Presto

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PRESTO
Presto
THE AMERICAN MUSIC TRADE WEEKLY.
Published Every Saturday at 417 South Dearborn
Street, Chicago, Illinois.
C. A. DANIELL and FRANK D. ABBOTT -
- Editors
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.
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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
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page display copy should be in hand by Monday noon
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Address all communications for the editorial or business
departments to PRESTO PUBLISHING CO., 417 South
Dearborn Street, Chicago, III.
SATURDAY, JULY 19, 1924.
ENGLISH PLAYER ACTIONS
The London piano manufacturers are talk-
ing about a considerable price reduction in
the fall. And there is some special uneasi-
ness expressed in the British music trades
over the possibility of a still greater invasion
by the American player action. As a corre-
spondent expressed it, in the London Music
Trades Review, "every English manufacturer
has his own special patterns and a host of
different filments," which make it impossible
because of small productiveness, to compete
with the imported mechanisms. The plan of
"standardization," .by which all manufacturers
would use practically the same player action,
is proposed.
The plan suggested for the English player-
piano makers is one that has been employed
in this country almost from the first appear-
ance of the playerpiano. While it is not in
any sense a cooperative, or recognized plan
of "standardization," in the sense that differ-
ent manufacturers employ the identical parts,
it amounts to the same thing, because a large
proportion of the manufacturers use the ac-
tions made by one and the same industry.
And such American piano industries as con-
tinue to use their own special player actions
are large producers, so that they can make
that essential as cheaply as if it was, in the
English sense, "standardized." The few man-
ufacturers who pride themselves upon exclu-
siveness in their actions, are of the kind that
do not require great outputs to insure results.
They have reputations, and names, that jus-
tify price in keeping, and the added cost be-
cause of small productiveness does not apply.
The aggregate volume of productiveness of
the English piano factories is small as com-
pared with some of the individual industries
in this country. With the recent income tax
reduction to contend with, and by which
American player actions are permitted to en-
ter at lower penalties, the manufacturers over
there are reasonably concerned in the in-
creased competition of what is termed the
"cheap American player actions." But the
player actions will not necessarily be "cheap."
They are the result of systematic manufacture
on large lines, which permits of every part
and process being reduced to the lowest point
notwithstanding the much higher wage scale
paid in this country over that of Great
Britain.
And so we see that the industry has its per-
plexities the whole world over. And, presum-
ably, the heaviest of the worries over here
are small as compared with some of the
lighter ones over there.
ARE COMBINATIONS BEST
The recent charge of libel brought, but not
prosecuted, by the American Piano Co.,
against the Cunningham Piano Company
presents several points of piano trade interest.
The charge was made that the Philadelphia
house, in its newspaper advertising, had re-
ferred to the plaintiff's line of instruments as
of a kind whose "pioneer manufacturers" had
"gone into hands of receivers, or had been
purchased by commercial houses where their
identity, except for advertising purposes, was
nothing more than the name."
The quotation is from the advertisements
upon which the complaint was based that was
thrown out of court. It was ruled that state-
ments of that kind did not constitute a libel
"when read in conjunction with the rest of the
article." The "rest of the article" was some-
what characteristic of Mr. Cunningham's hec-
tic and often exasperating printer's ink display.
But aside from all that, is the buying up by
any industry, of old and more or less famous
piano names a good thing for the trade—or
for the manufacturers, or for the heritage of
fame which is supposed to cling to the "pio-
neer manufacturers"? Is it good for the re-
tailers, who must overcome competition based
upon the charge, so often abused in piano re-
tailing that, while certain pianos may bear
different, even distinguished names, they may
be the products and the identical character
and quality of other instruments of lesser dis-
tinction, which sell at varying prices under
some other trade marks?
This may not be exactly fair piano selling.
The argument, while plausible and perhaps
sometimes accurate, is not always fair to the
pianos in competition. But the effect upon
the entire piano industry is likely to be dele-
terious. How it acts in the particular cases
of pianos from big combinations is not now
under discussion. But if competition is the
life of trade, in any business, it certainly is
that in the piano business and anything that
lays competition open to attack of the kind im-
plied seems especially bad for the retailers
and their salesmen.
QUICK! CALL THE TUNER!
Two-thirds of the pianos in the homes throughout
the country are at normal pitch, if the 3,000 letters
received in response to an experiment conducted by
Morgan L. Eastman from Station KYW, Chicago,
may be taken as a criterion. During one of Mr. East-
man's recent series of lectures on "Musical Tones," a
certain note was struck on the studio piano, the lis-
teners being requested to go to their pianos, locate
the note, and send in their findings. In return, KYW
promised to answer each letter, stating the note that
was sounded, thus enabling listeners to know whether
their pianos were normally pitched. The note
sounded at the station was E flat. Replies were re-
ceived from every state in the Union, and a large
number from Canadian listeners. Mr. Eastman is
musical director of KYW.
An extensive music department has been added to
the business of the Duffee-Freeman Furniture Co., 47
South Broad street, Atlanta, Ga.
July 19, 1924.
NEW CORPORATION
IN HOUSTON, TEXAS
South Texas Music Co. to Take Over the
Business of the Houston Bush & Gerts
Piano Co.
The Bush & Gerts Piano Co. of Texas in Houston,
Texas, has been turned over to a new company organ-
ized to buy the Bush & Gerts Piano Company's
Houston branch store. This new corporation is
styled the South Texas Music Company, and is
headed by J. B. Thiery, late of Milwaukee, Wis.,
where he has been engaged in the music business for
the past score of years.
Previous to locating in Milwaukee, Mr. Thiery was
a piano salesman and manager for the W. W. Kim-
ball Company, Chicago. Aside from Mr. Thiery, the
new president, it is said there will be but few if any
changes in the personnel of the business at Houston.
The amount involved in this sale, according to
W. L. Bush, who is now in Chicago and who con-
firms the story of the deal, is about $175,000. The
sale of the Houston store does not in any way affect
the business of the Bush & Gerts Company's busi-
ness at Dallas.
AMONG THIS WEEK'S
VISITORS TO CHICAGO
W. F. Schwentker, Evansville, Ind., and E. E.
Woods, Battle Creek, Mich., Encountered.
Dealers who were welcome in the Chicago trade
this week were, W. F. Schwentker, of the W. F.
Schwentker Piano Co., Evansville, Ind., and E. E.
Woods of Battle Creek, Mich.
Both gentlemen are enjoying a fairly good busi-
ness in their respective cities. The former recently
opened a new store in the business center of Evans-
ville, where he and his brother, James Schwentker,
are doing business in a lively style.
The Schwentker firm has operated a store on the
outskirts of Evansville for a number of years and
has made rapid progress. It now boasts of having
two of the finest stores in Evansville, and has con-
tributed much in a musical way to that city.
POPULARITY FOR WHITE ORGAN.
There is no other folding organ that h^s attained to
equal popularity with the A. L. White, made by A. L.
White, 215 Englewood avenue, Chicago. It has be-
come a practical adjunct to traveling equipment, and,
in small chapels and missionaries, there is no question
as to its durability or adaptability to the varied pur-
poses for which it is manufactured. The demand for
the little folding reed-organs has been well sustained
during the. past year. In the export department the
sales have steadily increased as th staunch and musi-
cal character of the A. L. White instruments has
become more and more widely known throughout the
world. And the domestic sale has also been better
than before in a good many years.
ENDORSE STRAUCH ACTION.
The qualities desired by ambitious playerpiano
manufacturers are assured in the player action made
by Strauch Bros., Inc., New York, as testified to by
F. Radle, Inc., New York, in a recent letter: "We
surely have to congratulate you on the baby player
action that you made for us and we would request
you to make up eleven (11) more, so as to make the
even dozen, just the same as this one. If you can
give us the levers instead of the buttons, we would
surely prefer it that way. We know that this action
will sell and give satisfaction, and I again want to
congratulate you on turning out so fine a player
action."
REOPENS STEINERT STORE.
M. Steinert & Sons, Boston, has reopened its
Athol, Mass., store in a new location at 408 Main
street, a short distance from the former location, 369
Main street. A Duo-Art concert by Velma Balcom
and Anis Fuleihan was part of the open day's pro-
gram. Talking machines, radio, rolls and records
will be carried as heretofore in addition to pianos and
players. The store is under the management of
A. R. Goddard.
NEW MAINE BRANCH.
A branch of the Maine Music Co. has been opened
at 17 Forest avenue, Portland, Me., with Harry Sea-
ford as manager. Mr. Seaford was for many years
associated with M. Steinert & Sons, as salesman and
manager. The Maine Music Co. carries a complete
line of talking machines and records, as well as a full
line of pianos and radio.
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