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E
IGHT piano workshops were held
during the month of June, and the
University of Texas was the spon-
sor of the one held in Austin, Tex., of
which Dr. Raymond Burrows was the
director. Texas Music Teachers Associa-
tion sponsored the one in Waco, Tex.
of which Miss DuBois was the director.
The one in Dallas, Tex. was sponsored
by Southern Methodist University and
Mrs. Ahearn directed it. In Detroit,
Mich., one was held under the auspices
of the Michigan Music Educators Asso-
ciation, with Miss Reeder as director.
There was also one held under the spon-
sorship of DePaul University in Chicago,
111. for private teachers and public
schools. This Dr. Burrows and Miss
DuBois directed. The University of
Houston sponsored one in Houston, Tex.
which was directed by Miss Gibbs and
Bradley University sponsored the one in
Peoria, 111. which was directed by Miss
DuBois. In Detroit, during the last four
days of the month, Miss Reeder directed
the piano workshop for Catholic teach-
ers, which was sponsored by the Michi-
gan Music Educators Association.
Credit for Stimulating
Music Sales
Two leading business publications,
"Business Week" and "Tide" reported
after the Music Industry Trade Show
that key people in the industry give
credit to television and the American
Music Conference for stimulating the
current major boom in sales of musical
merchandise. Observers pointed out that
sales increases are evenly distributed
over all sections of the country, in areas
where there is no television as well as
in TV zones.
Field Men Active During Summer
This may be the vacation season but
there is no time for vacations at AMC.
Except for the week of the Trade Show,
when the entire staff was on hand to
meet music industry executives from all
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW. AUGUST, 1950
over the country, it has been business
as usual at AMC headquarters.
Edgar Borup, at the request of Wil-
liam Haynie, state supervisor of music,
made an unscheduled visit to Jackson
and Hattiesburg, Miss. He spent two
days, one of which was the Fourth of
July, in St. Louis completing plans for
the piano workshop that was held July
24 through 27. He left immediately for
the University of Massachusetts at Am-
herst, where he conducted a four-day
leadership training program for 4-H
club leaders.
Marion Egbert spent the first week in
July at Juneau County, Wis., serving as
consultant for the county's first music
festival, presented in the form of an
historic pageant, which he wrote. This
was the culmination of one year's work
on an experiment in rural music that
is being adapted by other counties in
Illinois, Tennessee and Massachusetts.
Following the Trade Show, Egbert went
to New Orleans to help set up a piano
workshop (August 28-29-30-31) and
arranged for a week-long series of con-
ferences, clinics and workshops on every
phase of music activity. After his re-
turn, he has devoted his time to pre-
paring material for a classroom manual
to be used by elementary school teach-
ers in presenting the new film, "You
Can Make Music."
Forrest McAllister has completed his
two-week leadership training sessions
with YMCA leaders. These contacts are
already beginning to pay off. Requests
for additional information and, in some
instances, field service that will be given
if music merchants in the community
show sufficient interest, have come from
Rochester, N. Y.; Toronto, Canada;
Springfield, Toledo, Lima, and Canton,
Ohio; Joplin, Mo.; New York City;
Detroit, Mich.; Brookville, Illinois and
Davenport, Iowa, and they are still
coming.
The YMCA contact is already paying
off in Chicago, where the downtown
YMCA and YWCA have combined
forces to conduct an expanded music
program whihc will include Spanish gui-
tar, recorder (two classes), music ap-
preciation and class piano.
In addition to McAllister's daily lec-
tures and demonstrations, he had a
full personal conference schedule. He
also led all group singing.
He spent two weeks in Michigan par-
ticipating in educational seminars at
Michigan State University, the Univer-
sity of Michigan and Western Michigan
State Teachers College. He conferred
with merchants, school superintendents
(both public and parochial), PTA and
civic leaders in East Lansing, Kalama-
zoo, Ann Arbor, Detroit, Berkeley and
Highland Park. At the end of July he
was at the University of Minnesota, as
coordinator for the merchant-sponsored
piano workshop.
Coast-to-Coast Publicity
Indicative of the coast-to-coast im-
pact of AMC publicity were two major
articles based on the story about the
importance of music in personality de-
velopment. They appeared in the Wash-
ington (D. C.) Sunday Star and the
San Francisco Sunday
Chronicle.
Other newspaper material appeared in
cities between, and the high momentum
of the AMC public-opinion campaign
continues in magazines, radio, litera-
ture, films.
Radio .Programs Promote AMC
Efforts
Another network radio program fea-
turing AMC material was arranged dur-
ing the Trade Show. President Louis G.
LaMair was interviewed by Milton
Cross on the Piano Playhouse program
on the ABC network, telling the impor-
tance of music in the lives and educa-
tion of all children. . . . Cross and Maggy
Fisher, producer of the show, appeared
on several other network programs and
gave "plugs" for "music for every-
body." Piano Playhouse continues to
foster expanded interest in music par-
ticipation, using AMC material. (over)
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