Classic Mode

Music Trade Review

Issue: 1931 Vol. 90 N. 1

20
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
The Music Trade Review
JANUARY,
Canadian Musical Instrument
Industry Showed Gain in 1929
Canadian musical-instrument industry
T HE
produced $13,505,238 worth of instruments
in 1929, according to a recent report issued
by the Canadian census of industry.
This
total constitutes a gain of approximately 10
percent over 1928, when production amounted
to $12,282,589.
There were forty-two indi-
vidual establishments reporting for 1929, being
identical with the number reporting in 1928.
Music instruments represented $7,206,827 of
the total value; musical-instrument materials,
$1,051,159; radio sets, parts and accessories,
$4,810,426; and all other products, $436,826.
Compared with 1928, there was an increase in
the value of production of radio sets, parts and
accessories of $3,471,356, while musical instru-
ments showed a decrease of $1,973,378, musical-
instrument materials a decrease of $231,582,
and all other products a decrease of $43,747.
Of the forty-two establishments, thirty are
located in Ontario Province, ten in Quebec and
two in British Columbia. Of the total produc-
tion of the industry, however, over 50 per cent
was manufactured by firms located in Quebec.
This is a substantial increase over 1923, when
the output of the fifteen firms then estab-
lished in that Province was 24 per cent of the
total. Quebec's gain can be attributed to in-
creased production of pipe organs and radio
sets and parts, the increased production in the
latter case being due to the increased demand.
The Province of Ontario produced over 49 per
cent of the total 1929 output, while the remain-
ing 0.09 per cent is accounted for in British
Columbia.
The number of establishments engaged in
manufacturing each class of product in 1929
was as follows: pianos, organs, etc., twenty-
two; phonographs, gramophones and records,
only three; phonographs, radios, records and
parts, eight; and musical instrument materials,
etc., nine.
Piano production during 1929 continued to
decrease in both quantity and value; 9,852
pianos were manufactured, valued at $2,136,-
278, compared with 13,186 pianos, valued at
$3,071,730, in 1928. The number of organs
produced in 1929 decreased slightly but in-
creased in value, the figures being 562 organs
valued at $851,873 in 1928, and 448 at $1,001,562
in 1929.
Phonographs showed a drop in production
in both quantity and value; 40,122 phonographs
and gramophones were made in 1928 valued
at $2,971,085 and 28,320 valued at $1,531,962 in
1929. Phonograph records, on the other hand,
reported a slight increase from 5,955,984 with
a value of $2,278,286 in 1928 to 6,007,018 valued
at $2,330,755 in 1929. The production of phono-
graph parts and accessories, worth $234,100
during 1929, was a substantial increase over
1928, when the value of tins group amounted
to $156,772.
Piano actions, parts and accessories, includ-
ing piano and organ keys, piano actions,
strings, hammers, plates and player-piano
actions, produced in Canada in 1927 amounted
to $1,397,512, in 1928 to $1,125,969, and in 1929
to $817,059.
The value of the various classes of musical
instruments and parts thereof imported into
Canada rose from $2,671,139 in 1928 to $3,304,-
942 in 1929, an increase of $633,803 for the
calendar year 1929. Imports from the United
Kingdom decreased $7,134, while those from
the United States increased $665,229. Imports
from "all other countries" decreased $24,292.
The total value of musical instrument ex-
ports decreased by $45,700 in 1929 from the
preceding year.
Mary Garden Pays Trib-
ute to Lester Grand
PHILADELPHIA, PA.—Mary Garden, famous opera
star, has paid tribute to the Lester piano by
having one of the new Lester style 'K' grands
installed in her apartment at the Barclay Hotel
where she will remain for several weeks. In
selecting the Lester grand Miss Garden also
A Piano That Is Really Modernistic
An
Effective
Modernistic
Piano
Design
1931
gave a strong endorsement for that instrument.
The Lester Piano Ensemble has launched its
concert activities for the 1930-31 season. Sev-
eral concerts have been staged by the Ensemble
at the Bellevue-Stratford and Benjamin Franklin
Hotels and has arranged for an extensive
schedule of appearances in leading clubs and
hotels, private schools and colleges, and before
women's organizations in Philadelphia and
vicinity.
Plan Musical Displays at
Chicago World's Fair
Two collections of musical instruments, one
of old instruments and one of modern make,
have been suggested as part of the physics ex-
hibit at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair by Dr.
Dayton C. Miller of Cleveland and Dr. George
W. Stewart of Iowa City, noted for their re-
searches pertaining to the phenomena of sound
and members of the physics and optical physics
section of the National Research Council Sci-
ence Advisory Committee of the Chicago
exposition.
Dr. Miller is director of the'physics depart-
ment at the Case School of Applied Science
and Dr. Stewart is director of the physics de-
partment and dean of the Graduate School at
the University of Iowa.
A display of two violins, one a Stradivarius
and the other a cheap instrument of the pres-
ent period, is specially recommended.
It is also suggested that an historical col-
lection of phonographs be exhibited beginning
with the earliest forms and ending with the
electrical producer, along with tableaux show-
ing the direct method of recording as contrast-
ed with the electrical method. A model of a
broadcasting studio also would be a part of
the exhibit.
Progress in architectural acoustics would be
shown in three rooms, each twelve by twelve
feet, the first highly reverberant, the second
properly treated for ordinary rooms, and the
third highly absorbent.
An exhibit of two corridors is suggested,
the one treated and the other not treated but
arranged in such a manner that it could be
manipulated by the visitors so as to produce
sound absorption effects.
Photographs would be on display showing
acoustic treatments for rooms of various
kinds, auditoriums, broadcasting studios, dining
rooms and business offices. Samples of acoustic
materials would be displayed.
Other exhibits would consist of photographs
of sound waves and charts showing the his-
torical development of the treatment of audi-
toriums for echoes and reverberation.
The suggestions are contained in a report
of the physics and optical physics section of
the National Research Council Science Advis-
ory Committee. The section is directed by
Dr. Karl T. Compton, recently appointed presi-
dent of the Massachusetts Institute of Tech-
nology, and Dr. F. K. Richtmyer, professor
of physics at Cornell University.
by the
Aeolian Co.
TXTHEN a customer of the Aeolian Co. in
New York recently sought a special case
design for a Steinway Duo-Art grand in order
that the instrument might harmonize with
other furnishings of a distinct modernistic type,
he got immediate service. The result was the
piano pictured herewith, certainly modernistic
in every detail, and withal distinctly original
in design, particularly in the arrangement of
the support for the rear of the piano follow-
ing the elimination of the usual leg. Metal was
used profusely in the decoration of the case
and for its support, the hardware and metal
parts throughout being silver plated. Hun-
garian ash was the wood used for the lighter
portions of the case, and rosewood for the
dark sections. The result caused much com-
ment and aroused the enthusiasm of the cli-
ent, although it is hardly possible that instru-
ments of that design will find a general sale.
C. D. Sampson, of Idaho,
Marks Motor Trails
BOISE, IDAHO—The average piano man regards
the automobile as a direct business competitor
and treats it as such except so far as his per-
sonal comfort in transportation is concerned,
but C. D. Sampson, of the Sampson Music Co.,
this city, finds time in addition to running his
music business to render a real service to auto-
mobilists by marking motor trails.
Mr. Sampson has devised a series of orange
colored road signs and is responsible for the
laying out of the Sampson Trail through Idaho.
He finds his signs also in great demand for
marking side-roads and other highways.
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
The Music Trade Review
JANUARY, 1931
Twelve Grands, Twenty-four Pianists,
In Little Rock Steinway Ensemble
T I T T L E ROCK, ARK.—The annual Stein-
*—' way Ensemble has apparently become a
definite institution among music lovers of Little
Rock and vicinity judging from the size of the
audience which attended the fourth annual con-
cert of the group held in the auditorium of
the Senior High School on November 23, under
the auspices of W. P. Hamilton of the O. K.
Houck Piano Co.
It was estimated that over 2,500 people
Gray, Mrs. W. P. Hamilton, Miss Beattie Hin-
ton (Pine Bluff), Mrs. George W. Hawbecker,
Mrs. Morris Jessup, Mrs. Bernard Jansen, Miss
Ila Johnson, Mrs. D. A. Morton, Mrs. Howard
Merrill, Mrs. G. H. Mathis, Mrs. Ray Patter-
son (Pine Bluff), Mrs. Earl Saunders, Mrs.
Chas. E. Shoemaker, Miss Leonore Swearingen,
Mrs. E. A. Stanley, Mrs. Hugh Barclay Tucker,
Miss Linda Wiles, Mrs. Lawrence Witherspoon.
The program, which was particularly well
21
in the future of the piano and the outlook for
business.
Mr. Randall first warned that he is not sound-
ing false notes of optimism, but he points to
some distinct signs that piano business is com-
ing back. The prolonged business depression
has had the effect of making people return to
their homes to seek enjoyment, and they have
become better acquainted with their families,
Mr. Randall points out. As a result they have
seen in many cases that their children are not
having the advantages of music lessons. They
have also seen that there is much pleasure in
music in the home.
These are not mere guesses, as to an impor-
tant social condition, but are backed up by the
fact that there are more students studying piano
now than before. Another thing, in Mr. Ran-
dall's own experience, there are people buying
recordings for their piano now who have not
made such a purchase in two years. The tuning
department has been exceptionally busy and
working day and evening at a steady pace.
There has been an evident desire to get pianos
in good condition before the Christmas holi-
days.
Booklet Outlines History
of Grotrian-Steinweg Piano
The Curtis Distributing Co., Inc., New York,
sole distributors in the United States for the
Grotrian-Steinweg piano, has just issued an in-
teresting booklet entitled "The Truth About the
Grotrian-Steinweg Piano." The book is de-
voted to a history of the instrument and to the
history of those who founded it and carried on
its manufacture. Pertinent facts regarding ex-
clusive structural features are also presented,
as are lists of noted artists who have used and
endorsed those pianos and members of Eu-
ropean Courts to whom Grotrian-Steinweg have
been supplied.
The Annual Steinway Ensemble in Little Rock, Ark. Inset—View of the Vast Audience
crowded into the auditorium for the concert,
many of them being forced to stand back of
the stage, while several hundred were turned
chosen to exhibit the possibilities of ensemble
piano playing, was as follows:
Mozart—Sonata Op. 3—No. l—
{
awav IIPPJIISP nf larlr of e m c p .'noHp
away Decause ot lack oi space inside.
Allegro, Andante, Allegro Molto
Kuhlau—Sonata Op. 44—No. 1—
AHmic
Admis-
sion was by invitation and the demand for
tickets was little short of enormous.
The Piano Ensemble organized by Mr. Ham-
iltnn anrl trainpri n n r W trip Hi'rprrinn r>f Mice
uton and trained under tne direction ot Miss
Martha May Cline is strictly a piano group and
would attract attention anywhere for the fact
,
,
,
.
that twelve grand pianos a r e played simultane-
ously by twenty-four pianists in several num-
hers. All the pianists in this year's concert
T • i i-v i
J • • •
J
r
were from
Little Rock and vicinity and spent
two months in rehearsal without compensation
before their public appearance. Last year nine
Steinway pianos were used and the addition of
three instruments this year led to the belief
.
that It was the largest group of non-profes-
sional pianists that has yet appeared on a single
stage at one time.
The participating artists included: Mrs. A.
,,
_ _, .,
.,
» T ,
T _ .
T
L.
Barber, Mrs. James
E. Bradley, Mrs. Nathan
Bright, Miss Catherine Dalrymple, Mrs. Law-
son Delony, Mrs. H. A. Emerson, Miss Frances
Conn's Music Shoppe
Enjoys Quick Success
SAN p-RANcisco, CAL.—Conn's Music Shoppe is
one of the show places in the Mission business
district of San Francisco.
But a one-story
building, four large skylights down its length
furnish a flood of daylight. Before E. J. Conn
took possession several months ago the store
was richly and attractively redecorated. Walls
are of a French gray tinctured with touches
of color and the cabinet work of the room is
shaded to harmonize. Against this background
the finish of the pianos stands out beautifully.
"Yes, the piano is something nice, and it needs
I 12 Pianos
\ 48 Hands
Death of Emile Cruells,
Veteran Music Dealer
SAN FRANCISCO, CAL.—The long music career of
Emile Cruells was recently ended by death.
The end came rather suddenly as he had pre-
Mrs
- Morton, Mrs. Merrill, Mrs. Tucker,
viously been in very good health. A native of
M r s B a r b e r j M i s s D a | r y m p i e ] M r s . Em-
Barcelona, Spain, music had been his theme
erson, Miss Hinton, Miss S'wearingen,
from boyhood. Thirty years ago he opened his
Miss ^Vilcs
first music merchandise store in the down-town
„ . < - , . , '
district of San Francisco. Burned out by the
Nevin—Gondoliers—From A Day in Venice" |
fire in 1906, he moved out to the Mission Dis-
(Venetian Love Song)
1 10 Pianos
trict. Here he did an enormous business in
^ " ^ ] t f ^ 8?i. B « b £ Miss 'iMr^ l 2 °
^
P e, Mrs. Emerson, Mrs. Saunders, Mrs.
pianos and sheet music, and later in phono-
Hamilton, Mrs. Merrill, Mrs. Tucker,
Miss Swearingea, Miss Wiles.
graphs. At one time he had several hun-dred
Weber—Invitation to the Dance
(12 Pianos pianos rented out, all makes and values.
48 Han s
'
"
Mrs. Cruells is continuing the business, oper-
E S ^ e f e S m ^ s ^AW
\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ 9 P.anos ating under the name of the Mission Phono-
Schubert—Heller—The Trout Op. 32
[ 18 Hands
Mrs. Delony, Mrs. Patterson, Mrs. With-
graph and Piano Co. at 2226 Mission street. As
erspoon, Miss Johnson, Miss Gray, Mrs.
she
has always been associated in the business
tO
S Bright> M
Shoemaker>
M?s. j4ss5fp. '
^
Chaminade—Interlude Op. 36—No. 1
S 8 Pianos this is not a special hardship, the more so as
there are no outstanding obligations.
Mendelssohn—Rondo
Capriccioso Op. 14
Mrs
- Delony, Mrs. Patterson, Mrs. Shoe-
maker, Mrs. Jessup, Mrs. Mathis, Mrs.
Witherspoon, Mrs. Bright, Miss Wiles.
Allegro, Arioso, Rondo, Allegro
[
Pirani—Airs Bohemiens Op. 35
( 12 Pianos
Mrs. Bradleyi, Miss Gray, Mrs. Hamilton,
Dvorak
SI C D n S
P 46> N S
1
VI
Business of D. W. Lerch
Co., Canton, O., Is Sold
. ? " to
7?. sell
;. right,"
. ° ; T"
'. . Conn.
{ M S He
S
a 7 d r.
the right
setting
says
specializes in the Francis Bacon and the
Schulz. Conn was for several years manager
of the Sherman Clay branches in the Mission
District and the Filmore District, so he had a
CANTON, O.—The sale of the D. W. Lerch Co.,
ready-built acquaintance with which to start one of the oldest and best known music houses
business, and that accounts for the fact that he in eastern Ohio, to T. A. Rice, Wooster, O.,
has proven successful from the start.
music merchant, and A. L. Ebert, of Rittman,
has been announced by D. W. Lerch, president
of the company.
The Lerch Co. has been located in Market
avenue, N. Canton, since 1895. It carries one
of the largest stocks of pianos, radios, musical
merchandise and records of any store in this
MILWAUKEE, WIS.—Looking forward into 1930, section. The new owners will assume immed-
Hugh W. Randall, president of the J. B. Brad- iate possession. No changes in policy or per-
ford Piano Co., expressed renewed confidence sonnel will be made at this time.
Hugh W. Randall Expresses
Confidence in 1931

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