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THE PIANO IS NOW READY
FOR POPULAR REVIVAL
By W M . H. McCLEARY
T
HE period of low production in the piano industry,
which has extended over the past five years, is more
complex in its causes than the similar problem which
has confronted a majority of the industries of the country
during at least a part of that period. How much of this
decrease is to be traced to loss of purchasing power on the
part of the ultimate retail buyer, and how much to the fact
that the piano has lost its popularity as a part of the equipment
of homes above a certain standard of living, is difficult to
determine.
One thing we do know, however. The decreased demand
for pianos made its appearance two years at least before the
present industrial depression began. The reasons for this early
trend, as they were advanced at that time, were numerous.
First in importance, perhaps, was the fact that material pros-
perity among all classes led to amusement being sought to a
great degree outside the walls of the home. Secondly was
the sudden leap into popularity of the radio, affecting both the
talking machine and the piano as a competitor for home
amusement. Thirdly was the radical change in residence
architecture, especially in the large cities, where the shift to
apartments on the part of a class which had always been heavy
purchasers of pianos led to living in small rooms and a smaller
number of rooms, which placed space at a premium. On top
of this came the loss in purchasing power, which added another
and most influential factor to the situation.
If the latter had not made its appearance it would be easy
to determine whether or not these conditions particular to
the piano industry were continuing or increasing in influence.
Unfortunately, however, up until the present time no infor-
mation was available by which to determine whether low pro-
duction of pianos was a permanent condition to which the
industry must resign itself, or whether particular conditions
confronting the industry had changed, and it would undergo
a revival in line with other industries suffering only from
general loss of customer purchasing power.
If the piano industry's particular conditions have continued
to exercise an important influence upon piano purchases at
retail, it would be logical to assume that a large number of
instruments would be discarded during the past five years by
homes which already possessed them. People moving into
homes wherein they had no space for a piano would leave the
instrument behind. People having pianos and who did not
use them from one end of the year to the other would discard
them to use their space to better advantage. And finally
there would be a heavy and marked decrease in the amount of
piano study among the younger generation.
It is possible, through the results of a survey which have
just been made public, to arrive at some conclusion as to the
number of pianos which have been discarded during that
period. In 1927 it was found that out of 1,940,183 families
THE
MUSIC
TRADE
REVIEW,
Factors operating against the demand for pianos
prior to the depression have changed radically dur-
ing the past two years. Recent survey shows only
five per cent loss in piano ownership since 1927.
Revival of purchasing power means the opening of
a large new market for the industry.
which were surveyed by the General Federation of Women's
Clubs, 40.4 per cent possessed pianos, percentages ranging
from 36.9 in cities below 1,000 population to 43.6 in cities
above 100,000 population. Considering production in the
piano industry for the period from 1917 to 1927, or for ten
years before the date of the survey, at which production in
the American industry reached its all-time peak, it is likely
that this represented the highest point of piano possession that
ever existed in the country.
This year preliminary reports from the National Consumer
Census which is being conducted by R. L. Polk & Co.,
Detroit, Mich., showed that out of a total of 448,300 fam-
ilies thus far surveyed 35.2 per cent possessed pianos. In
other words, the number of families owning pianos showed an
approximate decrease of 1 per cent per annum during these
five years.
These figures definitely indicate that during this five-year
period practically no pianos have been discarded by their
owners. The decrease of 1 per cent per annum is more than
compensated by new homes which have been established by the
number of marriages each year during that time. If the
figures mean anything at all, they mean that there has been
a return to the piano by its owners as a means of home enter-
tainment, a trend which is more than supported by other
factors that have made themselves apparent.
For instance, we definitely know that piano study has shown
a steady increase during all this five-year period. Second, we
know that radio, as a competitor to the piano, has lost its
element of novelty, and from a new purchase on the part
of the average family has changed primarily to a replacement
purchase on the part of the average family. Again, country-
wide depression has driven the American family back to the
home for amusement, since lower incomes do not permit the
habits and customs characteristic of the post-war era. Lastly,
the ingenuity of the industry has developed new models in
small-sized instruments which have effectually overcome the
objection that arose from the amount of floor space required
by the average type that was produced prior to 1925.
It is as yet too early to consider the change which has been
made in American habits by the past two years. Some in-
{Please turn to page 10)
August-September,
1932