Presto

P R E S T 0-T I M E S
The American Music Trade Weekly
Published Every Saturday at 417 South Dearborn
Street, Chicago, Illinois.
PRESTO P U B L I S H I N G CO., Publishers.
F R A N K D. A B B O T T - - - - - - - - - -
Editor
(C. A. DANIELL—1904-1927.)
J. FERGUS O'RYAN
_ _ _ _ _
Managing Editor
Telephones, Local and Long Distance, Harrison 0234.
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, 111., under Act of March 3, 1879.
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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 correspondents, and
their assistance is invited.
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torial or news columns of Presto-Times.
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tion will be charged if of commercial character or 1 other
than strictly news interest.
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Forms close at noon on Thursday. Late news matter
should be in not later than 11 o'clock on that day. Ad-
vertising copy should be in hand before Tuesday, 5 p. m.,
to insure preferred position. Full page display copy
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Address all communications for the editorial or business
departments to PRESTO PUBLISHING CO., 417 South
Dearborn Street, Chicago, III.
SATURDAY, APRIL 28, 1928.
The last form of Presto-Times goes to press
at 11 a. m. Thursday. Any news transpiring
after that hour cannot be expected in the cur-
rent issue. Nothing received at the office that
is not strictly news of importance can have
attention after 9 a. m. on Thursday. If they
concern the interests of manufacturers or
dealers such items will appear the week follow-
ing. Copy for advertising designed for the
current issue must reach the office not later
fhan Wednesday noon of each week.
BACK TO PIANO LOYALTY
floor, that the loss in piano sales began. His-
tory repeats itself, with radio as the means
for mistakes. The neglected piano is now ex-
pected to pay for the deficit caused by too
much attention to radio, a commodity influ-
enced by sudden and unlooked for changes
and the margin of profit uncertainties arising
therefrom.
Some dealers with humility admit the lapse
in judgment and courageously are proceeding
after piano sales without any radio or other
distractions and according to the old princi-
ples of consistent advertising and persistent
pursuit of the piano prospect. Others, of
course, are damning the radio and the piano
and snifhngly telling their troubles to the man
on the street, the banker they try to touch, and
the discount company holding their discount
paper.
MEETING MR. URQUHART
The reporters of the music trade press who
last week covered the invitation of the Amer-
ican Piano Co., New York, to a special press
view of the new Knabe Building and show-
rooms as well as the Ampico laboratories, had
their expectations fulfilled. The supreme taste
in architecture, decorations and furnishings of
the Knabe headquarters and the suitability of
everything to intended purposes, even ex-
ceeded their anticipations. But in Mr. George
Urquhart, president of the company, several
trade paper representatives who had not pre-
viously met him, were agreeably disappointed.
As all reporters, including those of the trade
papers, consider the personality of a man a
very important matter, several in the flock at
the Knabe Building made anticipatory esti-
mates of Mr. Urquhart. Meeting officials of
piano houses who have been brought up, so to
speak, in the piano business does not disturb
them. But Mr. Urquhart—a lifetime banker,
although a young man—presented an element
of doubt as to his attitude. That, however,
was dispelled after a few minutes of easy
conversation.
The temperamental boys of the trade papers
found no trace of what they technically call
high-hattedness in Mr. Urquhart, but instead,
a pleasantly democratic and human attitude
that removed all feelings of reserve. They
found, too, that Mr. Urquhart, trained for
banking, could talk the piano trade language
they understood. Indeed, his ability to explain
matters in a clear and understandable manner
was one of the surprises of the occasion.
The piano business is always good, bad or
indifferent—in a relative sense. And invari-
ablv it is just what the piano dealer makes it.
Wherever there is discontent it has its basis
in the foolish talk of the dealers, which in turn
often voices disappointment arising' from false
judgment in the operation of the business.
While observing the growth of the musical
merchandise sales and the phenomenal in-
crease in the demand for band and orchestra
instruments, piano dealers experiencing slow
piano sales hesitated to include these commod-
ities in their music goods stocks. The goods
presented a means of bringing" the overhead
within money-making -possibilities, but the
PICTURING ART PIANOS
dealers continued to view them as '"side-lines"
Th steady rise in the demand for Period and
foreign to their piano point of view.
other art models in "pianos has been based on
But it is strange that dealers who viewed the absolute fidelity of line and decoration pe-
musical merchandise with aversion, jumped at culiar to each model. To enhance the artistic
radio when it made its appearance. And in effects of Period designs, the pianos are usu-
snapping at the receiving set hook they also ally shown in the warerooms in authentic set-
swallowed the sinker of radio parts and sup- tings and the harmony of the instruments with
plies. To many it proved a distressing expe- the architecture^ decorations and furnishings
rience. Tn the early glamor of the radio the typical of the periods, is a striking proof of the
dealers blindly neglected both pianos and the care and skill which has gone into the crea-
phonograph. Later when radio profits did not tion of Period model piano styles. It is an
materialize in sufficient quantities, and they illuminating 'example of how the art of piano
looked to pianos to make up the overhead, making goes hand in hand with the other arts.
they found their piano business had low r blood
In showing his artistic pianos in pictures for
pressure and anaemic degeneration of the prof- advertising it is now usual for the piano man-
its caused by their own neglect.
ufacturer to use the admirable methods of the
There were no complaints of slow piano showroom and depict the pianos with the suit-
selling in the old days when the phonograph able artistic surroundings. Photography won
paid its share of the overhead. It was when its claims to service through the fidelity of its
the dealer gave most of his attention to pho- reproduction, but in the opinion of the pro-
nographs, relegating his pianos to the second gressive advertising men, the photograph of
April 28, 1928
the Period piano must have something more
than fidelity to carry its message to the pro-
spective Period piano customers.
Now 7 photography, applied to piano pictur-
ing, has added environment, atmosphere, ac-
tion to its characteristic of convincing real-
ness. Instead of exhibiting a fine Period piano
model alone, an appropriate setting is pro-
vided with artistic lighting and shading' effects
to capture the coveted prospect's interest.
Many piano advertisers resort to color in mak-
ing pictures of their fine pianos and many of
the pictures are of high artistic value. But
black and white is often the logical medium
for depicting pianos even where special set-
tings have been provided. Aside from its abil-
ity in glorifying a subject while retaining all
the actualities, the black and white picture per-
forms many economical services for the piano
advertiser.
DEPENDENCE ON TEACHERS
The future of music in the United States de-
pends largely on the thoroughness of the ele-
mentary music studies. With the music su-
pervisors as a body favoring efficiency in mu-
sic teachers there is an assurance that thor-
oughness in the system will result. There are,
of course, competent and efficient teachers in
every American community. There are, how-
ever, also many incompetent teachers. The
latter seem to be in the majority. It is logical
that incompetent teachers are also indifferent
or careless teachers as far as thoroughness of
technical foundation is concerned. The task
of the music supervisors in the schools and in-
dividuals and organizations of influence the
desirable spirit that students be taught to real-
ize the seriousness of technical accuracy in
their musical performances.
'WAY BACK IN PRESTO
The following items are from a "Trade Notes"
column of Presto of May 4, 1890:
Tony Anguera, of the W. W. Kimball Co., Chicago,
has returned from his pleasure trip to the Pacific
Coast, which has been of value to his health. Mr.
Anguera brought back a reminiscence of his trip in
the shape of an order for forty-one pianos.
The new factory of the Braumuller Piano Com-
pany, New York, is situated on Fortieth street, be-
tween Tenth and Eleventh avenues, New York. The
factory has 17,500 square feet of floor space and a
manufacturing capacity of thirty-five or forty piano-
fortes a week. The Braumuller Piano Company has
been making steady success from the first.
The Shaw Piano Company has been incorporated
at Erie, Pa., to manufacture pianos. H. J. Raymore,
a well-known traveling salesman, is secretary. The
report that this concern may lease the Burdett organ
factory, is denied by the Burdett Organ Company.
The A. B. Chase Company use the entire front
page of the Norwalk, Ohio, Daily Reflector, in an
announcement of "What Leading Dealers and Musi-
cians Say of the A. B. Chase Piano." The testi-
monials, which are all dated in March or April of
this year, are highly complimenary to a magnificent
piano.
Adam Schaaf will move from 276 West Madison
street to a splendid and more commodious store at
Morgan and Madison streets.
The Story & Clark Organ Co., Chicago, has re-
cently received a pen and ink sketch of the building
occupied by its new agency in Berlin, Germany. It
is an exquisite piece of work and represents one of
the finest buildings in that city.
It is true that the public has a good deal of faith
in the recommendation given by a musician of a cer-
tain make of pianoforte and that it carries weight
that could not come even from the word of the manu-
facturer. To secure testimonials from artists and
publish them is proof positive that manufacturers
have faith in the quality and efficacy of the testi-
monials.
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