June 25, 1927.
PRESTO-TIMES
FINE PIANOS IN NEW HOTEL
Accompanied by Mrs. Kieselhorst, St. Louis
Piano Man Will Tour England, Ger-
many, Italy and France.
Boston Hostelry
Recently
Opened with Formal Cere-
mony, Equipped with
Chickering Grand
Pianos.
The new Ritz-Carlton Hotel,
Boston, one of the finest hotels in
the country, is equipped with two
Chickering Grands. The new hotel,
illustrated herewith, was recently
opened with much ceremony. The
evening of the opening was marked
with a dinner attended by many no-
tables, including Governor Fuller of
Massachusetts, Mayor Xichols of
Boston and Mayor Walker of New
York. The appointments of the
hotel .'ire luxurious but dignified
throughout, and include two Chick-
ering pianos purchased from Chick-
ering & Sons' Bostcn retail store.
DR. SIGMUND SPAETH
CONCLUDES LONG TOUR
Artistic Advisor fcr the American Piano Co.,
New York, Has Had Busy Season of Lec-
turing and Writing.
Dr. Signiund Spaeth, Artistic Advisor to the Amer-
ican Piano Company, New York, and Ampico Cor-
poration, recently returned from a trip to the Pacific
Coast, during which he filled over forty lecture en-
gagements in a little more than two weeks' time. His
activity centered chiefly in southern California, where
he was presented under the auspices of the Fitzgerald
Music Company of Los Angeles. This well known
organization maintains a most efficient concert depart-
ment under the direction of Walter David, the former
New York manager.
Following a well constructed schedule, in which
there were often as many as four appearances in one
day, Dr. Spaeth addressed all the leading clubs of the
Los Angeles district, as well as many of the schools
and colleges. In every case his musical illustrations
were provided by the Ampico in the Knabe piano.
Mis most popular topic was "The Common Sense of
Music," and it is already announced that he will re-
turn to the coast next spring under the same auspices.
While in Los Angeles Dr. Spaeth identified himself
also with the motion picture industry. He was en-
gaged to arrange a very important theme song for a
film soon to be produced by Samuel Goldwyn, co-
starring Vilnia Banky and Ronald Coleman. This
film will be released in September and the song will
be published by the Boston Music Company.
Meets Superintendents.
On his way to the coast, Dr. Spaeth filled engage-
ments in Detroit and Omaha, and also took in the
Convention of Music Supervisors at Springfield, 111.
He visited San Francisco briefly after the conclusion
of his engagements in southern California, and also
gave three talks in Oregon, two in Portland and one
at the University of Eugene, The G. F. Johnson
Piano Company of Portland co-operated with the
Library Association in bringing him there for a public
lecture.
Dr. Spaeth's return trip was broken at Indianapolis,
where he appeared on the program of the Book Fair
conducted by L. S. Ayres & Company. He presented
excerpts from his two latest books, "Words and Mu-
sic" and "Read'Em and Weep," and "The Songs You
Forget to Remember." While at Indianapolis he paid
his respects to Booth Tarkington and other literary
celebrities, and was entertained by Dr. Lafayette
Page, father of Ruth Page, the popular dancer of the
Metropolitan Opera. Dr. Spaeth also stopped in
Chicago to complete the work of re-editing the Ki-
wanis Song Book. He is this year the International
Chairman of Music for the Kiwanis Clubs of Amer-
ica, and the new edition of the song book was the
most important work undertaken by his committee.
Almost immediately after his return to New York
he journeyed south to Memphis, Tennessee, for the
E. A. KIESELHORST SAILS
FOR SOUTHAMPTON
International Kiwanis Convention, at which he took
charge of the musical program.
His New Books.
Dr. Spaeth finds that he is kept very busy as a
free lance speaker and writer on music, having filled
over one hundred and fifty engagements this season.
He recently completed a booklet on "Musical Tone
and How to Hear It," and also contributed a volume
on the "Social Aspects of Music in America" to the
series on the "Fundamentals of Music," published by
the Caxton Institute of New York. Doubleday, Page &
Company will issue another volume of old songs
under his editorship in the fall, and he has also made
the piano arrangements for a book of mountain songs
to be published by Jay Greenberg. Another Spaeth
contract calling for a book on music is with Alfred
Knopf, and publication of this book is promised by
the spring of 1928. Dr. Spaeth will fill a few engage-
ments during the summer but will spend most of his
time in comparative quiet at Westport, Connecticut.
His work as a propagandist for good music is becom-
ing more widely recognized each year.
GERMAN PIANO INDUSTRY.
According to the latest report of the Chamber of
Industry and Trade in Berlin, the relatively satisfac-
tory level of labor in the piano workshops is main-
tained; in fact, in some shops an increase in the work-
ing staffs has taken place. But still the demand has
been exclusively from the home market, according to
Musik Instrumentembau Zeitung. During the Christ-
mas season the stocks in traders' hands were mostly
cleared out; who were obliged to renew their reserves.
Tt is assumed that, after present orders have been ful-
filled, the usual decline of the public demand as the
season advances will occur and business will be
weaker in the subsequent few weeks, especially as
foreign business continues very quiet. But the Ger-
man piano takes up such a supreme position in Italy
that pianos from other lands are comparaticely neg-
ligible; and, as in the past three years Italy's readi-
ness to buy both pianos and playerpianos, has so
increased, it may be said that during the current year
(1927) Germany will mark a continued success in
piano sales on the Italian market. Weak competitors
are Austria, Tscheckoslovakia and the United States.
With the exception of two known brands, France has
not succeeded in taking a firm position in Italy. The
automatic piano gains more and more friends; and
here also is Germany the largest furnisher.
E. A. Kieselhorst, head of the Kieselhorst Piano
Company, St. Louis, and Mrs. Kieselhorst left their
home last Sunday, June 19, for New York, the first
leg of a trip to extend over three and a half months
as now contemplated. They went at once to New
Haven, Conn., to witness the graduation of .their
second son. Earl H., 22 years old, of the class of
1927 at Yale University. They will also meet their
two other sons, Wallace and Sidney. Wallace, who
is 24, and the eldest son, graduated earlier this month
from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Ad-
ministration, having formerly graduated from Yale
in the class of 1925. Sidney B., 20, is the youngest
son. He is the captain of the Yale freshman track
team and goes with the Yale-Harvard joint team
this year to try to defeat the Cambridge-Oxford boys
at Stamford Bridge, London, July 9.
Mr. and Mrs. Kieselhorst were at the Hotel Roose-
velt, New York City, from Wednesday evening, this
week, until Friday night, when, sometime after din-
ner of that day, they embarked on the SS. Majestic,
which sailed at midnight for Southampton. After
landing at Southampton they will proceed at once
to London for a few days' visit to points in England,
thence to the continent, to Amsterdam, the Hague,
Rotterdam, Antwerp, Brussels, Ghent, Bruges, Aix
la Chappelle, Cologne, Strasbourg, and up 'the Rhine
to Mayence and Bonn. Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Heidel-
burg, Nuremberg, Leipzig, Berlin and all the im-
portant cities and places of interest of Germany,
Austria, Italy and France will be visited. They will
spend some time, and some money perhaps, at Monte
Carlo, though Mr. Kieselhorst says he will go into
the game as a near optimist, not with the certainty of
shattering the bank. They will give due attention to
gay Paree and be ready to return on the steamer
Leviathan from Cherbourg September 20.
The two elder sons will sail today (Saturday) on
the New Amsterdam for Plymouth, and Sidney, the
youngest, goes with the Yale-Harvards from Mont-
real today. The trip of the two elder boys is a
graduation present from their father, and, of course,
there will be several meetings and reunions of par-
ents and sons while they are all abroad. After the
games in London the three brothers will make an
independent tour by motor through Europe, covering
much the same route as the parents. They will meet
for reunions, however, from time to time.
ITEMS OF MUSIC TRADE
NEWS FROM INDIANAPOLIS
College Avenue Baptist Church Buys Style A Jesse
French & Sons Piano—Other News.
One of the sales during the past w r eek by the
Wilking Music Company, Indianapolis, was a Jesse
French & Sons' style "S" grand to the College Ave-
nue Baptist Church. Another sale of note was the
first new style "A" in cross grain veneer, which was
sold to Ralph Beckwith, a prominent veneer salesman.
When Mr. Beckwith saw the instrument that had just
arrived by truck from New Castle, the home of the
great French factories, he immediately decided that
the instrument would be placed in his home, being
thoroughly familiar with the unusually sweet tone of
the instrument.
Harry Wert, manager of the Pearson Piano Com-
pany and president of the Indianapolis Music Mer-
chants' Association, has decided to suspend the regu-
lar meetings of the association during the summer
months. This week will be the last meeting for the
summer, and at this meeting plans were discussed to
bring the Miessner Melody Way to Indianapolis. Al-
ready plans have been made to teach the Melody Way
at the Indiana College of Music under the super-
vision of Miss Gertrude Whelan.
Edward O'Connell, formerly connected with the
Heppe Piano Company, of Philadelphia, has joined
NEW WURLITZER SHOP.
the sales force of the Pearson Piano Company,
A Wurlitzer music store has been opened in the Indianapolis.
store at 546 Central avenue, Highland Park, 111., and
Miss Leckner, the bookkeeper at the Kokomo
has been leased for a term of years. The new shop
branch of the Pearson Piano Company, met with a
will be under the management of S. G. Carlson. The
serious accident recently. While driving she had
store is the first to be opened in the new McKillop
leaned against the door of the car which had not
Building at the southwest corner of Central avenue been securely closed. It opened, causing her to fall
and Green Bay road.
from the car on to the concrete pavement, causing a
gash in her head. Fortunately the car was not run-
Mrs. Lena M. Fahrney, daughter of I. N. Rice, ning at high speed.
Pacific Coast representative of prominent lines of
pianos, has taken an apartment in the Ambassador
Harger & Blish, the progressive music house of
Hotel, Los Angeles. She formerly made her home
Des Moines, la., has begun the publication of a clever
in San Francisco.
little house organ called "The Mike."
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