Presto

PRESTO
HUNTINGTON, IND., SINGER
FOR CONVENTION FUNCTION
Rare Voice, Discovered by Schaff Bros. Co. Officials,
to Be Heard by Piano Men.
Early announcements of entertainment features for
the convention of music trades at the Drake Hotel,
Chicago, in June, include a promise that Helen
Thomas Bucher of Huntington, Ind., will sing at one
of the functions to be given under the auspices of
the Piano Club of Chicago. Mrs. Bucher, who re-
cently sang at a Piano Club luncheon, has a soprano
voice of great richness, and in addition is equipped
with dramatic gifts that make her voice considerably
more valuable.
Mrs. Bucher's wonderful voice is a discovery of one
of the officials of the Schaff Bros. Co., Huntington,
and Curtis S. Miller, president of the company, is
convinced that the young lady has the vocal gifts
assuring a brilliant future on the operatic stage. On
a visit to Chicago some time ago, Mrs. Bucher had
a very pleasant and .encouraging interview with
Signor Polacco, artistic director of the Chicago Civic
Grand Opera Company.
HARTFORD, CONN., SHOWN
VALUE OF MUSIC IN HOME
Two Big Music Dealers Take Active Part in Making
Event a Great Success.
The Connecticut Better Homes Exposition was
opened in the state armory, Hartford, Conn., on
Monday of this week to continue for two weeks.
Two of the music dealers in Hartford are participat-
ing in the exposition and showing, by tasteful dis-
plays, the importance of music in the American home.
Watkins Bros., whose handsome stores in Hartford,
Bristol and South Manchester make the firm name a
familiar one all over the state, shows the association
of music and happiness by means of a suggestive
display. This progressive house has a big and varied
line of pianos which includes Steinway & Sons, A. B.
Chase, Henry F. Miller, W. P. Ilaines & Co., Hazel-
ton Bros., Meissner and others, as well as a tine line
of talking machines which also are used in the firm's
display at the armory.
Sedgwick & Casey, the Hartford firm, has provided
a very interesting feature that gives a dramatic char-
SWAN PIANOS
are of the highest grade
t h a t c a n be obtained
through over 50 years of
practical experience in
piano and organ building.
Illustrations and cata-
logues of various styles
will be furnished piano
merchants on application.
acter to the company's display. The big store at 139
Asylum street has the "Music Mirror" as a feature
in its space in the show. This is the film fantasy
featuring the Duo-Art reproducing piano during the
showing of which the brilliant Russian pianist,
Pesetski, is scheduled to appear at each performance. Vice-President Coolidge to Head Committee Planning
Nation-Wide Centennial Tribute.
CELEBRATION TO HONOR
JONAS CHICKERING
FORMER CONCERT SINGER
STUDIES PIANO TUNING
Chas. C. Skinner, of the Hippie Concert Company,
Taking a Course at Polk's School.
Among the visitors in some of Chicago's piano
factories the past week was Chas. C. Skinner, of
Shelbyville, Ind., son of one of the old established
piano dealers of that city. Mr. Skinner has been a
member of famed Hippie Concert Company Mid he
is now taking the course in piano tuning at Polk's
School of Piano Tuning at Valparaiso, Indiana.
The Hippie Concert Company has long been prom-
inent in the musical world. Mr. Hippie has' grown
tired of traveling and has determined to retire from
the stage. This will disintegrate the company, and
Mr. Skinner has chosen piano tuning for his future
work. He is now well along in his studies, under
Mr. Powell's instruction at the Valparaiso institu-
tion, and he speaks in unqualified approval of the
system employed there. Mr. Skinner will reside
in Shelbyville, where he will enter the piano busi-
ness.
NEXT OHIO CONVENTION.
The first part of March, the contract was closed
in Cincinnati by the president and secretary of the
Music Merchants Association of Ohio with the Gib-
son hotel, whereby this fine hotel is secured for the
next convention on Sept. 11 and 12, 1923. This sim-
ple announcement will mean more to every person
reading it after they have attended the next meeting
of the Ohio organization.
MANY STROHBER DIMINUTIVES.
The little piano which is the pride of the Smith,
Barnes & Strohber Co., Chicago, namely the Stroh-
ber Diminutive, is taking its place as one of the most
popular instruments manufactured in the factories
of this company. Strohber Diminutives found instant
favor and have been gradually increasing in demand,
according to a statement from the Chicago offices.
SWAN ORGANS
*\ fia /"V ri
April 7, 1923
The tremendous superi-
ority of the SWAN Reed
Organs over all others lies
in the absolute mechanism
and scientific perfection iia
the bellows action and stop
action, making it the best
value in modern o r g a n
building.
S. N. SWAN & SONS, M - M « * FREEPORT, ILL
Otto H. Kahn, chairman of the Metropolitan Opera
House Board of Directors, of New York, announced
last Saturday that Vice-President Calvin Coolidge
had accepted the chairmanship of the Jonas Chicker-
ing centennial celebration. The announcement was
made at the Celebration Committee offices, 437 Fifth
avenue. New York. Mr. Kahn, who is a member of
the committee, said:
"It is fitting and gratifying that nation-wide tribute
is being paid to Jonas Chickeriug.
"A century ago, Jonas Chickering, then a mere lad,
a blacksmith's son in New Hampshire, set to work in
his own name as a maker of pianos. There were at
his disposal very limited financial means and but a
few simple tools, but there were also at his disposal
pluck, resourcefulness, persistency, love of his work
and inventive genius. With these, he wrought a
great and lasting American achievement. His was
the brain from which sprang the conception, his was
the hand that laid the foundation of the splendid
American piano of today and of its triumph, through-
out the world."
Among those who have signified their intention to
participate in the movement to pay tribute to the
father of the American pianoforte are David Belasco,
Giulio Gatti-Casazza, Senator Henry Cabot Lodge,
William Cardinal O'Conneil, Senator Reed Smoot,
Artur Bodanzky, George W. Chadwick, Governor
Channing C. Cox of Massachusetts, Mayor James M.
Curley of Boston, Walter Dumrosch, Erno Dohnanyi,
Arthur Foote, Fritz Kreisler and Mrs. George L.
Nichols, granddaughter of Jonas Chickering.
Among the features of the celebration w r ill be a
banquet and recital on April 21 and 22, respectively,
at Boston.
AMENDS ITS CHARTER.
The Schmidt Music Co., Davenport, Iowa, has
amended its articles of incorporation, changing the
principal place of business from Muscatine to Daven-
port and providing for the holding of the annual
meeting on the third Monday in January of each year.
Edward A. Schmidt is vice-president of the corpora-
tion and Carl C. Schmidt is secretarv.
KROEGER
(Established 1352)
The name alone is enough to suggest to dealers the Best
Artistic and Commercial Values.
The New Styl« Players Are F-nest Yet. If you can
get the Agency you ought to / nve it,
KROEGER PIANO CO.
NEW YORK. N. Y.
and
STAMFORD, CON*.
BRINKERHOFF
Player-Pianos and Pianos
The Line That Sells Easily and Satisfies Always
Quick Sales and
Satisfied Customers
BRINKERHOFF PIANO CO. OFP1C2 S S JS1 CEE ? LI)G CHICAGO
That's what you want and that's what you get when you sell Straube-
made players and pianos.
The constant and growing demand for Straube-made instruments is
due to their high quality which is indicated by the kind of people
who buy them. You can see that they are being selected by those
who choose most carefully.
As a dealer you know the advantage of selling a line of instruments
with a standing of this sort. Let us tell you about our interesting
dealer proposition.
STRAUBE PIANO CO., Hammond, Ind.
Kindler & Collins
Pianos
520-524 W. 48th S
NEW YORK
For QUALITY, SATISFACTION and PROFIT
NEWMAN BROTHERS PIANOS
NEWMAN BROS. CO.
Established 1870
Factories, 816 DIX ST., Chicago, I]
* Leins Piano Company
Makers of Pianos That Are Leaders
in Any Reliable Store
NEW FACTORY. 3 0 4 W. 42nd St.. NEW YORK
Try a Presto Want Ad and Get It
Enhanced content © 2008-2009 and presented by MBSI - The Musical Box Society International (www.mbsi.org) and the International Arcade Museum (www.arcade-museum.com).
All Rights Reserved. Digitized from the archives of the MBSI with support from NAMM - The International Music Products Association (www.namm.org).
Additional enhancement, optimization, and distribution by the International Arcade Museum. An extensive collection of Presto can be found online at http://www.arcade-museum.com/library/