Music Trade Review

Issue: 1953 Vol. 112 N. 11

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
NAMM Mid-Year Meeting in Florida in Feb.,
Merchants to Determine 1956 Convention City
HE NAMM Executive Committee
met at the Essex House in New
York City on October 15th and 16th
last. The following members of the
Committee were present: Harry E.
Callaway, Chairman of the Board;
Russell B. Wells, President; Earl
Campbell, Vice-President; Paul E.
Murphy, Secretary; Parker M. Harris.
Treasurer; Executive Secretary, Wil-
liam R. Gard.
ful silverware prizes to the four com-
mercial salesmen securing the greatest
number of new members. To those
salesmen who secure five or more new
members for the Association, but who
do not qualify for one of the top four
prizes, will be given a $25 United
States Government Savings Bond. A
Citation of Honor will also be award-
ed to the industry manufacturer or
supplier whose dealers are represented
100% in NAMM.
Midyear Meeting of the Board of
Directors
1956 Convention Location
T
The Executive Committee chose
Ponte Vedra Club at Ponte Vedra
Beach, Florida as the site of the Mid-
year Meeting of the NAMM Board of
Directors. The Meeting will be held
on February 17 and 18, 1954. A ref-
erendum of the Directors choices re-
garding the location of this Meeting
showed the large majority of Directors
in favor of the Florida location to
which they are obligated to attend and
pay their own expenses as a part of
their responsibility as Directors of the
Association.
Membership Promotion and
Maintenance
The Committee approved the mem-
bership campaign of the Association
which will begin immediately. Phase I
of the campaign is the responsibility
assigned to each Director to pursue
non-Association members in their state
and adjacent states, which represent a
territory assigned to each. Directors
will solicit non-member retail stores by
means of several prospect letters dur-
ing the year and written on their com-
pany stationery.
Phase II
Phase //, Directors have been as-
signed certain m a n u f a c t u r e r s and
wholesalers in the music industry
whom they know best, in order to so-
licit their aid in the Association mem-
bership campaign. Commercial sales-
men of these companies will be equip-
ped with a Sales Kit containing NAMM
services which they may show to their
non-member dealer-prospects.
Prizes
Prizes: The Executive Committee
again approved awarding four beauti-
In order to determine whether or not
the trade prefers the 1956 Trade Show
and Convention to be held in New
York or Chicago, the Association will
poll retail music merchants, both mem-
bers and non-members. Merchants will
be asked if they attended the 1951.
1952 or 1953 Convention and Trade
Show or any one or more of those con-
claves and whether or not they would
like the 1956 Trade Show to be held
in Chicago or New York. Both the
1954 and 1955 Trade Shows and Con-
ventions are currently scheduled to be
held at the Palmer House in Chicago.
When the results of the retail dealer
poll are known, they will be sent to
the Trade Show exhibitors who will be
asked to express their preference on
the location for the 1956 Trade Show.
The Midyear Meeting of the NAMM
Board of Directors, on the strength of
these two polls, will select the 1956 site
for which tentative dates are currently
held in both New York and Chicago.
Committee Organization
The Executive Committee approved
the organization of the following Com-
mittees, in addition to the Chairmen
and Vice-Chairmen of each as follows:
Committees:
Advertising: J. A. Brown, chairman,
Jackson, Miss.; Harold E. Lucas, vice
chairman, Portland, Ore.
Band Instruments: S. H. Galperin.
chairman, Charleston, W. Va.; S. H.
Almanrode, vice chairman, Shreveport,
La.
Legislative: Earl Campbell, chair-
man, Washington, D.C.
Membership Promotion: H. J. Snel-
ler, chairman, Minneapolis, Minn.;
Paul E. Murphy, vice chairman, Bos-
ton, Mass.
,
Piano & Organ: Emory Penny, chair-
man, Los Angeles, Calif.; F. D. Streep,
Jr., vice chairman, Orlando, Florida.
Hammond Organs Displayed
in Hannon Room Interiors
The Hammond Organ Company, Chi-
cago, 111. introduced its complete line
to home fashions editors of national
magazines and syndicates last month at
a press luncheon in the Hotel Plaza,
New York in an unprecedented move
to present the electric organ as the
focal point of a well designed room.
Harold Lembke, general sales man-
ager for Hammond, said that the com-
pany's up sales curve, accelerated by
recent full production of the Chord or-
gan, easiest-to-play instrument of all
time, coupled with spendable income,
and more home time, has led the com-
pany to feel that presentation of elec-
tric organs in smart room interiors in
the coming months could well be the
key to more sales of all home furnish-
ings.
The Hannon Designed Interiors
At the Hammond press presentation
in the Terrace Room of the Plaza, or-
gans were shown in room settings de-
signed and executed by John Hannon.
New York interior designer.
The Chord organ, Hammond's new-
est instrument, and history maker in
the production of musical instruments,
because it is the easiest to play of all
instruments, was featured in a Provin-
cial setting, and in a game room.
In the Provincial room against bril-
liant dark orange walls with a black
and white tile floor, the painted furni-
ture upholstered in pale yellow silk.
The Home model was shown in a
contemporary room setting against stark
white walls, with an old gold rug and
Empire green taffeta coverings on the
furniture.
The Spinet model was focal point in
a Modern Victorian setting, which had
Empire green walls, a charcoal grey
rug, deep rose silk upholstered table
covering, anl touches of Bristol green.
The Game Room's white brick walls,
spattered linoleum floor, and brilliant
green accessories made an informal
setting for the chord organ.
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, NOVEMBER, 1953
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
Manufacturer Believes in Piano Convention;
Discusses Excise Tax Situation
OMMENTING on the controversy
C
which has heen taking place re-
garding the VA.M.M. Convention, a
prominent piano manufacturer stated to
the REVIEW this month. "It is my
opinion that this Convention is too big
and that it should he separated into
divisions. One division would be the
band instruments, small goods and
sheet music people and the other divi-
sion would be the piano people. I re-
call that in 1927 the radio people de-
cided that they were big enough to hold
their own Convention and separated
from us with good results for all con-
cerned. It appears that the piano in-
dustry has been stabilized at about one
piano for every thousand persons in
the United States annually, and some-
where between ]60.000 and 170,000 pi-
anos. It would appear that the annual
Conventions, such as they have been,
do not add materially to the success
of the piano factories.
"It would seem that if the Piano Di-
vision of the Music Merchants Associ-
ation can be separated from the Band
Instrument. Small Goods and Sheet
Music, an annual Piano Show which
would reduce budgets for everyone
would be in order. We have no trouble
selling our output and one of the sales
managers of one of the other com-
panies told me that the Convention
didn't materially affect their business,
and I think a good observation would
be that it doesn't affect the sales of at
least two of the largest manufacturers
in the industry."
The Excise Tax
"'The biggest problem in the industry
is the matter of excise taxes for pi-
anos. The State of Michigan being an
automotive industry state is quite cons-
cious of excise taxes. They are cutting
automobiles back from 7 million to 5
million and this will effect both labor
and industry for the reason that the
excise tax for each car certainly is
holding back new automobile sales.
There is no reason why there should be
an excise tax on womens pocket books,
refrigerators, washing machines, appli-
ances of any kind or pianos. Automo-
biles will be cut back to l r /( next year
as this is already written into the law.
The television people escaped full tax-
ation by receiving an allowance for the
cabinet which is regarded as furniture.
It would appear that the piano indus-
try should take a stand for a general
excise tax on everything manufactured
to be paid for by the manufacturer.
Certainly a tax of one or even two per
cent wouldn't burl anybody. The furni-
ture industry and the soft drink indus-
try are two enormous industries totally
void of taxation. If the motion picture
industry was taxed as a manufacturer
it certainly would help thai industry.
It is believed that the manufacturers
in Michigan will support a general ex-
cise tax to relieve the unfair distribu-
tion of excise taxes now in existence.
Some leadership in this connection is
essential in our industry and I Ivelieve
that John Furlong. President of the
National Piano Manufacturers Associ-
ation, will lead us in that direction.'*
TO SERVICE ORGANS
Richard L. Heintze has formed the
Metropolitan Music Co. in Detroit,.
Mich, at specialize in service and rebuilding of
pipe and electric organs.
The New ESTEY
SCHOOL PIANO
Full 88 Note Instrument 44" High
Furnished in mahogany or golden oak, this
piano includes;
All copper wound bass strings.
Heavy reinforced hammers.
Three working
pedals with sustaining
bass.
Violin bridge.
Large wheel casters or conventional at no
extra charge.
Some Desirable Territories Still Open
Write For Franchise Particulars
PIAWO CORPORATIOIII
"Fine Pianos Since 7869"
ESTEY
One of America's Most
BLUFFTON, INDIANA
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, NOVEMBER, 1953
Loved Home Pianos

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