MUSICAL
TIMES
PRESTO
Established
1881
Established
1884
THE AMERICAN MUSIC TRADE WEEKLY
10 Cents a Copy
CHICAGO, SATURDAY, MAY 21, 1927
CONVENTION PLANS
MOVING FORWARD
Preparations for June Events Are Taking
Shape and Committee of Arrangements
Report Good Progress for a Week of
Unequaled Trade Interest.
PIANO PLAYING CONTEST
Intending Visitors Are Advised Not to Delay Their
Applications for Tickets to Final Tournament,
Crown of the Convention.
After listening to an interesting talk on "What to
Sell, and How," by W. W. Williamson, general agent
of the Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company,
at Chicago, sponsored and introduced by Jas. V. Sill,
of the wholesale department of the W. W. Kimball
Co., the Piano Club of Chicago and the committee
of arrangements of the music trades convention took
up the straggling odds and ends of things to be done
in the pre-convention work on hand.
President Gordon Laughead gave a resume of
what had been accomplished by the Piano Club and
the Committee of Arrangements and, taking up some
of the things requiring action, remarked that only one
more noonday luncheon of the Club and the com-
mittee meeting which follows this luncheon will take
place prior to Monday, June 6, when the much her-
alded Piano Club luncheon takes place at the Stevens
Hotel, leaving for next Monday, the twenty-third, the
one open meeting of the club before the convention
starts, June sixth.
Advice to Members.
The chairmen of the Committee of Arrangements.
G. R. Brownell, of the Piano Club luncheon on June
6, and Roger O'Connor of the banquet Thursday eve^
ning, June 9, are giving timely warnings to secure
reservations early. "You cannot be too early," they
say. Mr. O'Connor urges that, to secure good places
in the main dining room, or even any place at all in
the dining room and avoid being tabled in a lobby
location, replies to the invitations already mailed be
sent to him without further delay.
Chairman Brownell is equally insistent as to the
Monday noon luncheon. All seats and tables for
Monday noon are reserved; single seats and tables
seating groups of eight and ten persons.
It should be remembered that this is the official
meeting of the Music Industries Chamber of Com-
merce and the luncheon is to be held in the Grand
Ball Room of the new 7 Stevens Hotel. Coupled with
this announcement is the repeated warning to dealers,
travelers, saksmen, and others who are coming 'to
the convention and who wish to put up at the
Stevens to make reservations early.
The matter of reduced railroad fare to the conven-
tion has been settled at a fare-and-one-half for the
round trip.
Piano Playing Tournament.
Plans for the Piano Playing Tournament finales
are progressing satisfactorily and the arrangements
for distribution of tickets is settled. The ticket distri-
bution is in the hands of Carl Sundberg, secretary of
the Q R S Music Co. Allotments have been made
for the trade, schools, teachers and other divisions,
but to secure tickets dealers should apply to Mr.
Sundberg, room 1117 Kimball Building. 25 East Jack-
son boulevard, who will supply demands out of one
thousand tickets set aside for the music trades
and industries.
It is essential that applications be made to Mr.
Sundberg, in writing, to insure proper attention, and
to be provided with admissions to this interesting and
important event of the week. In fact, the grand
finale concert is booked by a good many persons as
the affaire de resistance of the entire convention.
A Sample Request.
Richard W. Lawrence, of the Bankers' Commercial
Security Company, New York, and ex-president of
the National Music Industries Chamber of Com-
merce, fearing he might miss getting seats if he de-
layed his application, wrote to Gordon Laughead,
chairman of the Chicago Committee of Arrangements,
begging that tickets be reserved for him. Herewith
is Mr. Lawrence's letter and Mr. Laughead's reply:
New York. May 11. 1927.
Dear Gordon: Please let me have (if you can spare
them) three tickets for the grand finale of the Greater
Chicago Piano Playing Tournament, to be held on
Wednesday evening, June 8, at the Hotel Stevens. I
assuredly want to be present on this notable occasion.
Enclosed is stamped envelope for your convenience.
Looking forward to seeing you during the gather-
ing of the clans, I am
Sincerely,
RICHARD W. LAWRENCE.
Chicago, May 16, 1927.
Mr. Richard W. Lawrence,
Care Bankers Commercial Security Co., Inc.,
270 Madison avenue,
New York City. N. Y.
Dear Mr. Lawrence: The committee in charge of
the Greater Piano Playing Tournament are reserving
three tickets for you to be present at the grand finals,
Wednesday evening, June 8, at the Stevens Hotel.
We appreciate most sincerely when a past presi-
dent of the Music Industries Chamber of Commerce,
living in New York City, takes such a sincere interest
in our effort here in Chicago to promote the piano.
We sincerely hope that other prominent men in the
trade will write us requesting reservations. We have
your request on file and as soon as the printed tickets
are placed in our hands, we will gladly forward the
three requested.
Thanking you for your interest and assuring you a
most cordial and royal welcome in Chicago, we are
Sincerely yours,
CONVENTION ARRANGEMENTS COM.
GORDON LAUGHEAD, Chairman.
AMERICAN PIANO CO'S
CONVENTION DISPLAYS
Two Notable Exhibits Will Be Found at the
Hotel Stevens and Another at the Cable
Piano Co.'s Warerooms.
The American Piano Company, New York, will
have several attractive special displays in Chicago
during the annual convention of the music trade, June
6 to 9. While showing the wide scope of its manu-
facturing aims, these separate exhibits of the Ameri-
can Piano Co. at the Hotel Stevens and elsewhere
will also impress the individuality of the famous in-
struments on visitors. This individuality is an asset
which has become preserved with extreme care and
the aims of the several organizations is the preserva-
tion of the high ideals associated with the famous
names.
Knabe at the Convention.
The Wm. Knabe & Co., exhibit will be at the
Hotel Stevens during the convention and will con-
sist of a showing of period models of the Ampico
and Knabe grands.
Knabe representatives to attend the convention are
R. K. Paynter, president of the company, who will be
at the Blackstone; E. Fred Colber and S. J. Ailing,
who will be at the Hotel Stevens.
Ampico Corporation.
The Ampico Corporation, New York, will have an
Ampico Recording and Cabinet Display at the Hotel
Stevens during the convention. Representatives of
the corporation attending the convention will be J. M.
Delcamp, manager of the Ampico Corporation; James
White, Henry DeVerner and J. J. Davin.
Mason & Hamlin Display.
Mason & Hamlin grands and Ampico grands will
be exhibited at the Cable Piano Co.'s warerooms,
Wabash avenue and Jackson boulevard, during the
days of the music trade convention in Chicago. At-
tending the convention will be Henry L. Mason, Wm.
P. Marsh, and George R. Whittier, all of whom will
be registered at the Hotel Stevens.
GORDON LAUGHEAD IN THE EAST.
Gordon Laughead. resident of the Piano Club of
Chicago, mentioned at the Convention Committee of
Arrangements held at the Piano Club dining room
last Monday that, as it would be necessary for him
to go East on business, the Monday noon meeting
of the Club next Monday would be presided over by
Vice-President Harry Bibb.
$2 The Yea
RADIANO FEATURED
AT CABLE DISPLAY
First Public Showing of Remarkable New In-
strument in Which Radio and Piano Are
Combined, Will Be Made During
Convention Week in Chicago.
A GENUINE INNOVATION
Patented Device Attached to Sounding Board Per-
mits of Broadcasting and Receiving Without
Aid of Microphone.
One of the most interesting of the many displays
lo be seen at the music trades convention, at Hotel
Stevens, Chicago, week after next, will be the exhibit
by The Cable Company of the new "Radiano," a
remarkable combination of piano and radio receiving
set. Some particulars of this remarkable instrument,
in which the wonders of radio are coupled with all
the possibilities of the piano, were published in Presto-
Times last December.
At that time the almost
incredible invention of a piano in which the sounding
board is made to take the place of the microphone,
with "loud speaker" disposed of, was an innovation
so new as to astonish the trade even more than the
scientific world.
Now the dual instrument, in perfected form, will
be presented for public and trade approval. And, in
anticipation, nothing better could be done than to
reproduce here what was said of the "Radiano'' when
it w T as first discussed at the time it first drew the
attention of this paper. For at that time it was ex-
perimental, and the powerful Cable Company had not
bestowed upon it the endorsement which is now im-
plied by the fact of its forming a part of the con-
vention display so soon to begin.
The inventors of the new bidder for trade and
public interest, are three Minneapolis men, Fred
Rohm, Frank W. Adsit and an experienced member
of the trade named Priess.
An important feature of the "Radiano" is that it
converts the piano into a giant "loud speaker," from
which all sounds, including speech, and especially
piano numbers, are reproduced with amazing fidelity.
Eliminates Excess Vibrations.
"The Radiano is a small device not unlike the ele-
ment incorporated in many loud speakers, from which
projects a piece of metal that is secured to the sound-
ing board of a piano. When broadcasting, the Radi-
ano is connected directly to the amplifier circuit and
the tone vibrations are transmitted without the use of
a microphone.
"Reproduction of piano tones has been one of the
major problems confronted by broadcast engineers.
No matter how fine the adjustments, even with a spe-
cially built piano, it has not been possible always to
eliminate the excessive vibrations sometimes resulting
in a tinny sound.
"These difficulties are entirely eliminated by the
Radiano. There is no metallic sound, no microphone
roar and all tones and overtones, which hitherto
have escaped fidelity of reproduction, are distinctly
audible.
"When used in receiving, the Radiano is connected
to the receiving set and the sounding board reacts
similarly to the diaphragm of a loud speaker. Dem-
onstrations have shown it capable of tremendous
volume without distortion."
The Radiano has been exhibited, by invitation, to
experts at the Cable Building, in Chicago, and the
effects as applied to the piano have been surprising.
There can be no doubt that there is a large field
for the combination instrument by which the endless
advantages of both radio and piano are enhanced.
The exhibit at the Cable Company's display during
the convention will draw interested crowds and the
discussion as to future possibilities will serve as one
of the most interesting topics of convention week.
George C. Wille, head of the George C. Wille Co.,
Canton, O., has been elected a director of the Can-
ton Retail Merchants' Association.
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