25
PRESTO
April 26, 1924.
SHEET MUSIC TRADE
INTEREST IN DILL BILL
American Composers and Publishers Tell
Committee of Senate That Broadcasters
Should Pay Fees for Use of Music.
Every American composer and publisher is inter-
ested in the form the Dill bill will finally take and in
drafting a report on the bill, which provides that
radio broadcasters may use copyrighted music with-
out paying fees to composers, the Senate committee
will be called upon to decide four questions:
1. Do the educational advantages of radio warrant
the removal of all restrictions as to music that may
be broadcast?
2. Does broadcasting injure the sale of music, par-
ticularly song hits?
3. Is it just that the composers be permitted to
charge broadcasting stations fees for using their
music in view of royalties already received from the
sale of their productions and fees charged orchestras
for rendering their music in public performances?
4. Will the production of good music and the stim-
ulation of the art be injured by exempting radio from
the copyright laws pertaining to music?
Representatives of the American Society of Com-
posers, Authors and Publishers have told the com-
mittee that the first question should be decided in the
negative and the remaining three emphatically in the
negative. Gene Buck, president of the society, is of
this opinion:
"If the educational value of radio warrants the
expenditure of $50,000 by some stations for the pur-
chase of instruments, certainly it warrants the ex-
penditure of a few hundred dollars more to pay the
composers who produce the music."
Victor Herbert told the committee that songs that
would have been popular and of the rank of ''hits"
have been ruined by radio.
"They were broadcast so often that the public got
tired of them before profits on sales were realized. I
have heard the same song broadcast half a dozen
times in a single night; this makes the tune old before
the public has an opportunity to buy," said Mr.
Herbert.
Irving Berlin said: "Composers should be paid
REMICK SONG HITS
Where the Lazy Daisies Grow
Watchin' the Moonrise
I Wonder Who's Dancing With
You Tonight
If You'll Come Back
So I Took the Fifty Thousand
Dollars
Arizona Stars
Until Tomorrow
Somebody's Wrong
You Can't Make a Fool Out of Me
Twilight Rose
Nearer and Dearer
Land of Broken Dreams
Steppin' Out
You've Simply Got Me Cuckoo
Bring Back the Old Fashioned
Waltz
J. H. REMICK & CO.
New York
Chicago
Detroit
GOOD BOOKS ON MUSIC
Committee in Charge of National Music Week
Compile Two-Foot Shelf From Sugges-
tions by Prominent Artist.
in proportion to the audience entertained by their
music," and Augustus Thomas expressed this belief:
A two-foot book shelf of popular books on music
"If composers are to be deprived of the revenue
to be received from broadcasting their music, am- made up of titles chosen by famous musicians, critics,
bition will be throttled, inspiration will diminish, orchestral conductors, and educators, is being recom-
mended by the committee in charge of National
production will decrease and the art will suffer."
Senator Dill, of Washington, author of the bill, says Music Week, May 4-10. Prominent men and women
he does not wish to injure such an important art as in the musical world were asked to send in lists of
music, but believes the possibilities of radio demand books they would recommend to the average man
every encouragement to its full development. "Ulti- or woman who likes music and wants to be able to
mately radio will give rise to a universal language," understand it—not technical works, but books of hu-
he said. "We should promote that end as far as man interest that would help to create new music
possible by removing restrictions and encouraging lovers and deepen the appreciation of those already
interested.
its use."
Leading the sixteen books on the list is "How to
Meantime representatives of the National Broad-
casters' Association have renewed their appeal for Listen to Music," by the late H. E. Krehbiel, music
passage of the bill, declaring it will enable them to critic and lecturer. A special honor is reserved for
Daniel Gregory Mason, five of his books appearing
give the public better programs.
Telephone, telegraph and electric and wireless cor- on the list. The books which received the highest
poration work together to "sew up" the radio and number of votes are as follows, the names of pub-
make profits for each other, Nathan Burkan, counsel lishers being printed in parentheses:
for the American Society of Composers, Authors and
How to Listen to Music, H. E. Krehbiel (Scribner);
Publishers, told a subcommittee of the Senate Patents What We Hear in Music, Anne Shaw Faulkner
committee. He pictured the American Telephone & (Victor); Fundamentals of Music, Karl W. Gehr-
Telegraph Company and the Westinghouse Electric kcns (Ditson); Chopin—The Man and His Music,
& Radio Corporation of America as working together. James G. Huneker (Scribner); Life of Ludwig von
"After a program," Burkan said, "you hear the an- Beethoven, Alexander
W. Thayer (Beethoven
nouncement, 'Send us a wire and tell us how you liked Ass'n); What Is Good Music, Wm. J. Henderson
the sings and what songs you want to hear.' What's (Scribner); The Lure of Music, Olin Downes
that for? To make money for the Western Union (Harper); Beethoven and His Forerunners, Daniel
Telegraph Company. Broadcasting is done for the Gregory Mason (Macmillan); From Grieg to Brahms,
advertising in it. The broadcasters charge $2,500 for Daniel Gregory Mason (Macmillan); Music: An Art
ten minutes of advertising broadcasting."
and Language, Walter R. Spaulding (Schmidt);
Burkan also related to the committee a report that Child's Guide to Music, Daniel Gregory Mason
an effort had been made by radio companies to charge (Novello); The Romantic Composers, Daniel Greg-
President Coolidge $2,500 to broadcast his speech ory Mason (Macmillan); Orchestral Instruments and
What They Do. Daniel Gregory Mason (Novello);
from New York on Lincoln's birthday.
Frank A. Roland, counsel for the National Hotel Evolution of the Art of Music, Hubert Parry (Apple-
Association, told the committee that the music com- ton); Listener's Guide to Music, Percy A. Scholes
posers maintained a "trust" and that they were guilty (Oxford): The Education of a Music Lover, Edward
Dickinson (Scribner).
of "price fixing."
Among those who compiled lists for the National
Music Committee were Amelita Galli-Curci, Leopold
Stokowski, Pierre Monteux, Frank Damrosch, Henry
T. Finck, etc.
Case of American Society of Composers, Authors and
Publishers Against Theaters Begun.
LYRIC CONTEST CLOSES.
PHILADELPHIA COPYRIGHT SUIT
Forty test suits against motion picture houses in
Philadelphia were begun in the United States District
Court last week by the American Society of Com-
posers, Authors and Publishers, when the theater
owners refused to pay a fee at the rate of 10 cents a
seat per year to the song producers.
Judge Thompson referred the cases to the special
master, Walter C. Douglas, Jr., who found that in
each case the motion picture houses played "sub-
stantial" portions of copyrighted music for profit
"without consent of the plaintiff, and after due written
notice of the plaintiff's rights in the premises." He
also found that the act of the defendant constituted
an infringement of the plaintiff's rights in and to the
copyright in said musical compositions."
Counsel for the defendants took exception to the
master's conclusions in arguments before Judge
Thompson, who will possibly hand down a decision
this week.
SHEET MUSIC EXPORTS.
Department of Commerce reports shows that ex-
ports of American music in sheets and bound books
in the eight months of the fiscal year ending Febru-
ary, totaled $245,000. The total for a similar pe-
riod ending February, 1923, was $229,319. For the
month of February, 1924, America exported music
valued at $26,859.
TAKES HIS MUSIC WITH HIS PIPE.
Harry Friedenberg, of Washington, D. C, has
equipped his favorite pipe with a small crystal radio
set by which he is able to take his smoke and his
music together, oblivious of the rest of the world.
The lyric writing contest promoted by the Indian-
apolis fire department to promote interest in fire pre-
vention closed on Monday of this week after the time
limit being extended one week. A stipulation was
that the lyrics were to be written to the air of
"Mindin' My Business," "Wonderful Girl of Today,"
or "Ain't Gonna Rain No Mo'." The songs accepted
will be printed on thirty thousand leaflets with fire
prevention "don'ts" on the reverse side.
FOREIGN PUBLISHERS' ACTIVITY.
Figures given by the Droit d'Auteur (Authors'
Rights) show that in 1922 German publishers issued
4,799 musical compositions, including serious, light,
orchestral, piano, vocal, etc., pieces from 290 German
publishers, plus 28 foreign, presumably Austrian.
The figures for France were 3,799 in 1922, or 1,261
more than in 1921, thus approaching pre-war figures.
Italian figures quoted are 596 in 1922, against 560 in
1921.
SONGS THAT SELL
"I Ain't No Sheik, Just Sweet Papa,
That's All."
"I've Got a Man of My Own."
"Houston Blues." "The Fives."
"Muscle Shoals Blues." "The Rocks."
"You Have a Home Somewhere."
"Up the Country Blues."
"Shorty George Blues."
"I've Found a Sweetheart."
"Mammy's Little Brown Rose."
and the Sensational Waltz Success
"AT SUNDOWN"
Order From Your Jobber or Direct.
Geo. W. Thomas Music Co.
428 Bowen Ave.
Chicago, U. S. A.
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