April 9, 1927.
PRESTO-TIMES
CONTEST PLANS
WIN IN DETROIT
All Principals and Teachers in Public and
Parochial School Systems Enthusiastically-
Back of Grand Piano Playing Event
in the Motor City.
LEADING CITIZENS CONCERNED
Second Event Further Advanced Than Last Year
with Every Promise of a Greater Success
and Far-Reaching Results.
Preliminary publicity and preparations for the
second annual Greater Detroit Piano Playing Contest,
under the direction of Roy A. Maypole and the
supervision of Frank J. Bayley, are making rapid
strides, being much further advanced than at same
time last year.
The Detroit Times is using strong publicity and
the Detroit Board of Education has sent a circular
of explanation and instruction to the principal of
every school. On April 1 all principals attended a
special meeting for this purpose which was addressed
by Mr. Maypole. April 4, Roy Parsons, director of
music in Highland Park schools, brought in all his
music teachers for luncheon, when Mr. Maypole and
Mr. Bayley went over the whole matter, with the
result that all these teachers appear thoroughly sold
on the idea, pledging their whole co-operation.
Circulars with Power.
Circulars, which contain the names of the fore-
most citizens of greater Detroit as advisory commit-
tee, will be distributed to every one of the three hun-
dred thousand school children of the city by the
teachers this week. Many wonderful endorsements
are being received which will be published from time
to time in the Detroit Times. The piano playing
contest is fast taking on the form of a great, wide-
spread public movement promoting the child playing
the piano, both for the music benefit of the child
E. Leins Piano Co.
Makers of Pianos and
Player Pianos That Are
Established L e a d e r s .
Correspondence from Reliable
Dealers Invited
Factory and Offices, 304 W. 42nd St.
NEW YORK
fht Hepj>e, Marcellus and Edouard jfutes
manufactured by tLe
HEPPE PIANO COMPANY
are the only pianos In the world with
Three Sounding Boards.
Patented In the United States. Great Britain)
France, Germany and Canada.
Liberal arrangements to responsible agents only*
Main Office, 1117 Chestnut Si.
PHILADELPHIA, PA.
v A QUALITY PRODUCT
FOR OVER
QUARTER OFA CENTURY
bst.layo I
and to benefit the homes of the community. Last
year many held back their whole-hearted endorse-
ment in fear-that there might be commercialism be-
hind the proposition somewhere. It is a great pleas-
ure to note this year, however, that the question never
comes up and the Detroit Music Trades Association
and the Detroit Times are complimented on every
hand.
The contests are to be held during the month of
May and including June 3rd, with the grand finals
at the Michigan Music Merchants convention August
16 in the great Belle Isle bowl.
Thursday evening, March 31, Mr. Bayley accepted
the invitation of John Elmore, publisher of the Bal-
timore American, and addressed the Baltimore trade
together with many out-of-town men, including a
delegation from Philadelphia, on the theory and
practice of a piano-playing contest. He assured them
of his utmost co-operation.
Letters of Support.
Stephen Majewski, mayor of Hamtramck, Wayne
county, Mich., under date of April 1, expressed his
approbation of the contest in the following letter to
Mr. Bayley:
"Dear Mr. Bayley: I am heartily in favor of the
work which you and your association are doing, as
I firmly believe that the promotion of music is as
much a part of a child's education as the three R's,
and agreed with you that a knowledge of the piano is
basic.
"Any work that has to do with the welfare of the
boys and girls in my community most assuredly has
my hearty endorsement. The results which followed
last year's contest through the efforts of your Mr.
Phil Sadowski have come to my attention and ap-
proval as a member of the school board at the time."
Ray M. Parsons, head of the public schools of
Highland Park, also sent the following message to
Mr. Bayley:
"We shall be glad to assist you and to encourage
all piano students of school age to enter the coming
Greater Detroit Piano Playing Contest. We entered
last year and we feel that any doubts we may have
had in regard to its value were quite laid at rest.
"It is, therefore, with a sincere belief in its educa-
tional significance and music incentive that we again
enter this contest, pledging the Detroit Music Trades
Association and the Detroit Times our utmost co-
operation."
Big List of Sponsors.
The following Detroit music houses are sponsors
of the piano playing contest: Artonian Piano Co.,
Bayley Music House, Bush & Lane Piano Co., Cable
Piano Co., City Music Co., Detroit Music Co., Fer-
guson & Dulmage, Grinnell Bros., Harper Music
Shop, Hustedt Piano Co., Janney-Bowman, Inc.,
Johnston's Music House, Kimball Piano Co., J. L.
Hudson Co.'s Music Store, Levine & Black Piano
Co., Mitchell Music House, John A. Moll, Noble
Piano Co., People's Outfitting Co., Q R S Roll Co.,
Sadowski Music House, Schilling Piano Co., Starr
Piano Co., H. F. Tallon Co., Weil & Co., Wellensiek
Music House, Rudolph Wurlitzer Co.
PIANO PLAYING PRODIGY
IS ONLY FIVE YEARS OLD
Baby Jirasek, Detroit, Is Enthusiastic Aspirant for
Piano Playing Contest Honors.
A 5-year-old musical prodigy has been discovered
by the second annual Greater Detroit School Chil-
dren's Piano Playing Contest in little May Evelyn
Jirasek of 12325 Greenlawn avenue, who has only
been studying music for three months but has mas-
tered 51 pieces, among them such difficult composi-
tions' as Paderewski's "Minuet," "The Jolly Work-
men," "The Cradle Song" and "The Peasant Dance."
Roy A. Maypole, director of the Detroit contest,
who heard the little girl play, calls attention to the
fact that when she played Paderewski's "Minuet" it
was the composition as written and not a simplified
form.
The index finger of her left hand measures exactly
one and seven-eights inches.
CUP FOR MUSIC CONTEST.
The Martin Bros. Piano Co., Springfield, Mo., pre-
sented a trophy cup as an award in the music festival
held in Aurora, Mo., April 1, under the direction of
the Aurora High School. William James, of the
Martin Bros. Piano Co., was one of the judges in
the contest in which eleven schools participated.
POOJJE
SCHUMANN PERIOD MODEL
A WINDOW ATTRACTION
Kieselhorst Piano Co., St. Louis, Attracts At-
tention of Prospective Buyers with
Lacquer Finished Grand Style.
The show windows of the Kieselhorst Piano Co.,
St. Louis, are always instructive to the public and
usually result in suggestions to the prospective piano
customer. Last week in Kieselhorst's front window,
1007 Olive street, was something which caused in-
numerable passersby to pause and admire. It was
NEW SCHUMANN BACCIO IN KIESELHORRT PIANO
COMPANY'S DISPLAY WINDOW, ST. LOUIS, MO.
the beautiful new Italian period model Schumann
5 foot 3 inch grand piano made by the Schumann
Piano Co., Rockford, 111.
"The Schumann Piano Co.," writes Mr. Kiesel-
horst, "has always favored us with the highest type
of quality merchandise. And now comes the unusual
appeal of these new beauties which blend appro-
priately with modern home furnishings, and so shame
the appearance of old, worn-out styles of pianos. A
new angle of approach is provided for old prospects
and something really out of the ordinary for new
ones to enthuse over. It has been a pleasure to
observe the striking effect of this style in our show
window. And people are not just stopping to look
either. They come in to inquire.
"These new Schumann periods have color and
style. In line they are dignified and authentic. But
one of the most remarkable things about them is
their finish of closed-pore, smooth-as-satin lacquer
that can scarcely be detected from varnish but which
is entirely immune from those dangerous ills of
checking and cracking."
A CHICKERING AMPICO OWNER.
The purchase of a beautiful Chickering Ampico
by John W. Davis, one-time nominee for Pres-
ident, and now one of the attorneys in the Ford 'tax
case, places another name of national prominence
on the long list of prominent Chickering owners.
The sale was made by Chickering & Sons' New
York store.
MASCOT
The World's Leading Small
Electric Piano
TAKES UP SMALL SPACE
MAKES LARGE EARNINGS
Your territory may be open
Western Electric Piano Co.
429 W. Superior St., Chicago
GRAND AND UPRIGHT PIANOS
}ANOC
PLAYER PIANOS
Incl 917^1
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/