Presto

February 4, 1928
PREST 0-TI M E S
STEINWAY GRANDS
IN ENSEMBLE NUMBER
Portland, Ore., Music Lovers Hear Notable
Concert of Federated Music Clubs—
Other News.
THINGS SAID OR SUGGESTED
CONGRATULATE
ED. HERZOG
Edward Herzog, the genial and efficient sales man-
ager for Edmund Gram, Inc., Milwaukee, has the
distinction this year of a double header in anniversary
celebrations. Both are silver—one to recall his happy
marriage and the other to mark his twenty-fifth year
with the progressive Milwaukee house. The former
is a glad reminder of an event in a romance in which
all his friends in the music trade join in the felicita-
tions; the latter helps to bunch 9,125 joyous days of
piano selling effort for one house.
* * *
ADAM
SCHNEIDER
Presidents, vice-presidents and secretaries of the
Chicago Piano & Organ Association may come and
go, but the treasurer goes on forever. Some treas-
urers are foreordained at birth for the job of treas-
urer. The acquisitive instinct is natural with them.
Others—the made treasurers—are fitted by circum-
stances for collecting the mazuma and keeping a
Scotch grip on the wallet. Others again have the
treasuring job thrust upon them.
It is a matter of trade history that Adam Schneider
was picked as treasurer of the Chicago Piano &
Organ Association because of his instinctive fitness
for making a treasurer's touch effectively, occasionally
a delicate proceeding; the pickers, of course, correctly
assumed that his tendencies also included the ability
to jealously watch the overhead. The good treasurer
doesn't let a dollar leave the wad without assurance
as to a proper destination.
When Mr. Schneider accepted the treasuring job on
that remote day, he hung the badge of responsibility
about his shoulders. He continues to wear it with
pride. He has cinched the job for life. He can't
fire himself and if he tried, the association would get
an injunction in court to stop him. But Mr. Schneider
doesn't want to quit a job he likes and which repre-
sents, more than anything else, the affection of his
associates in the Chicago Piano and Organ Associa-
tion.
* * *
Opportunity could hardly be called a confirmed
knocker. It knocks but once, according to the poets'
belief.
* * *
THE SHIP BORE
One of E. A. Kieselhorst's fellow passengers on a
steamer sailing for New York last summer was an
English university professor who was studying racial
peculiarities. He was picking up facts for a book
he was about to write and went about the ship with
pencil poised over the ever ready notebook. He was
a variety of bore familiar on ocean ships and this
one constantly irritated others as well as the St.
Louis piano man, who was returning from an enjoy-
able vacation in Europe.
"Say, Mr. Kieselhorst," said the racial peculiarity
chaser to the piano man one day when lounging on
the deck was pleasant, "I w r as surprised to learn that
you were an American. Pawdon me if I seem per-
sonal, but you don't talk through your nose, you
know. All your people talk with a nasal twang I
believe. That's the er—expression. What?"
"Oh, yes, I do talk through my nose," said Mr.
Kieselhorst pleasantly. "But not during vacation."
"My word, but you surprise me!" exclaimed the
savant. "Wait until I get the proper page in my
notebook."
"Well," said Mr. Kieselhorst, "it's this way. You
see we are a commercial people and brought up to the
assurance that anything that saves time saves money.
Now we discovered long ago that if we talk through
our noses instead of through our tonsils, as you Eng-
lish do, we can talk quicker, thus saving time and, of
course, money."
"Wonderful," gasped the professor. "That dis-
covery positively astounds me."
"We teach the nasal twang in the schools you
know," added Mr. Kieselhorst, as the dumbfounded
savant scribbled his notes. "When we reach New
York I'll use the nasal stop altogether. I've got to
conclude a business deal there. The old nasal twang
for me when I buy pianos."
* * *
Start something. How about a monument to the
man who invented the big first payment?
* * *
TELEVISION SALES
At the General Electric Company's radio labora-
tories at Schenectady, N. Y., last week a moving pic-
ture was shown. Sent through the air like the voice
which accompanied the picture, it marked, the dem-
onstrators declared, the first demonstration of tele-
vision broadcasting and gave the first absolute proof
of the possibility of connecting homes throughout
the world by sight as they have already been con-
nected by voice.
It suggests for the piano dealer possibilities of a
revolutionary kind in selling pianos; makes probable
the paradox of the outside salesman selling on the in-
side. By the combination of sound and appearance
the salesman in the store, addressing his customer
over the television apparatus, may make his opening
spiel, exhibit the beauties of the case and finish, dem-
onstrate the charm of tone, overcome hesitancy with
clinching arguments and do everything necessary to
a closed deal but securing the signature of the cus-
tomer on the dotted line. Even facilities for that
may quickly follow the new wonders.
The laboratory experts in Schenectady said the
results shown were "the starting point of practical
and popular television." But it will be safe and sen-
sible for the outside piano salesman to keep his old
motor car in good running condition for quite a
while yet.
BOWEN PIANO LOADER
A twenty piano ensemble was given in Portland,
Ore., under the auspices of the Oregon Federation of
Music Clubs. Twenty Steinway concert grands were
used for the ensemble and were played by forty of the
most prominent musicians of the state of Oregon
under the direction of Willem van Hoogstraten, con-
ductor of the Portland Symphony orchestra. The con-
cert was held in the municipal auditorium January 18
and was attended by the largest audience that ever
greeted local musicians. The proceeds of the concert
were given to the Federation of Music Clubs to ad-
vance the study of music in young musicians.
The Portland, Ore., branch of Sherman, Clay &
Co. was visited January 24 by Philip T. Clay of the
San Francisco headquarters. While in Portland he
was met by R. E. Robinson of Seattle, manager of the
Pacific Northwest branches of the firm, and these
gentlemen, accompanied by Sidney Johnson, man-
ager of the Portland branch, left the next day on a
visit to the northwestern branches of the firm.
It is reported in Portland, Ore., that Sherman, Clay
& Co., which purchased the interests of the Wiley
B. Allen Company in San Francisco, and its five
branches in Oakland, Fresno, Stockton, San Jose and
Sacramento, gave in consideration in excess of $1,000,-
000. The Wiley B. Allen Company withdrew from
the Portland field early in 1927.
The branch of the Starr Piano Co. in Portland,
Ore., has moved from Fifth and Flanders to Fifteenth
and Kearney streets, where the company has taken
office and warehouse space in the building occupied
by Soliday Bros., piano movers. Charles Soulej,
Pacific Northwest manager of the Starr Company,
states that the Gennett records, which formerly were
handled through the Portland headquarters, will in
the future be handled direct from the Los Angeles
headquarters. This arrangement was made during a
recent visit to Portland of Harry Nolder, Pacific man-
ager.
Theodore Strong of the pipe organ department of
the Sherman, Clay & Co., San Francisco headquar-
ters, Avas a recent visitor to Portland, Ore.
AEOLIAN CO. OF MISSOURI.
The Aeolian Co. of Missouri, has established tem-
porary sales and office headquarters in the Luck-
Orwig-Leroi Building, at 1117-19 Locust street, St.
Louis, where general business activities are being car-
ried on. The entire first and second floors of the
building, which is located within a few blocks of the
company's fire-swept homes, have been taken over.
Meanwhile plans for the reconstruction of the burned
building at 1004 Olive street are going forward.
BURLINGTON HOUSE REORGANIZES.
The Guest Piano Co., Burlington, Iowa, is dis-
solving preliminary to a reorganization. James A.
Guest and Van Meter launched the original firm, in
the building it now occupies, nearly 75 years ago.
Locations were changed several times but recently
the firm returned to its original building. Charles
Schlichter and Lyman Guest have been the executives
of the firm in recent years.
PS SALESMEN
Outside Salesmen must be equipped so as to "show the goods." The season for country piano selling is approaching. Help your sales-
men by furnishing them with the New Bowen Piano Loader, which serves as a wareroom far from the store. It is the only safe
delivery system for dealers, either in city or country. It costs little. Write for particulars.
BOWEN PIANO LOADER CO.,
Winston-Salem, N. C.
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