Presto Buyers' Guide
Analyzes and Classifies
All American Pianos
and in Detail Tells of
Their Makers.
PRESTO
e«<*N.h.j ,**,
THE AMERICAN MUSIC TRADE WEEKLY
Presto Trade Lists
Three Uniform Book-
lets, the Only Complete
Directories of the Music
Industries.
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CHICAGO, SATURDAY, MAY 5, 1923
MUSIC AND SPEECH
ENLIVEN CLUB
Advance Notice of a Talk by Thomas M.
Pletcher Filled Every Place at Regu-
lar Monday Meeting of Piano
Club of Chicago This Week.
At the request in writing, of fifteen members of
the Piano Club of Chicago a special meeting was
held last Monday, April 30, for the purpose of elect-
ing a treasurer for the balance of the fiscal year to
fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Thomas
W. Hindley. H. D. Schoenwald was chosen.
The music was another attraction to swell attend-
ance. The musical number was a flower grown from
seed sown by the piano club, and the posie was pre-
sented by Fred Firestone, retail manager of the
T. M. FL.ETCHER.
Schumann Piano Company store of Rockford, who
is setting an example to the retail music trade by
the local concerts he is giving in that city.
Mr. Firestone was instrumental in providing a
musical treat. He brought four artists from his city,
a pianist, Wesley Wilco, a baritone and William
Hope, a tenor. ' The attraction was pronounced one
of the best the club has enjoyed this year. Mr. Fire-
stone introduced the guests as "Schumann artists",
and told of his work toward the cultivation of music
among the masses in Rockford.
The notice from the secretary to members an-
nouncing a talk by Thomas M.- Pletcher, president
of the Q R S Music Co., Chicago, was the big num-
ber on the program of events at the Piano Club
luncheon. There was a bare suggestion of a topic
in the secretary's notice, but it had the expected
drawing power.
"When Tom Pletcher talks he says things. W r e
do not know what his subject is to be. The fact
that he has consented to speak signifies that he has
something on his mind that will be of particular
interest to the members of the music trade. And
the members of the music trade are always inter-
ested in what Tom Pletcher has to say."
What He Said.
And Mr. Pletcher certainly did have something
to say. He also said it in his own way. lie boosted
advertising in a way that advertised advertising!
Co-operation, advertising—and then advertising some
more—that was his theme. Anything that is worth
making and selling is deserving of advertising—must
have it if success is the aim. And he paid attention
to the gyp piano dealer who for sufficient reasons,
never advertises.
Mr. Pletcher devoted a good line of talk to the
attitude of the federal trade commission, in the mat-
ter of Q K S advertising its selling prices and trying
to have them sustained by the dealers. He told of
his light for what he considered the right way to do
business.
"Advertising and proper publicity form the pivot
on which all the other essentials turn," said Mr.
Pletcher. He said that two leading things necessary
for the success of any business are first, "guts", which
is absolutely the first requisite, followed by ability,
capital and advertising—"And no business has, or
ever can, succeed without guts!" He emphasized the
great essential much after the manner of the late
C. Chauncey Burr, who said that "it takes guts to
sustain brains." "Walk up the street and pass places
where no success has come. The product may be
good, the truly active, but they have not advertised
and made known to the world what they have! Look
at the piano business and note the names! Plenty
of money, good instruments, but many of them just
where they were years ago—passed by the progres-
sive ones!"
His Own Troubles.
Mr. Pletcher spoke somewhat caustically of his
own tussle to maintain prices. He referred to the
possibility of building up a business and having it
torn down again by governmental interference, well
meant but fallacious. Trying to maintain prices
based on quality, and officials come along and by
precipitating court costs entail expenses dispropor-
tionate to any possible good in view." He said that
Q R S expenses in defending the right to maintain
prices is so far probably $26,000 and may amount to
double that before the thing is settled. And the
government is out perhaps $100,000 or more. He said
that he had pleaded guilty but the government would
not accept, and seemingly wanted to try the case
anyway. It was like a man pleading guilty of mur-
der and trying to be hanged or jailed for life to avoid
trial even if guiltless. His company's fine would be
only an order to desist. He wanted to have the case
ended and took what he thought would be the short-
est course to that end. But to no evail and so adver-
tising may have its burdens, as in his case. By adver-
tising he had built up a business and it was threatened
with being torn down by over-zealous officialdom.
Mr. Pletcher turned warmly to the "gyp" dealer
who is always getting other goods than those he
regularly represents, with which to undersell his com-
petitors. That, he said, is what really started his own
w
trouble with the government.
"How can we make prices and maintain them?"
he asked, "if the manufacturers cannot make
prices, how can the government make them?" He
thought it unfair to base selling prices on cost of
manufacture. There would be too great a diversity
of prices for the minor products.
Something Like An Explosion.
Mr. Pletcher advocated the new Merritt Bill, which
takes place of the Stevens Bill and makes price main-
tenance possible. On the subject of the effort of the
Q R S Company to fix prices he concluded that no
matter what the outcome of the pending suit they will
probably continue about as usual as there is just one
right and correct way, and he believed his company
is doing what is right.
In closing Mr. Pletcher made an explosion. He
said that he knew he was going to say something
that would be taken kindly by many. He might even
get himself "in bad", but what he was going to say
he firmly believed, and he knew of at least a consid-
erable number of others who also believed it. He
added seriously that he did not approve of the tend-
ency to so much general musical "awakening," edu-
cating and anticipating the future. "We can get much
right here and right now." Twenty-five years is a
long way ahead for us to anticipate results of musical
"propaganda" of today. And this applies to all lines
of musical education.
In 25'years, concluded Mr. Pletcher, we may all be
listening to a German Kaiser singing over a radio,
or a new Paderewski playing on the planet Mars. But
what we want today is some' better way than we
known of for doing business, and reaping rewards of
our hard work. Bands parading the streets are all
right in their way, but they are not going to sell
pianos—not today at least. We have more "free"
in music than in almost anything else. A man who
would get a free ride in an auto every day from his
home to office would not care for a car as much as
he who buys one!
TWO OF THE YOUNGER
GENERATION INTRODUCED
Sons of A. G. Gulbransen and C. N. Kimball Make
Initial Appearance at Piano Club Dinner.
Two new faces appeared at last Monday's.luncheon
of the Chicago Piano Club. The sons of A. G. Gul-
bransen and C. N. Kimball, respectively, were intro-
duced and at once won the members of the club who
were present. The representatives respectively of
the second and third generations of the heads of the
Gulbransen-Dickinson Co. and the W. W. Kimball
Company, are typical "piano men." They are alert,
and wide-awake to the possibilities of the great in-
dustries to which they expect to devote their lifetime
activities, and they seem equal to any emergencies.
Young Mr. Kimball is happy in bearing the name
of his distinguished grandsire, William Wallace Kim-
ball, and he seems to be a typical "chip of the old
block", and that is compliment enough.
The two young men make welcome additions to
the Chicago Piano Club, in which their fathers have
taken personal interest and had a personal influence.
THINKS ASSOCIATION HAS NO
CLAIM ON HEADQUARTERS
Specimen Opinion on Heated Subject As Seen in
Letter of Musical New Yorker.
All over the country the controversy over the claims
of the Authors' and Publishers' Association to copy-
right tax on all music that is broadcasted is raging
fiercely. Following, which appeared in the New
York Times, is a good specimen of one point of view:
Recently the Society of Composers, Authors and
Publishers protested against the use of copyrighted
music and phonograph records for radio broadcasting.
It is amusing to note that the society failed to see
that it was of particular benefit to them to have their
music broadcast, because many people I know have,
and I have myself, bought records of which 1 would
not have known if I had not heard them on my
receiving set.
Now, then, inasmuch as the record 1 bought and
paid for carried a two-cent royalty to the author of
the music, it was m'ne to do with what I pleased, and
if I want to play it in public for amusement the
author has no claim on me. Therefore, it is my
opinion that the society has no claim on the broad-
casting stations, as they make no charge to the listen-
ing public. What they really do is bring pleasure and
happ'ness into the poorest homes.
H E N R Y F. TIERNAN,
City Marshal.
New York. April 27, 1923.
OHIO ASSOCIATION CONVENTION.
As has already been said in Presto the Cincinnati,
Sept. 11th and 12th Fourteenth Annual Meeting of
The Music Merchants Association of Ohio will take
place. It promises to be the best in the history of
the Ohio trade. There will be a minimum number
of set speeches, permitting ample opportunity for
discussions; a stupendous music instrument show;
entertainment as the guests of the Cincinnati dealers;
a mammoth banquet at the Hotel Gibson. It prom-
ises to be an event never to be forgotten and which
only some great catastrophe should cause any Ohio
dealer to miss.
LOUISVILLE TUNERS' CHAPTER.
At a meeting recently at the Henry Watterson
Hotel, Louisville, Ky., a plan to form a branch of the
national association of piano tuners was launched.
J. G. Prente was named temporary chairman, and
outlined the procedure leading to establishing a
Louisville chapter of the National Association of
Piano Tuners, Inc. According to Mr. Prente the object
will be accomplished at the next meeting set for next
week.
T. J. MERCER IN TEXAS.
,T. J. Mercer, sales manager of the Gulbransen-
Dickinson Co., Chicago, is in Dallas, Texas, this
week, attending the conference of the Texas Music
Dealers Association which is being held in Dallas
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