PRESTO
Presto
THE AMERICAN MUSIC TRADE WEEKLY.
Published Every Saturday at 417 South Dearborn
whose genius for promoting an artistic thing
it has become fixed in many of the best re-
tail stores, will stay, so will the skilled work-
ers who have adhered to the high principles of
construction laid down by the late Mr. Gertz.
Money alone could hardly estimate Mason &
Hamlin value. It is one of the world's great
pianos, as well as "most costly." That is the
touchstone, after all.
Street, Chicago, Illinois.
C: A. DANIELL and FRANK D. ABBOTT -
• Editor*
Telephones, Local and Long Distance, Harrison 234.
Private Phones to all Departments. Cable Address (Com-
mercial Cable Co.'s Code), "PRESTO," Chicago.
Entered as second-class matter Jan. 29, 1896, at the
Post Office, Chicago, Illinois, under Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription, $2 a year; 6 months, $1; Foreign, $4.
Payable In advance. No extra charge in United States
possessions, Cuba and Mexico. Rates for advertising on
application.
Items of news and other matter are solicited and if
of general interest to the music trade will be paid for
at space rates. Usually piano merchants or salesmen
in the smaller cities are the best occasional corre-
spondents, and their assistance is invited.
Forms close at noon every Thursday. News mat-
ter should be in not later than eleven o'clock on the
same day. Advertising copy should be in hand before
Tuesday, five p. m., to insure preferred position. Full
page display copy should be in hand by Monday noon
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week, to insure classification, must not be later than
Wednesday noon.
Address all communications for the editorial or business
departments to PRESTO PUBLISHING CO., 417 South
Dearborn Street, Chicago, III.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1923.
FROM 407 TO 417.
The offices of Presto Publishing Co. have been re-
moved just one door south of former location on
South Dearborn street, Chicago. The new number
is 417 South Dearborn street, and only change of the
0 to 1 is required to have it correct. Presto has been
within fifty feet of its present location for nearly
thirty-five years. In its new and larger quarters it
will be better than ever equipped to meet the require-
ments of a steadily increasing business. Remember
to change your records to—
PRESTO PUBLISHING CO.,
417 South Dearborn Street, Chicago.
MASON & HAMLIN
The affiliation of the Mason & Hamlin Co.
with the American Piano Co. is one of the
important events of recent accomplishment.
The Boston piano has attained to a place so
high among the things musically artistic that
its career concerns all piano men. It has
struggled from what seemed a place of doubt
to an altitude scarcely surpassed by any in-
strument the world over. And this has been
done fairly, and in a manner worthy of the in-
strument and of the gentlemen who have been
nearest to the old Boston industry.
With the Mason & Hamlin—"the costliest
piano in the world"—and the Knabe, and the
Chickering, the American Piano Co. will have
a tandem team of super-sparkling attraction.
Just where to place each of the three great
leaders may, to some in the trade, seem some-
what embarrassing. But why?
The.' two old Boston pianos have moved
along serenely, and both have their unshakable
admirers in the trade as well as among pian-
ists.'. The fine old Knabe has a rather peculiar
place in the piano world. It moves along with-
out hunching any other fine instrument off the
pavement. It has its own special following,
and in the South it is immovable.
The Mason & Hamlin will prove a powerful
member of the great New York combination.
It must add to the prestige already impressive.
It will retain the men who have, we almost
said had made it. Mr. A. M. Wright, by
PIANOS EXCLUDED
December 29, 1923.
It is suggestive of the stone age, when beauty
was acquired with the sledge-hammer, or sup-
posed to have been. It is not the kind that
wins business in any line, in this day of en-
lightenment. No piano salesman can hope to
employ the lowest tactics of the knocker and
still win success. The musical public has ad-
vanced beyond that stage.
The system of crying down an instrument
of character was never profitable. It is espe-
cially foolish in this day. And when both the
retail house that sells, and the instrument it
represents, is of the best, where is the dis-
gruntled, dishonest knocker to "get off"? In
the case here alluded to, the selling house is
that of Fastje, of Dennison, Iowa. But the
name of the offending rival dealer we would
be ashamed to mention.
There has been some curiosity expressed by
piano men concerning one of the conditions
of sale in the big purchase by Marshall Field
& Co., of the Rothschild department stores in
Chicago. It is the one that stipulates that the
purchase "excludes" everything pertaining to
pianos, from stock on the floor to the least of
the installment payments.
No explanation is given, but there are sev- A. C. THIEBES OPENS NEW
eral probabilities which have general interest.
MUSIC STORE IN ST. LOUIS
First of all, the Marshall Field management
has steadfastly refused to consider pianos as Former Dealer in St. Louis Is Head of the A. C.
Thiebes Music Co., Inc.
a part of the "cathedral of the stores." When
the late Mr. Field was approached on the sub-
The A. C. Thiebes Piano Co., Inc., last week opened
ject of putting in a piano department, his for business in St. Louis, in the building at 1103 Olive
The proprietor is Arthur C. Thiebes, for-
reply was : "I'd no more think of selling pianos street.
merly owner of the Thiebes Piano Co., which sold
than steamboats."
out to the Wurlitzer Co. a few years ago.
The company handles pianos and talking machines.
But he later explained it was not because
The line of pianos and players include the instruments
of any prejudice against music, or the things made by the Bush & Gerts Piano Co., Chicago; the
of music. He would not interfere in any way Straube Piano Co., Hammond, Ind.; Kreiter Piano
with the business built up by his old friend, Co., Milwaukee, and the Hobart M. Cable Piano Co.,
La Porte, Ind. Two lines of talking machines are
P. J. Healy, who was also still active at the carried. The company has taken over the retail busi-
time now alluded to.
ness of the Artophone Co., which will continue to do
Nor has the Field stores since given any a wholesale business with warerooms at 1213 Pine
street.
consideration to pianos, although several at-
Since selling out his St. Louis business to the Wur-
tempts have been made to interest them. Fur- litzer Co. Mr. Thiebes has operated as a factory dis-
ther, the Rothschild house some time ago sold tributor of pianos and players and has maintained
its piano factory, at Monroeville, Ohio, and branch stores in Bismarck, Ironton and Deslogc, Mo.
discontinued selling the "Meister" pianos,
EXPANDS IN BRIDGEPORT.
which is had been making. Whether with a
H. Piquette & Sons, Bridgeport, has just opened a
view to the present change is, of course, not music store at 183 Fairfield avenue, occupying two
floors, which are up to date in every respect. The
known.
carries pianos and phonographs.
H. S.
The clause in the conditions of the Roths- store
Piquette, founder of the business has been a piano
child sale suggests that perhaps piano depart- salesman for the past thirty-six years. The growth
ments in big general stores have not been so of the business forced him to move from the old
on Cannon street to the present larger store.
successful as some seem to think. Most of location
He has two sons and three daughters associated with
the New York stores have tried it. Two of him in the prosperous business.
them are manufacturing at this time; others
have discontinued pianos. Is it possible that
NEW BALTIMORE CORPORATION.
the piano business is, after all, a matter for
The Rolmonica Mfg. Co., Inc., Baltimore, Md., of
specialists who know what pianos are, and this city, has filed articles of incorporation with the
sell them because they—well, because they State tax commission. The company is capitalized at
$50,000 and is authorized to manufacture and dispose
love them?
of musical instruments. The office of the company
AN UNFAIR KNOCKER
A peculiarly flagrant illustration of the un-
scrupulous methods still employed by a few
piano dealers came to the direct observation
of this paper last week. A correspondent re-
ported that he had recently purchased a play-
erpiano—an instrument which stands high
with the trade and public; one of the "nation-
ally advertised," and most reputable in every
way. The correspondent said that he had been
visited by a local salesman who had declared
that the instrument was unknown, had never
been "listed in the piano books," that it is a
"cheap grade," and that the price at which the
instrument had been sold was far too much.
The fact is that the instrument thus slan-
dered is one of the most famous, is the prod-
uct of an industry whose reputation is world-
wide, and whose products are everywhere
recognized as not only among the best, but in
every way in line with every advancement.
The attitude of the slanderous dealer, in the
Iowa town, is archaic in its primitive errors.
is located at 1215 West Saratoga street and the in-
corporators are Edward Gross, Charles H. Spence and
Joseph LeRoy Banks.
ATTRACTION FOR SHOPPERS.
The Hanson Music House, San Francisco, took
effective means to remind its patrons that it would
keep open in the evenings of the days before Christ-
mas. It hit on the novel plan of sending out in-
vitations to what was called "An Intimate Recital" at
its store each evening. The performers were head-
liners of the Pantages Theater.
NEW HOLLYWOOD STORE.
The formal opening of the new Monica Music
Shoppe at 4512 Sunset boulevard, Hollywood, Cal.,
was held recently. Monica Gualano is the proprietor.
The store carries a full line of pianos, phonographs
and stringed instruments. Miss Gualano was for-
merly the owner of the Hollywood Music Shoppe.
GRANDS IN OHIO.
The Goosman Piano Co., Toledo, O., reports suc-
cess for the Bryan, O., branch in closing many sales
with farmers and with dwellers in the small towns
adjacent. Grand pianos of the smaller type now in-
terest the prospects of the Bryan branch. Continu-.
ous strong publicity has achieved the result.
;
The Shearouse Music House recently opened a
store in Palatka, Fla.
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