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10
THE
MUSIC
TRADE
MERCHANTS' ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT
MAKES TOUR OF NEW ENGLAND CITIES
C
ARRYING out the plan inaugurated
some time ago, President Weeks, of the
National Association of Music Mer-
chants, accompanied by Executive Secretary
Loomis, visited several cities in New Eng-
land during the month of January and, in
addition to the holding of exceedingly satis-
factory conference committee meetings, Presi-
dent Weeks had an exceptional opportunity to
spread the gospel of music when he spoke on
the subject of "The Mission of Music in the
Home" before several hundred members of
Rotary Clubs in the cities visited.
Being a past president of his local Bing-
hamton Rotary Club and past governor of
the Twenty-eighth District Rotary Interna-
tional, Mr. Weeks is widely know y n in Rotar-
ian circles, and when it was learned by secre-
taries of these New England Rotary Clubs
that he was to be in their cities there were
immediate invitations extended by the chair-
men of the program committees.
The meetings were held in New Havien,
January 12; Boston, January 13 and 14;
Springfield, January 15, and Hartford, Jan-
uary 18. Mr. Weeks' talk was originally
scheduled as "Rotary in the Home," but re-
ceiving a request from the secretaries of the
Rotary Clubs in New Haven, Boston and
Springfield to pay special attention to music,
he changed the title of his address to "The
Mission of Music in the Home."
In New Haven, Springfield and Hartford,
the conference committee meetings of the
members of the association were held imme-
diately following the Rotary Club luncheons,
and in Boston there was a luncheon meeting
of Boston members, together with several
from other nearby New England cities, held
on Thursday. William F. Merrill, secretary
of the New England Music Trade Associa-
tion, kindly rendered assistance in getting up
the Boston meeting.
At the Boston Rotary Club luncheon there
were in attendance almost the complete mem-
bership of 325. There were also twenty-five
visiting Rotarians who came from many
States. One of the members of the music
industry, W. Deane Preston, of the B. F.
Wood Music Co., a Rotarian, was given the
honor of presenting Mr. Weeks at the Bos-
ton meeting. There were a number of other
members of the music industry present at the
luncheon.
There were in attendance at the luncheon
meeting Thursday about twenty-five members
of the trade, including, in addition to the
retail piano men, a fine representation of
sheet music dealers and music publishers. In
introducing President Weeks, Secretary
Loomis presented for the entertainment of the
music men the electrical transcription made
recently by Mr. Weeks, consisting of a fif-
teen-minute program for broadcasting pur-
poses.
Declaring that the music industry of the
United States is standing at the threshold
EDWIN R. WEEKS
of what will be the greatest expansion which
has ever taken place in the history of the
trade, Mr. Weeks sounded a note of distinct
optimism. He cited the fact that the music
industry has fared fully as well as any indus-
try during the past two years.
Pointing out, specifically, his reasons for an
entirely optimistic view of the outlook, he
called attention to conversations he has had
with leading music merchants in cities he has
recently visited, emphasizing the tremendous
increase in interest in music as evidenced by
the fact that today more boys and girls in
the United States are studying music, either
in classes in the public and private schools,
or privately, than ever before in our history.
He pointed out that radio broadcasting of
the finest concert and operatic music has
broadened greatly the love and intelligent
appreciation of music and has stimulated a
desire for self-expression in music.
"We know of literally hundreds of per-
REVIEW,
February, 1932
sons," said Mr. Weeks, "who are now ready
to make purchases of musical instruments and
are biding the time when they have the
money with which to gratify this desire to
promote and carry on this greatest of all arts
—music. In my own business in December
we actually sold more pianos than in any one
month in the last five years.
"Realizing that we are a fickle people and
that we have passed through a period of
extreme fickleness as to entertainment, there
seems to be a growing trend toward the more
simple things, especially that of art in the
home. History reveals that after every war
has come a period of unrest, but followed
always by a return to—may I say—sanity."
Immediately following Mr. Weeks' opening
remarks, there was a round-table discussion
of merchandising plans and expressions of
confidence in the immediate future were
made by all of the members present.
In Springfield Alfred W. Prouty, manager
of the M. Steinert & Sons Co. branch, a
Rotarian, took the occasion to entertain, as
his guests, a number of Springfield and
Holyoke members of the trade.
At the Hartford Conference Committee
meeting, following Mr. Weeks' opening re-
marks, which were similar to those made at
the other meetings, the round-table discussion
brought out a very keen interest in the possi-
bility of holding a piano-playing contest early
next Fall in Hartford. The members present
made inquiry as to those contests which have
recently been held successfully in New
Orleans and Denver, Col., and which were
reported by Past President Werlein and Vice-
president Bradford at the last convention.
The executive secretary was requested to
communicate with Mr. Werlein and Mr.
Bradford to secure for the Hartford members
detailed information regarding those contests.
It was the sense of the meeting that in the
future there should be no daily paper adver-
tising of used pianos at any price under $100.
The Hartford meeting was one of the most
interesting and valuable of the series.
Mr. Weeks was distinctly optimistic and
was quoted verbatim along tJiese lines in
articles appearing in the daily papers of all
of the cities visited. In Springfield, the two
afternoon papers, the Springfield Union and
the Daily News, used stories on the Confer-
ence Committee meeting of nearly a column
in length with display headlines.
A. H. Kayton, formerly president of the
Milton Piano Co. before retiring from busi-
ness some years ago, has returned to New
York with his family after a long period of
traveling abroad and will make his home
here for the future.
STARR PIANOS
STARR ELECTRIC REFRIGERATORS
CHAMPION and GENNETT RECORDS
ELECTRICAL TRANSCRIPTIONS for RADIO BROADCASTING
THE STARR PIANO COMPANY
ESTABLISHED 1872
RICHMOND, INDIANA