September 1, 1929
P R E S T 0-T I M E S
good manufacturer in the sale of pianos, not only for
the increased income that it would give him but for
the good that he could do his community and the
good that he could do the industry.
Radio Causes Some Worry.
There is one thing that is causing a lot of tuners
considerable worry and that is the radio. If I were
a tuner who was used to doing fine, delicate work;
used to going into the homes and satisfying the family,
I would fully investigate the servicing of this latest
marvel of science. I know that the piano tuner
objects seriously to doing anything out of his regular
line of work but I also know that the radio is here to
stay and that they require plenty of service and that
the tuner who is used to fine, delicate work, is logi-
cally the man to do this service work providing he
spends sufficient time to properly educate himself in
the mysteries of this new art.
I personally, do not believe that there is any con-
flict between the radio and the piano. The radio is
purely a device of entertainment while the piano is
not only a device of entertainment but also a means
of culture and refinement. Over half of the joy of
music is in the ability to produce the music yourself
and when the people of this country listen to good
music as they do on the radio, it will surely instill in
them a desire to produce some of that music and this
is where the piano fits in.
Piano Is King.
The piano is the king of musical instruments, the
one man orchestra, the only instrument on which the
average person can produce all four parts of harmony.
There is nothing in sight that will take the place of
the piano and as long as this condition exists, we
need not worry over the disappearance of this instru-
ment but we must cooperate. We must all work
together to let the public know that the piano is still
the king of musical instruments.
This has been rather a long, rambling- talk about
"This Music Business." We could go on and on and
discuss it from many angles but I hope that these
few thoughts will give you something to take along
with you that you can use both for your benefit and
the benefit of the industry.
STEINWAY TECHNICIAN'S TALK.
Granville Ward, a member of the association and
technician with Steinway & Sons, New York, gave a
technical talk that was best understood by the tuners.
He dwelt particularly on methods of tone regulating.
In closing his talk on tone regulating he said:
"There are differences of opinion as to tone regu-
lating. Some like a very soft tone, some the brilliant.
It is alw'ays advisable to confer with the owner of
the piano regarding this.
"If any of you boys have any questions in mind, I
am at the Steinway Exhibit, where I shall be glad to
meet you and continue our talk."
GURNEY R. B R O W N E L L SPEAKS.
Gurney R. Brownell, manager of the piano tuning
and repair departments at Lyon & Healy's, Chicago,
gave one of his characteristic talks with lots of punch
to it. In part he said:
"There is no greater tragedy in the world than that
of a man who stays in a rut all his life when, with
just a little effort, he could bring success within his
grasp.
"Don't tuck yourself away like a piece of misfit
furniture into a dark and obscure corner, and subject
yourself to unspoken criticism. Stand out in the light
of achievement and invite open admiration. Make up
your mind now—today—that you're going to settle
this problem once and for all.
"To stay where you are, you will have to keep
moving, and as the Irishman puts it, 'You have to
run like hell to stand still these days.'
"No system has yet been devised to help a man
who doesn't believe in himself and his business.
"Ever since Lyon & Healy, the company I am asso-
ciated with, made its notable appearance, over sixty-
five years ago, the name of Lyon & Healy has enjoyed,
a commanding prestige. The success of Lyon &
Healy's piano tuning department furnishes unassail-
able evidence of the unlimited capabilities of the great
organized forces of the company when marshalled in
their full strength. Organization is the answer. The
N. A. P. T., with its large membership, can organize
on a much larger scale with the co-operation of every
member."
TUNING PINS AND STRINGS.
The talk of Edmund C. Johnson, president of the
Schaff Piano String Co., Chicago, while technical in
an eminent degree, had many points interesting to the
layman. He said in part:
"Prior to the war seventy-live per cent of all tuning
pins used in this country were of foreign manufacture,
and no piano maker of merit was supposed to use any-
thing but a foreign pin. True, a few pioneers were
willing to support, in a half-hearted way, our one
domestic manufacturer. He had learned his trade in
Germany, he made a pin that answered all of their
needs, but it lacked background.
"With the war, naturally the foreign supply was
cut off, and there was a time when the entire industry
was dependent on this one concern for its source of
supply. In order to satisfy the demand, new machin-
ery had to be built. It was a case of quick produc-
tion, regardless of quality. The result was that those
manufacturers who had used the German pin con-
demned the domestic one.
"A number of other concerns entered the field, all
of whom have since passed out of existence, but in
passing they left many new ideas which have now
been synchronized into a perfect product. Instead of
trailing the imported article, we now lead it."
TALK BY W I L B E R T O N GOULD.
Wilberton Gould, a member from New York city,
talked on "Collective Success." He said:
"Individually, we can accomplish nothing; collec-
tively we have it in our power to advance and to do
great good to ourselves as well as to the manufac-
turers, the dealers and the piano owning public. And
the fact that our activities, locally and nationally, are
constantly being watched must not be lost sight of.
"Since the inception of our board of directors, the
New York division has printed and sold to association
members and mailed to teachers, and so forth, over
15,000 of the division's pamphlet, "Care of the Piano."
The seed that has thus been sown is bound to bring
its reward, but constant vigilance is the price of
success."
T. J. OWIEARA'S TALK.
T. J. O'Meara, of Kansas City, editor of the
Tuners' Journal, said: "Pianos catch cold. Extreme
changes of temperature are dangerous, because a
piano responds immediately to violent weather
changes. The safe degrees for a piano are between
60 and 80 degrees."
Warning against letting children practice on pianos
that are out of tune or below pitch, the speaker
declared that a wrong conception of tone might be
acquired. A child may play his piano out of tune,
go to a neighbor's house where the piano is tuned and
the pitch correct, and become confused, he said.
Putting Piano Back Where It Belongs.
The question, "Should Music Be a Basic Factor in
the Child's Education?" was the subject ably answered
by Dr. J.'Lewis Browne, Director of Musical Educa-
tion in the Chicago Public Schools.
"I never heard a talkie that sounded like a human
being, did you?" said Dr. Browne. "Always like a
voice inside of a barrel, hollow, uncanny. Did you
ever hear orchestration by radio that sounded like an
orchestra? I never have. We want the real thing.
Spread the gospel of music, real music, more and
more. Nothing stands still; we're either going ahead
or going behind. Our salvation lies with the music
teachers."
Dr. Browne said there were three things that had
cut into the piano business. First, the radio; second,
the small apartment; third, the automobile. He based
this conclusion upon information he had received in
80 answers to letters of inquiry that he had sent out
to piano dealers.
In the schools of Chicago there are 14,400 teachers.
It seemed to Dr. Browne that there was lots of
chance for propaganda right there. If we would think
for ourselves and act for ourselves—well, the millen-
nium was not impossible.
Teaching the piano, Dr. Browne said, was the only
solution of a most difficult problem—"putting the
piano back where it belongs." Some one had said,
"Only the good ones will survive." Dr. Browne said:
"I don't know anything about that, but if there's any-
thing I can do, I'm ready to go in for it."
BANQUET A SUCCESS.
The banquet at the Sherman House was a bril-
liant success. Speeches, music, entertainment, viands
were all of the best and everybody was happy.
ADDRESS OF ROY E. W A I T E
of the Piano Trade Magazine.
At the tuners' banquet Roy E. Waite spoke as
follows:
"I would feel very proud indeed if I had the ability
to stand here and discuss with you, as one expert to
another, the technic of your profession. But I can't
do that, my friends. Confidentially, I know nothing
about piano tuning. And I have the most profound
respect for the man who can use his ear—the least
infallible of the organs of the five senses, it seems
to me. I have the greatest respect for the man who
can use his ear as a yardstick to measure pitch.
"I could never be a tuner, that I know. And I
think all of us are a little inclined to covet those
talents which seem to us so impossible, difficult. Also,
perhaps, we are a little liable to be unappreciative of
the talents we have. We could worry along without
piano salesmen—we are worrying along without very
many right now. A certain number of people would
buy pianos anyhow and anyone can take a man's order
for a piano. We could worry along without travel-
ing men. There would still be pianos sold and played
upon if we did no advertising and had no trade papers.
But there could be no piano business without piano
tuners. And not one person in 100,000 can tune a
piano.
"Almost anyone can drive a nail and saw a board,
and build a house, after a fashion. Most anyone
could if put to it, do most any of the things we
employ others to do daily, and get by with it, after
a fashion. But tuning the piano! None but a man
of your talents could ever start the job, let alone
finish it.
"Therefore, I have profound respect for my audi-
ence as representing an exclusive profession, a pro-
fession of the elect, whose members can do some-
thing that presidents and kings and dictators cannot
do, something of the mind and the ear that is acquired
and is not an accident of birth.
"As your profession is rather rare and your talents
unusual, so are your responsibilities great. I do not
refer to your technic. All of you are probably good
tuners or you wouldn't be in the membership organi-
zation. But I refer to your rather extraordinary
opportunities for service to the piano industry. You
are the trade ambassadors of good will to the public.
You go into the homes of the people repeatedly and
people ask you questions about pianos and the piano
business, and you get an insight into their piano con-
sciousness that men in no other profession get.
"Don't become cvnical because of foolish state-
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