of the evening have started. Moreover, the
whole family is likely to be home on Sunday
at that hour, a fact not to be minimized from
the standpoint of the sales approach.
pany carries the Kimball and Kurtzmann
pianos. C. C. Rutherford, manager of Sterchi
Brothers, Inc., representatives of the American
Piano Co.'s line, and George Brown, proprietor
of the East Tennessee Music Co., also joined
during the morning. The East Tennessee
Music Co.'s line includes the Kranich & Bach,
Sohmer, Gulbransen, Starr and Gabler pianos
and Atwater Kent radio.
Frank Clark, president and treasurer of
Clark-Jones-Sheeley Co., representatives of
Steinway & Sons, Aeolian Co., Vose & Sons,
and the Victor and Radiola, and who is dean of
the piano trade in Knoxville, having been in
the business here for many years, also became
a member.
Leonard C. Lamb, president of the Lamb Co.,
representatives of the Cable line and Wurlitzer
pianos, also joined the Association at the meet-
ing. It was Mr. Lamb who proposed that regu-
lar monthly gatherings should be held.
Prior to visiting Lexington, Ky., on his way
to Knoxville, Mr. Loomis stopped in Cincin-
nati, adding six new members to the twelve
already enrolled in that city. The new mem-
bers in Cincinnati in the order in which they
were taken are: Thomas P. Clancy, vice-presi-
dent of the Rudolph Wurlitzer Co.; George P.
Gross, president, George P. Gross Musical
Instrument Co.; R. E. Wells, manager, Stein-
way & Sons, Cincinnati branch; Herman Ritter,
general manager, Fillmore Music House; Philip
Wyman, publicity director, the Baldwin Piano
Co., and C. F. Welsh, president, Welsh-Bennett
Piano Co.
Pratt Read
Products
keys actions
players
are shipped on time.
When we
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Write us at the
first opportunity.
PRATT, READ & CO.
Established in 1806
The PRATT READ PLAYER ACTION CO.
Deep River, Conn.